Dancing With the Stars season 19 is set to premiere on Monday, September 15 and some of the contestants and judges have been giving insight into the upcoming season.
The biggest quotes likely came from new judge Julianne Hough, who said that she won’t favor her brother Derek Hough, who is one of the professional dancers.
“People are afraid about me judging my brother, but I’m going to be even harder on him,” she told Access Hollywood.
“I always say he is [good at] the technical, intricate, really detailed stuff — but sometimes you need some show,” she added about his style of choreography. “Sometimes you need a little bit of pizzazz.”
The new judge also said that she will give honest feedback that may not always please the contestants and pro dancers.
Fashion designer Betsey Johnson, one of the non-pro contestants, recently gave a preview of the the competition to the Wall Street Journal.
“You practice three hours a day, and then you have to take a day off,” said Johnson, who plans to wear her own designs on the show.
She also plans to incorporate her signature runway move into the competition.
“That’s the big thing I’ve got in my pocket,” she said. “I don’t know if the other dancers do that, but every time we'll have a cartwheel-split. I just hope I make it a long time.”
Keo Motsepe, who will be the first South African pro dancer on the show, also talked about the upcoming season recently.
“Me being the first black, non-white dancer in the show, obviously there’s something special about me, there’s something the producers saw,” Motsepe told the New York Post. “I’m very honored and feel very blessed about that. For me it’s about making history in my life and making history in the world.”
Motsepe said he’s a bit surprised it took so long to have a black pro dancer on the show.
“The other day I was in tech [rehearsal] and a guy goes to me, ‘Wait, are you doing ’Dancing With the Stars?‘ He said … ’Now I’m going to start watching.' If one non-white person can think like that, the word-of mouth is the biggest tool in the world.”
And Michael Waltrip, one of the older contestants, likened the competition to a NASCAR race.
“I never have been a dancer and got into it that much, but over the last two weeks I’ve taken a crash course and it’s a good thing for my partner Emma that the sheet was blank,” Waltrip told Fox Sports.
“The thing that I know for sure, when the music starts and it’s time for me to start dancing, I can’t take three or four steps and say, ‘Hold on a minute.’ It’s live and real, it’s just like a NASCAR race -- when they throw the green, you’ve gotta go.”
While Waltrip emphasized his main focus is racing, he’s glad for the diversion after missing the Chase.
“The opportunity to go to L.A. and dance is something that I’m very serious about and I can’t wait for my opportunity to get on the dance floor with Emma, my partner,” said Waltrip.
“To me it’s bigger than just that, it’s more about this sport and continuing to try to grow our team at MWR to the millions of people that will be watching ‘Dancing With the Stars.’ ”
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