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The reality singing competition, which spices up a well-worn format by putting its contestants in elaborate disguises, entered its final episode of the year with just four candidates left.

Pearl, Boogie Woogie, Mad Scientist and Coral, all nicknames for the costumes the celebrities don for their performances, duked it out in one final showdown − the winner nabbing the Golden Mask trophy and being forced to reveal themselves.

‘The Masked Singer’ winner Vanessa Hudgens reveals if she plans on returning to music

Pearl ultimately reigned triumphant, impressing judges with a rendition of “Black Horse and the Cherry Tree.” Judges and viewers alike are kept in the dark on the identities of the masked singers, given clues on what (usually mid-profile) name they might be and tasked with recognizing their voice sight unseen.

Pear turned out to be country star Gretchen Wilson, an early-2000s staple, whose song “Redneck Woman” became an anthem.

The band fronted by singer Roger Daltrey, 81, and guitarist Pete Townshend, who turns 80 May 19, will kick off the aptly named The Song is Over North American Farewell Tour – billed as a “truly grand finale” – Aug. 16 just outside of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and wrap in Las Vegas Sept. 28.

The 16-show run, named for a song on The Who’s classic 1971 album, “Who’s Next,” will visit cities including Atlantic City, Boston, Toronto, Philadelphia and Seattle and showcase hits from the band’s six-decade career.

Tickets will be available during a Citi presale (citientertainment.com) and the Whooligan Fan Club starting from 10 a.m. local time May 13 through 10 p.m. local time May 15. The general on-sale begins at 10 a.m. local time May 16 at thewho.com/tour.

“We’re not a couple, but we are still very close friends,” Mellencamp says, “and I think it was an effortless decision for him to make sure that he was there for me and the kids when this happened.” Mellencamp shares four kids with Arroyave: Slate, 12, Cruz, 10, and Dove, 5, plus stepdaughter Bella.

“Everybody wants everything to be so black and white, but sometimes it isn’t exactly that,” she adds. “It’s like, OK, we’re all going to be there for this. Yes, we were nesting. Now this is how it’s going to work. This night is going to be your night. This is going to be mine.” She and Arroyave have been more fluid with their schedules, especially as doctors told her she shouldn’t feel immense stress during this time. What could cause stress? Going to court and getting divorced.

She’s in a state of appreciation for everyone in her life, including father John Mellencamp, but is focused on making time for her kids. What’s the No. 1 thing they want her do to on a given week? She tries to work that into her schedule, and listens to her body if she’s not up for it.

Beyoncé put on a stellar performance at SoFi Stadium on May 7 for her lucky No. 4 show, as she sang songs from her “Cowboy Carter” album, “Renaissance” project and classic hits, similar to night two and three of her tour.

The change first came at Beyoncé’s second show on May 1. During it, she moved some songs around and added songs like “Irreplaceable” (2006), “If I were A Boy” (2008), “Single Ladies” (2008) and “Love on Top” (2011).

Fans watching online and inside the stadium seemed pleasantly surprised with the changes and wondered if she might keep the new set list for the duration of shows in Los Angeles or how often she might change it. And she kept those tunes coming for a third time in a row.

Constructor: Zhouqin Burnikel

Editor: Jared Goudsmit

What I Learned from Today’s Puzzle

• EDDIE (19A: Activist Ndopu) South African EDDIE Ndopu was born with spinal muscular dystrophy. Although doctors said he wouldn’t live past the age of five, he now has a masters degree in Public Policy from the University of Oxford in England, was selected by the United Nations to be an advocate for its Sustainable Development Goals, and is a globally recognized humanitarian and activist. His 2023 memoir is titled Sipping Dom Pérignon Through a Straw: Reimagining Success as a Disabled Achiever. I appreciated reading this Time magazine interview with EDDIE Ndopu especially his words on ableism and anti-ableism. He said, “Ableism as a concept … basically says that there’s only one way of being … An anti-ableist framework basically says … there’s more than one way of showing up in the world, and all of that is valid.”
• DEB (55A: YA author Caletti) DEB Caletti’s young adult (YA) books are set in the Pacific Northwest, a place she knows about since she lives in Seattle, Washington. She has written over twenty YA books, as well as some for adults. Her recent books include True Life in Uncanny Valley, Plan A, and The Epic Story of Every Living Thing. I haven’t read any of DEB Caletti’s books, but after perusing her website, I have a feeling I would like them. In answering the question “Did you always want to be a writer?” she says, “Yes, I always wanted to be a writer. There was that brief period of wanting to be Nancy Drew. And I began the application process to become an FBI agent, until I realized there was no way I’d ever be able to climb that rope thing.”

Featuring Ishaan Khatter of “The Perfect Couple,” who takes center-stage as the polo-playing, party prince of Morpur Aviraaj Singh and Bhumi Pednekar, as an uptight startup founder Sophia Shekhar, “The Royals” is described by Netflix as a “breezy rom-com served up with a side of dreamy palace life, under the blazing royal sun.”

As the two “reluctantly come together to save his royally dysfunctional family from financial ruin” and her “leading startup of luxury homestays in India from shark investment bankers,” sparks and insults fly between them, says Netflix about the series.

Khatter described “The Royals” as a “stacked show with dynamic characters, modern satire and heaps of drama – all with a classic rom-com at the center of it.”

Payne’s former girlfriend, British pop singer Cheryl, and attorney Richard Bray have been named the administrators of his estate, according to People magazine and Rolling Stone. The British pop star and former teen idol, who died at age 31 after falling off a hotel balcony, reportedly did not have a will.

Payne and Cheryl (born Cheryl Tweedy) dated from 2016-2018, and the former couple shared 8-year-old son Bear. Meanwhile, Bray is a British attorney who works for the entertainment law firm Bray & Krais. Bray has represented “many high-profile artists, performers, managers, record labels, publishers and senior executives” throughout his career, according to the Bray & Krais website.

USA TODAY has reached out to representatives for Payne, Cheryl and Bray for comment.

The gross, or total, value of Payne’s estate is approximately $38 million, People and Rolling Stone report, while the estate’s net value — the total after all charges have been deducted — is about $32 million.