LOLLIPOP’S SWEET SUCCESS
Holly Rey chats to YOU about winning The Masked Singer SA and producing a TV baking show with her little sister
THERE’S no missing her as she rolls up in her shiny new Mercedes-Benz. It’s still a novelty for her to zip through Joburg traffic in the luxury car she was awarded when she was unveiled as the very first winner of The Masked Singer South Africa. And Holly Rey can now finally drive her prize without fear of anyone finding out. She had to keep secret the fact it was her inside the colourful lollipop costume – and it was really tough not to tell anyone, Holly says.
It became tricky later on in the competition as family, friends and fans started asking her if she was Lollipop.
“A lot of people felt that they knew it was me, but weren’t 100% sure because I was so good at lying,” Holly says with a cheeky chuckle as she chats to us at YOU’s Randburg office.
Holly (27) – whose real name is Holly Wasserfall – chose the costume because she thought it suited her bubbly personality. But she soon discovered it wasn’t a lot of fun wearing it.
“It was one of the most physically challenging things I’ve ever done,” she says. “You have many layers of clothing on – I had long socks, leggings, Doc Martens, a long-sleeve shirt, long gloves, tulle skirt and a huge dress made from thick scuba fabric.
“Then they put a mask on you. There isn’t a lot of air circulation – there’s a little fan inside of it but it just circulates hot air.”
The singer had to wear the costume for about 30 minutes during her performances then for hours during final rehearsals. The competition relies on singers’ identities remaining a secret so “security was tight”, Holly says.
She constantly had to be covered up from head to toe. There were only four people on set she was allowed to talk to and she often spent seven to eight hours a day not speaking at all.
But it was all worth it in the end when she emerged the winner, beating Afrikaans singer
Kurt Darren.
‘IT WAS ONE OF THE MOST PHYSICALLY CHALLENGING THINGS I’VE EVER DONE’
“The whole experience was fun and it’s awesome being the first Masked Singer winner in SA,” Holly tells YOU. “I am such a fan of the franchise and that is why I agreed to do it.”
THERE’S nobody prouder of what she’s achieved than her adopted sister, Mimi. The 10-year-old was completely stunned when she saw the final episode of The Masked Singer and discovered her big sis was Lollipop. And a few days later she was cheering for her sister again when Holly won the pop artist of the year award at the annual Basadi in Music Awards. “She came home the morning after winning and brought the trophy to show me,” Mimi tells us when we catch up with her in Durban. Viewers got to witness the sisters’ close bond when they co-presented the SABC 3 show Bakillness ing with the Reys earlier this year.
It started as Instagram posts during the Covid lockdown in 2020, which saw the pair posting a video every Saturday of them baking cupcakes, cakes, tarts and cookies from the kitchen of their family home in Durban.
“People loved it and started calling it Baking with the Reys and we thought that it was a great name so we rolled with it,” says Holly, who produced and directed the series. “We decided to turn it into a YouTube series then SABC 3 approached us and said that they wanted it and that’s how it got onto TV.”
Mimi tells us her favourite moments in the show were when she got to prank Holly – such as the time she tricked her into eating chocolate-coated Brussels sprouts.
The singer now lives in Joburg, but they call each other every day and regularly have “bake dates” over WhatsApp video call. “We love to make cupcakes,” Holly says. “I’m always trying to replace things like sugar with xylitol to make things healthy.”
As a type 1 diabetic, Holly must be careful about what she eats. Although she was diagnosed with the condition when she was 11, she kept it a secret until three years ago when she started speaking about it on Instagram.
Holly admits it took her a long time to accept that she must live with the condition her whole life.
“There’s no cure and I think for the first time when I opened up about it I felt like, ‘Okay, I’m actually accepting this and it’s part of my identity’. I don’t suffer from an
– I just have diabetes.” It’s not easy having the condition when you’re a travelling musician, she says. In 2021 she decided to take a two-year break from music to focus on her health.
“I just needed a better way to manage my life. I couldn’t carry on with the lifestyle I was living – just eating junk food during or after performances.” Holly now follows a healthy diet and has a continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) device on her arm. It keeps track of her blood-glucose levels throughout the day, sending readings to her phone.
“I must still inject insulin every time I eat, but the device helps me manage my sugar in that safe zone,” she says.
She’s teamed up with Diabetes South Africa to advocate for getting the CGM covered by medical aids and the next step would be making it accessible at government hospitals.
Earlier this year she had a “health scare” when she was diagnosed with severe anaemia and is currently on treatment for an iron deficiency.
HOLLY is excited to be back on the music scene. She released the first part of her EP titled 3AM earlier this month. “There was a lot of blood, sweat and tears, but it’s really exciting to redefine myself. It’s still the Holly Rey that people love, just a little more mature with a fusion of Afro-house and pop.”
Like many great albums it was inspired by heartbreak. “It’s one of those stories where you fall in love then you’re not compatible anymore. It’s hard because we still love each other and the best thing was to let each other go.”
Holly looks forward to what the future holds and hopes to step behind the scenes more as a TV producer. “I want to produce series that matter and make a difference especially in the health industry.”
Fans can also expect more music, more performances and a second season of Baking with the Reys.
“The reason I make music is because I love it,” Holly says. “I want to make people feel happy. I want to make wedding and graduation songs. I want my music to be the backdrop to people’s lives.”