Ever since the enigmatic, masked banana appeared on Fox's reality singing competition TV show, The Masked Singer, viewers have confidently asserted that the yellow fruit is Poison's Bret Michaels. Last night (April 22), those suspicions were confirmed.

Throughout the competition, Michaels sang a variety of cover selections in an attempt to throw judges and viewers off the scent. Among the tracks this banana busted out were Elvis Presley's "A Little Less Conversation," The Commodores' "Brick House," Bob Dylan's "Knockin' On Heaven's Door," Bill Withers' "Lean on Me" and Billy Ray Cyrus' "Achy Breaky Heart."

Now that the Poison frontman has been unmasked (watch that video at the bottom of the page), Billboard caught up with him to speak about his experience on the show and, most importantly, why he elected to wear the banana costume over anything else.

The banana wasn't always Michaels' plan, however, as he explained, "So when I went in to do the show, the first outfit I really wanted was very Predator-like, with dreadlocks, no bandanna, but kind of able to throw the dreadlocks around."

After thinking it over some more, the singer decided it wasn't the ideal strategy. He continued, "But then I thought, 'Man, if I do that, I'll be gone show one. Let's not do that.' So I went with something else. I said, 'I'll be the bandanna banana, but without the bandanna.' Being a diabetic... the thing is to stay healthy, and a banana has that natural energy. It has the fructose that keeps you rocking without jumpstarting your sugar to one million."

There's a bit of a home state tie-in for the rocker too as the yellow peel reflects the main color choice of two professional sports teams. "Also, I was born in Harrisburg, Penn., so this color works for me as a [NFL's Pittsburgh] Steelers and [MLB's Pittsburgh] Pirates fan."

"I was trying to pick lower-register songs," Michaels added, turning his attention to the songs he performed on television. "I love Billy Ray, and they were songs I love, but not necessarily something I'd sing onstage. To stay on the show as a vocalist, it was the thing that was good for me to do," he assessed, noting a personal tie-in on one song in particular. "Me and my dad, before he passed on Aug. 4, 'Lean on Me' was one of our favorite songs we liked to listen to and sing," he recollected.

It's been a wild ride for Poison's frontman, who will now exchange his banana for his usual bandana.

The Masked Singer Reveals Banana Is Bret Michaels

See Poison in the Top 30 Hair Metal Albums of All Time

 

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