Jenny McCarthy won the first Golden Ear for getting the most guesses correct. Those guesses were revealed after each celebrity was unmasked, with panelist scoring a point for each celebrity they got correct from their initial first impression, with the panelist with the most correct answers winning the Golden Ear.
After each masked singer performed for the first time along with an initial clue package, each panelist wrote their first impressions-based guess at the identity of the celebrity and kept in a safe until the men in black are instructed to bring it out upon a contestant's elimination. The panelists also engaged in a competition for the Golden Ear in this season.
Guest panelists included Joel McHale in the third and fourth episodes, season two winner Wayne Brady in the sixth episode, Niecy Nash in the seventh episode, Cheryl Hines in the eighth episode, Jay Pharoah in the ninth episode, and Craig Robinson in the tenth episode. Following controversial statements made on his podcast, it was confirmed that Cannon would remain as host of the show, after Fox accepted his apology. Nick Cannon, singer-songwriter Robin Thicke, television and radio personality Jenny McCarthy, actor and comedian Ken Jeong, and recording artist Nicole Scherzinger all returned for their fourth season as host and panelists.