Michael Becker/ FOX
This article contains spoilers forThe Masked Singerseason 14 episode 5, "Red, White and Clue Night."
We hold these truths to be self-evident: It was Red, White and Clue Night onThe Masked Singer!
Yes, it was all things patriotic this week, ahead of the 2026 Winter Olympics kicking off in Milan, Italy on Friday. But, before we can cheer for Team USA, someone from TeamTMShad to be eliminated.
After a series of performances of American classics — including from the third and final wildcard, Pangolin — it was Calla Lily who sadly got pruned from the competition. When it came time to offer their final guesses to her true identity, all of the panelists opted for celebrities who have been open about their various health struggles: Danielle Fishel (Robin Thicke's guess),Teddi Mellencamp(Jenny McCarthy-Wahlberg's), Christina Applegate (Ken Jeong's), and Selma Blair (Rita Ora's).
In the end, McCarthy-Wahlberg's guess was correct, and when it was time for Calla Lily to let freedom (from the mask) reign, she was revealed to beReal Housewives of Beverly Hillsalum,Two T's in a Podhost, and daughter of singer-songwriterJohn Cougar Mellencamp, Teddi.
Below,Entertainment Weeklycatches up with Teddi — who revealed in April 2025 that her cancer had progressed to stage IV — to get an update on her health, hear her dad's brutally honestMasked Singerfeedback, and more.
Rich Polk/Bravo
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Your dad recently made headlines for offering a concerning update on your health, in whichhe said you were "suffering."What was your reaction to those headlines and can you give us an update on how you are currently feeling?
TEDDI MELLENCAMP:Yeah, I mean, I think what he ended up saying was that I'm suffering and people took that in a multitude of ways. But in regards to my cancer journey right now, there's no trace of cancer, but I am suffering. I'm going through a lot because of all the post-traumatic stress of everything that happened in the past year. I mean, it hasn't even been a year since I went into the hospital and had surgery, and so I'm slowly but surely recovering, but it's definitely the mental game has been way harder than the physical recovery.
What made you want to doThe Masked Singer?
Well, I've been watching for a long time because it's my kids' favorite show. It's something we can watch as a family, and every single season they think somebody's me. And so I was like, this has got to be something that I do. And then just completely shock them.
How nervous were you on that stage?
I was very nervous. I was very nervous. Not only was I nervous, but I naturally shake a little bit now since my surgery. So it's a combination of the two things. I've gotten a lot stronger since I did [the show]. But I was nervous. I was nervous I was going to forget the words. I was nervous about a lot of things, but it was good nerves. Some people say nerves are excitement, and that's what it was.
This week, you sang your father's hit, "Jack & Diane." Were you more or less nervous to sing that song, given who originally performed it?
I mean, I would say the problem was I knew the words better to [my first song], "Fight Song." [Laughs]
Kevin Mazur/Getty
Don't tell your dad!
I know. I mean, there was a part of me that was like, oh no, now what you're going to do is you're going to sing this song and probably you're going to get booted on the time that you sang your dad's song, and now he's never going to let you hear the end of it.
Have you heard your dad's review yet or did he give any advice beforehand?
Not yet. He's coming over tonight to watch.
And he knows you sang his song?
Yes, he does. So he's excited. But I mean, my kids figured it out my first week, but my dad couldn't figure out which one I was.
In addition to all of this,you have your podcast,Two T's in a Pod, going on. What have you learned about yourself from doing a podcast?
I would say I've learned to speak up a lot more than when I was onReal Housewives. I think I was in a position when I started that show where I had never been in the public eye and I wanted everyone to like me. I wanted everybody to... I had these unrealistic expectations, and instead of just focusing on who I am and what I wanted to say, I was focusing on what I thought other people would want me to say. And I think the podcast has taught me a lot about just being authentic and saying what I feel, and I have a lot of fun with Tamra [Judge, cohost] and it's really just fun. It's an escape from people.
Now that you've doneThe Masked Singer, are there other unusual endeavors you want to tackle next?
I used to be a huge planner and I would want to plan extremely in advance, I think. But after having stage IV cancer, I'm more of a one day at a time person, and I am just wanting more positive things. If something sounds fun to me, I want to say yes, I want to do it. I want to take action. If an opportunity presents itself and it seems fun or it seems new or it seems different, I want to do it. I want to say yes as opposed to before where I may have had some worries about things, but I definitely want to go out and do as much as I can.
Did doingTMSmake you want to join the family business?
Doing this definitely made menotwant to join the family business, but it was so much fun. It was really fun. And I think that's the thing, and that's something my dad said, is "Just go have fun. Clearly you're not a singer. There's going to be some singers in the group probably, so just go on and have some fun."
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