Vanessa Hudgens felt 'free and liberated' on The Masked Singer

'The Masked Singer' winner Vanessa Hudgens felt "free and liberated" performing in costume.

Vanessa Hudgens

Vanessa Hudgens felt "free and liberated" on 'The Masked Singer'.

The 'High School Musical' actress - who is expecting her first child with partner Cole Tucker - won the competition on Wednesday (22.05.24) and she felt very comfortable performing as Goldfish because she didn't feel any pressures because of her fame.

Asked what she'd learned about herself from the show, she told Entertainment Weekly: "Probably just how much weight fame bears, and once I got to take it away, I felt so free and liberated.

"So I guess tell the young ’uns out there, be careful what you wish for and make sure you're doing things for the right reasons because fame itself isn't the reason to do things."

Vanessa won the show ahead of singer-and-actor Scott Porter, and while he admitted he'd realised who was hiding under the Goldfish disguise very early on in the show, she had no idea he was Gumball.

Asked if she'd figured out Scott's identity, she said: "No, I was the worst! I could never be a judge on this show, and if I did, I would need a lot of help because I was just lost. And I was really invested too!

"I was trying, I would watch people's performances after my own and sit backstage and just try to figure it out and just get so lost, and I had no idea."

The 35-year-old star is friends with judge Rita Ora and she had to avoid her socially during filming because she wouldn't have been able to keep her identity concealed.

She said: "We're friends, and it is just so funny how this all happened, because we were with each other about two weeks before the show started, and I found out after the fact that she was a judge, and I was like, oh God.

"And then I had my first performance, and she guessed it was me, and then I was like, Well, there goes our dinner plans, because I cannot sit at a dinner table and stare at her in the face and not be like, 'Girl'.

"But yeah, no, she's the best. I love her. She's always been such a wonderful bright light and fun energy to be around."