We Are Family is an American game show that premiered on January 3, 2024 on Fox. Hosted by Anthony Anderson and his mother Doris Bowman, the show featured three unknown singers, each performing in one round, and a celebrity relative to each singer who is hidden until the end of their round.
Format During each one-hour episode, three performers sing for a studio audience consisting of 100 contestants who stand at individually-named desks attempting to guess what famous celebrity the performer is related to. Over the course of three rounds, contestants have several opportunities to win various amounts of cash, with the maximum possible shared prize winnings totaling $150,000 per episode. The same 100 contestants carry throughout the season, returning for each new episode.
The first two performers each sing two songs; one solo followed by one duet with their famous relative. The third and final performer of each episode does not sing solo, only singing the duet with their relative. Performers are visible on the stage and give a brief bio of themselves before singing, while the famous relative is concealed within "the sphere", a large half-circle in the middle of the set. The celebrity relatives are obscured using various lighting techniques. Brief glimpses of the celebrity are shown only in silhouette form. During the performer's intro, contestants need to listen carefully in the event that they might give some verbal clues to their celebrity relative's identity.
Prize money for the first round is $20,000 and is split among all contestants who correctly guess the celebrity relative. During round one, three clues to the celebrity identity are displayed on the sphere during the solo performance, and three more clues are shown during the duet, for a total of six clues. During each song, contestants lock in their guesses on a tablet at their station. The speed with which they lock in correct answers determines their possible eligibility to participate in the third round. After each song is performed, the host polls randomly-selected contestants regarding who they guessed as the celebrity and why. After the contestant interviews are complete, the performer and their celebrity relative begin the same duet again, this time for the reveal. After the first couple of lines of the song, the singing stops, but the music continues as the two halves of the sphere start to open. With smoke obscuring their identity, the celebrity gradually comes forward on the stage to reveal who they are. The duet then finishes with both performer and celebrity relative now visible. The host speaks with the pair briefly before they exit the stage together. Once the pair have left the stage, the host reveals how many of the 100 contestants correctly guessed the identity of the celebrity relative, and therefore split the $20,000 prize for round one.
Prize money for the second round is raised to $30,000 and is once again split among all contestants who correctly guess the celebrity relative of the second performer. The format for round two is identical to round one.
After the first two rounds, the host reveals how many contestants correctly guessed both the first and second celebrity relatives, qualifying them for a chance to be the single "Star Player" who will guess in the third round. Out of the group of contestants eligible for round three, the person with the fastest times guessing correctly in rounds one and two earns the position of Star Player for round three. Only the Star Player can guess during round three and compete for the round three prize winnings. Once a contestant has been selected as Star Player, they are ineligible to be the Star Player again in future episodes.
Prize money for the third round is raised to $100,000. During round three, the performer skips the solo song, and only performs a duet with their celebrity relative. During the duet, five clues to the celebrity's identity are displayed on the sphere. The possible winnings in round three for the Star Player are determined by when they lock in their guess, and whether or not they are correct. An incorrect guess results in no prize money from round three, but they do keep their winnings from the first two rounds. In the event of a correct guess of the celebrity's identity, the round three prize money is awarded as follows: $100,000 if guessed after the first clue, $75,000 if guessed after the second clue, $50,000 if guessed after the third clue, $25,000 if guessed after the fourth clue, and $10,000 if guessed after the fifth and final clue.
Weeks Week 1 (January 3) + Performances in the first episode Name Solo Song Duet Song Celebrity Relative Evandia Penix "The Greatest Love of All" "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" Michelle Williams Audrey Brown "Valerie" "It's Still Rock and Roll to Me" Joel McHale Edward J. (E.J.) Glaser N/A "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)" Nikki Glaser
+ Highlighted Contestants Name Hometown Occupation Strategy Jawane Martin Marietta, GA Customer Service Manager "My strategy is to not only pay attention to the given clues, but pay attention to everything that goes on on that stage because everything can be a clue to win this game." Charlie Semar Chicago, IL Sports Statistician "Well, when she said Cubs fan, I’ve seen him at games all the time, I went with Bill Murray!" Adam Sanderson Camarillo, CA Ballroom Dance Instructor "I like to listen, unlike my ex-boyfriends. On the side of being a bartender and ballroom dance instructor, I am an avid casino poker player so I'm used to taking risks."
Week 2 Night 1 (January 10) + Performances in the second episode Name Solo Song Duet Song Celebrity Relative Jaelyn Kay "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" "Born This Way" JoJo Siwa Lola Sofia Bonfiglio "Wouldn't It Be Nice" "California Dreamin'" Carnie Wilson Caylin Newton N/A "We Will Rock You" Cam Newton
+ Highlighted Contestants Name Hometown Occupation Strategy Maria Boyancé Atlanta, GA Business Consultant "Since I'm a true Millennial, I'm always on Instagram looking at all the gossip blog posts and everything, so I'm hoping to take my knowledge from there, use it with the clues to figure out what celebrity is behind the sphere, and all around." Columbus, OH Retired Prosecutor N/A
Night 2 (January 14) + Performances in the third episode Name Solo Song Duet Song Celebrity Relative Kenzie Bausmith "Un-Break My Heart" "Hot Stuff" Candace Cameron Bure Tyler Suddeth "Country Girl (Shake It for Me)" "Midnight Train to Georgia" Lauren Alaina Shaina Farrow N/A "I Want It That Way" Jay Pharoah
+ Highlighted Contestants Name Hometown Occupation Strategy Tim Sternberg Plantation, FL Education Advocate “I host a daily trivia show on social media and I am going to dig into the crevices of my mind to find the right answers!” Chelsea Kline Chicago, IL Public Health Worker N/A
Week 3 (January 17) + Performances in the fourth episode Name Solo Song Duet Song Celebrity Relative Mary English "Last Dance" "I Will Survive" Tiffany Haddish Nick Gibson "Dreams" "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)" Debbie Gibson Michael Conrad Braxton Jr. N/A "Lean on Me" Tamar Braxton
+ Highlighted Contestants Name Hometown Occupation Strategy Jenna DiCostanzo Long Island, NY Lawyer "As an attorney, I have to look at evidence every day, so while I'm looking at these clues, I'm looking at them to see if I can find the truth: who is it behind that sphere?" Jason Walker Akron, OH Pastor "My strategy is to watch the players. I feel like everyone's got a tell. You gotta kind of move around with that, see what they're thinking."
Week 4 (January 24) + Performances in the fifth episode Name Solo Song Duet Song Celebrity Relative Sharmaine Stowes "Respect" "24K Magic" Terrell Owens Rock Richard Monahan "One Call Away" "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" Pat Monahan Sophia Umansky N/A "Love You like a Love Song" Kyle Richards
+ Highlighted Contestants Name Hometown Occupation Strategy Cody Latimer Steubenville, OH Academic Advisor "In my free time, I play in a band and sing. So I'm really listening to how the celebrity and their relative duet together." Hannah Neuman Colorado Springs, CO Pop Culture Influencer "I'm a Pop Culture Influencer, and my niche is actually 'Deep Dives' so I'm constantly filling up entire notebooks of research on celebrities's scandals, breakups, makeups and more. So, I'm just going to trust my gut. This stuff just kind of lives in my head rent free, as it is already." Columbus, OH Server N/A
Week 5 (January 31) + Performances in the sixth episode Name Solo Song Duet Song Celebrity Relative Red Grammer "I Can See Clearly Now" "Humble and Kind" Andy Grammer Julian Frampton "Rebel Rebel" "Black Hole Sun" Peter Frampton Bella Polizzi N/A "I Love It" Snooki
+ Highlighted Contestants Name Hometown Occupation Strategy Miles Triplett Powder Springs, GA Delivery Driver "I am a delivery driver, so my job is to be fast with everything I do. So whatever comes to mind, I will put into this tablet, and that will be the right answer." Ashlee Gillum Detroit, MI Custom Nail Artist "Well I'm gonna make sure that I pay attention to the details, because I do custom press on nails, and I'm also going to make sure I use the clues, and you know, just nail it." Alexandra Burris Atlanta, GA Stay at Home Mom N/A
Week 6 (February 14) + Performances in the seventh episode Name Solo Song Duet Song Celebrity Relative Janine Fatone-Butler "Oops!... I Did It Again" "Walking on Sunshine" Joey Fatone Kayla Brianna Smith "Use Somebody" "Airplanes" Kenny Smith Jason "JD" Morgan N/A "Friends in Low Places" Sarah Palin
+ Highlighted Contestants Name Hometown Occupation Strategy Guaynabo, PR Dog Walker "I think that I'm gonna be able to pick up on mannerisms. I feel like family members tend to have the same mannerisms. Like me just gesturing like this? Everyone in my family does that. Ya know what I'm sayin'?" Cohen Robinson Lakeland, FL House Cleaning Entrepreneur N/A
Week 7 (February 21) + Performances in the eighth episode Name Solo Song Duet Song Celebrity Relative Dominic Nash "Uptown Funk" "Can You Stand the Rain" Niecy Nash-Betts Jacquelyn Howard "For Once in My Life" "Hound Dog" Dwight Howard Ayoub Kharbouch N/A "Ready or Not" French Montana
+ Highlighted Contestants Name Hometown Occupation Strategy Kenny North Washington, DC Hotel Manager "Well I play trivia just about twice a week when I'm back home at one of my favorite bars -- what's up everybody! I'm just kind of used to answering questions, like, quickly. I let the game kind of like come to me though, so." Reno, NV Cannabis Expo CEO "Four years ago, I took a chance on myself and I started my own company. My mission statement for the company is "connect, inspire, and learn" and so it's all about connecting with who's on stage, and then learning all the clues, and dialing in what my guess is."
Week 8 (February 28) Part 1 + Performances in the ninth episode Name Solo Song Duet Song Celebrity Relative Jean Rodríguez "So Sick" "Stand by Me" Luis Fonsi Prima Apollinaare "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" "Islands in the Stream" Dermot Mulroney Guinevere Liddell N/A "Eye of the Tiger" Chuck Liddell
+ Highlighted Contestants Name Hometown Occupation Strategy Audrey Furtado San Diego, CA College Student "Well, I'm a full time student, actually, so I'm very used to takng tests like every single week. So I feel like in this game, I'm studying the clues as they're popping up, so I'm ready." Madeline Schneider Brooklyn, NY Accountant "Well, because I'm a New Yorker, I'm a classic overthinker. So my strategy really is to go with my first instinct, listen to what's going on, who's singing, and don't try to overthink it."
Part 2