John Oates was revealed to be the ‘Anteater’ while competing on the secret singing competition The Masked Singer US.
READ MORE: Does Rock ‘N’ Roll Kill Braincells?! – John Oates, Hall & Oates
The former member of Hall & Oates was revealed as the anteater Wednesday night (December 13). Oates performed a rendition of Chuck Berry’s ‘Johnny B Goode’ before having his identity shared. The anteater costume was a reference to Hall & Oates’ 1982 hit ‘Maneater’.
No one on the judging pannel – made up of Ken Jeong, Jenny McCarthy Wahlberg, Nicole Scherzinger, and Robin Thicke – were able to guess who the anteater could be. After his reveal, Oates said: “I’ll tell you what, I’ve done a lot of crazy stuff in my career. This is one of the best things I’ve ever done so thank you very much.”
He continued: “It’s been a blast. It’s so great to be in this costume and just sing whatever you want. No one knows who you are, this is crazy. I love it and thank you very much. I really can’t say enough about it. ”
Speaking to Variety about being on the show, Oates said he agreed to take part in the show after he realized there was an opportunity to perform without any preconceived Hall & Oates notions from the audience.
“Separating me from the image of who I am in Hall & Oates, the 80s, the pop hits, all that kind of stuff. What’s going to happen when I’m just singing?,” he said.
He continued: “What’s the reaction going to be? That intrigued me and I wanted to do it mainly for that reason. And also, I realized that it was a huge platform. It’s such a successful show. I’m doing a lot of charity work and things like that for some great organizations. And I thought, if I can get the word out, I can reach a lot of people.”
The reveal of the musician as the anteater comes weeks after it was shared that he was being sued by his former bandmate Daryl Hall.
Hall recently explained why he is suing Oates – claiming that he was left “blindsided” by his plan to sell a business stake – while the latter described the claims as “inaccurate”.
In a declaration filed in Nashville Chancery Court which was obtained by Rolling Stone, the outlet reported that Hall accused his bandmate of making a “completely clandestine and bad faith move” by trying to sell a share of their business without Hall’s consent. It also claims that he was only told about the deal to sell half of Whole Oats Enterprises (WOE) to Primary Wave just two days before he was set to leave on a month-long tour.
In response to the declaration, Oates responded to his bandmate’s “inflammatory, outlandish, and inaccurate statements”, saying that he was “tremendously disappointed” to hear about the filing.
“I have no idea who or what is motivating Daryl to take these steps and make such salacious statements, but I am deeply hurt,” Oates stated, adding that he spent the last 50 years ensuring that fans “perceive the Hall & Oates music and brand in the most positive light.”
Elsewhere, Ben Gibbard and Yo La Tengo recently teamed up for a cover of Hall & Oates‘ ‘You Make My Dreams’ as part of the latter’s run of Hanukkah shows at New York’s Bowery Ballroom.
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