Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani was unmasked on the April 20 episode of The Masked Singer, months after news outlets reported two judges walked off during the taping of the episode after Giuliani was unmasked.
The Masked Singer, a reality singing competition that features celebrities singing songs while wearing head-to-toe costumes and face masks concealing their identities, is not known for making political statements but Giuliani's appearance nonetheless sparked outrage from some members of the judges' panel who did not want to look past Giuliani's involvement in the Capitol riot.
Giuliani, who has worked as former President Donald Trump's personal attorney, joined Trump on January 6, 2021 in urging Trump's supporters to march on the United States Capitol and stop the certification of the 2020 general election results that showed then-candidate Joe Biden, a Democrat, was the rightful winner.
Giuliani's participation on The Masked Singer prompted judge Ken Jeong to declare, "I'm done" before walking off set.
You can see what happened in the footage below.
After singing a rendition of George Thorogood And The Destroyers' "Bad to the Bone," Giuliani was asked why he'd chosen to appear on the program despite the controversy surrounding him.
Giualini replied that he'd come for his granddaughter, Grace, saying that he wants her "to know that you should try everything, even things that are completely unlike you and unlikely."
Giuliani's appearance did not resonate with viewers who criticized The Masked Singer's production team for inviting Giuliani to participate given that he has played a vital role in the effort to overturn an election that multiple sources have determined was both free and fair.
But Jeong's walkout in fact did and many have praised him while criticizing the program–and media outlets–for normalizing Giuliani's actions and giving him an opportunity to rehabilitate his image.
Giuliani's appearance on The Masked Singer comes after more than a year of him garnering unsavory headlines for filing lawsuits in an effort to overturn the election results and for sharing debunked conspiracy theories about voting irregularities.
His efforts have not been without consequences.
In July 2021, Giuliani claimed he is the victim of “political persecution” after his law license was suspended in Washington, D.C. The suspension was triggered automatically by Giuliani’s suspension the previous month from practicing law in the state of New York.
A New York appellate court officially suspended Giuliani’s law license, writing in a 33-page decision that he made “demonstrably false and misleading” statements about the 2020 election while working as Trump’s personal attorney.
