George Foreman says being Venus Flytrap on The Masked Singer made him want to record music next
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Warning: This article contains spoilers from Wednesday's episode of The Masked Singer.
The Venus Flytrap has caught a bug on The Masked Singer — the music bug.
It was Hall of Fame Night on the show this week, and the first contestant to go home certainly fit that bill. The Venus Flytrap was eliminated after singing his heart out to "Get Ready" by the Temptations, and was revealed to be two-time world heavyweight champion and Olympic gold medalist (and famed grill salesman) George Foreman.
EW spoke to Foreman about his time on the show, how his wife encouraged him to do it, and why it made him want to branch out into music next.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Were you familiar with The Masked Singer before you got the call to be on it?
GEORGE FOREMAN: I was real familiar because my wife is a real big fan of the show, and she's always talking about who she has been watching on it and how well they could sing. And, she'd be like, "Boy, you should do it, George!" That kind of thing. But I had fear all the way.
So did you tell her you were doing it or did you keep it a surprise?
I couldn't keep it a surprise from her because there's nothing I can do without her help. [Laughs]
Did you have to be talked into doing the show or was it an immediate yes?
No, I had to be coaxed into it. My dear wife stayed on me. "I love it, George. You would love it. You got to take part in it." And she has had so many great stories about it. So she kept on telling me, "You do it. You're just gonna have to do it." That kind of thing.
Michael Becker / FOX The Venus Flytrap on season 8 of 'The Masked Singer'
Sounds like she's going to enjoy the big reveal tonight. Has she seen you in costume?
That's true. She's never seen me in the costume at all. So I'm gonna blow her mind. I hope I don't blow her ears.
Since you went home first, you got to sit in the VIP section and watch the rest of the show. Did you have any idea who might be up on stage?
Oh, I was clueless. But it was so much fun, it was like being a kid. I really enjoyed myself and the people, the staff on the program. They became my family for a few minutes.
Tell me about your song choice. Why did you want to perform that song?
Well, I picked a lot of songs. Really a few, but we finally settled in on one that I thought I knew real well. I thought I knew real well. When it was time to sing you realize, "Man. All this time I thought I knew this song, but I just knew how to hum along with it," if you know what I mean. Yeah, all of a sudden you turn into like, what am I doing up here? That kind of thing. It really made me want to do a record now.
Oh really? What would you want that to be, do you think?
I know that if I got into a recording studio, I can be helped along to really do some good songs. And so I've been sitting there thinking, thinking, thinking that my wife is gonna have to get me up and get me started.
You've had several guest starring roles and appearances on TV over the years, and now TMS. Do you have a favorite memory?
I'll go back so far as television appearances in the golden days, on Sanford and Son. I enjoyed that. Whenever it replays people call me up like, "George, I just saw you!" And of course, for a while I had my own television show, called George. And that was a lot of fun.
How does The Masked Singer rank for you?
You know, it was really fun, but it was work. It was work to put on a costume. I'm so happy because you'd think when you retire from boxing, you don't need to exercise anymore, and I went that way for a while, but I kept at it with sit ups and push ups and things like that. Little did I know when it was time for that costume, my push ups and sit ups came in handy again.
What was the best part of the experience for you?
The idea that people believed that I could sing for a moment. I couldn't believe that. It's like, "You sound good, George. Try this. Sounds good, George. Try this." What? That was surprisingly wonderful.
You also seemed to really get a kick out of the judges' guesses.
[Laughs] It just was wonderful that I was on television again. And people were guessing around me, and to bring up those names, it made me close to everybody again.
Chris Haston/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images George Foreman
What's next for you?
Yeah, I want to get into a recording studio and do some songs now. I know it's work, too, don't get me wrong, but it can be possible. It's possible now. That's what I'm thinking about. And I love television. I love it. I'd like to do more television now.
Anything in particular?
Maybe somewhere down the line to re-do [Masked Singer] again. And last for a little while longer.
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