DWTS Season 10 – Who’s Dancing What…and Other Stuff
This is shaping up to be an interesting week on Dancing with the Stars! First off, we get an all male pro dance during the results show – Derek, Damian, Dmitry and Tony. I feel warm already. 🙂 The guys are dancing to Debi Nova. From a reprinting of the ABC Press Release by J! Ent:
Also this week, Platinum-selling soul star Maxwell will perform his chart-topping single “Fistful of Tears” on Tuesday. The singer/songwriter recently scored a three-peat with “Fistful of Tears,” his third consecutive No. 1 on Billboard’s Urban Adult airplay charts, making him the first male artist to achieve this feat. Grammy Award winner superstars Maxwell and Jill Scott will kick off their U.S. arena tour on May 21 in Cleveland. Maxwell is catapulting off his two recent Grammy Awards and his No. 1, platinum “BLACKsummers’night” (Columbia), which dominated year-end critics lists. Last fall, Maxwell entered the history books at Billboard when “Pretty Wings” and “Bad Habits,” the first two singles from “BLACKsummers’night,” monopolized the top two slots on the Adult R&B radio airplay chart.
Costa Rican singing sensation, Debi Nova, will perform her newest single “Drummer Boy,” while pros Derek Hough, Damian Whitewood, Tony Dovolani and Dmitry Chaplin accompany her on the dance floor. Her first single was co-written by Nova and produced by Marius de Vries and Dreamlab. Nova is set to release her Spanish/English, hybrid debut album, “Luna Nueva,” on Decca/Surco Records this May. Nova has amassed an impressive body of work including six Grammy-nominated projects, a No. 1 single, collaborations with the likes of Black Eyed Peas and Ricky Martin, and touring the world. She has been writing and performing professionally since the age of 14 and signed her first songwriter deal at the age of 17, subsequently penning songs for Latin recording artists Belinda and RBD, Sean Paul, Mark Ronson and her own single, “One Rhythm,” which reached No. 1 in Latin America and on the U.S. dance charts. The forthcoming “Luna Nueva,” co-produced by Surco Records founder Gustavo Santaoalla (two-time Oscar winner, multiple Grammy and Latin Grammy winner, Juanes, CafŽ Tacvba) and Marius de Vries (five-time Grammy Award nominee, two-time BAFTA winner, Madonna, Josh Groban), is an irresistible hybrid of Latin rhythms and straight-ahead pop.
The Macy’s Stars of Dance is featuring an appearance by Debbie Allen, but none of our Pros are listed, so it’s either all or none. 🙂
Now, in terms of the performance show, below is what I have for each couple, including the movie if I know it. I’ve been watching (and participating in) a lot of debate on Twitter – is it any song from a given movie? Is the movie given to them, but not necessarily the title song – if there is a title song?? For example, Derek and Nicole’s movie is Pretty Woman. I made the assumption based on what Tom said that it’s a movie song, not a theme night, so therefore, Derek and Nicole are dancing to “Pretty Woman”, not another song from the movie, such as Wild Women Do (which would, apparently, make a much better tango). So, I will list what I know, below, and you guys tell me if it’s the title song or some other song.
Pam/Damian – Quickstep – This doesn’t bode well for Pam, I don’t think. I will be very happy to be wrong. But a quickstep doesn’t have the passion of a Tango or a Rumba, and doesn’t have the jiggle factor of a Cha Cha. I guess we’ll see. I’ll be happy to be surprised once again.
Kate/Tony – Fox Trot – Again, possible disaster, but it probably won’t matter. Kate says they are dancing to a song from an 80’s movie, a movie she is familiar with. Since the Press Release mentions Breakfast Club, that’s what I’m betting on for Kate. Which song from this movie is the “iconic song”? Don’t You Forget About Me, by Simple Minds? If they are doing a Fox Trot, it’s can’t be We Are Not Alone, can it?
Evan/Anna – Rumba – I think Evan will dance it very well, for sure. But will he have a connection problem with Anna? This dance really requires it, and the best dancer on the show (Nicole) can’t call this her very best dance. Entertainment Tonight (or similar show) said that they are dancing to a romantic song from an action movie. Any ideas out there? 🙂 Something from Independence Day? I have a song right on the tip of my brain but I can’t come up with it. I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing by Aerosmith – from the movie Armageddon??
Jake/Chelsie – Cha Cha – A Cha Cha to Risky Business, no less. At least, that’s what I got from one of the entertainment shows from which I will be posting video later. Please, god, no tighty whities. Please? At this point, I wouldn’t count Jake out, although I think he’s on the bubble. Will he be able to handle the cha cha? No idea. If he does do the Tom Cruise iconic look from this movie, I can guarantee a low score from Len.
Chad/Cheryl – Quickstep – I don’t believe I’ve heard what song they are dancing to, but I smell trouble for Chad. Cheryl tweets that he’s doing well, but really? A quickstep? Again, I would be happy to be wrong.
Niecy/Louis – Jive – Dancing to La Bamba. A Jive to La Bamba? Geez, I dunno. That song doesn’t seem quite right, seems a little slow. So, title song, or another song from the movie. Watching Niecy and Louis on the entertainment shows, I’m saying title song.
Erin/Maks – Jive – to Pulp Fiction? I’m worried about this one. That scene from Pulp Fiction was “iconic” for sure, but for a Jive? It sounds awkward. I hope I’m wrong. Okay, after watching the scene from the movie which is, IMO, “iconic” – maybe Maks and Erin don’t have it so bad. I can see a Jive to this song.
Nicole/Derek – Tango – to Pretty Woman. I’m on the title song bandwagon, but hoping like hell I’m wrong. Wild Women Do would be much better, I think. Plus, a little bird tells me that is the song played when Julia is shopping on Rodeo Drive. And where are Derek and Nicole doing an out of studio package bit?? Rodeo Drive. I guess we’ll see.
Of what we know so far, I think Derek and Louis are going to have to work choreographic magic to get appropriate dances from that music. Either that or play with the music, which Maks indicated that he was doing. Anyway, my pre-dance prediction is that Kate is safe yet again and either Niecy or Jake are in deep doo doo. I reserve the right to change my mind once we see the dances.
A note to the Kate Haters: You have to VOTE for another couple (or all the other couples) if you really want Kate to go home. I don’t hate Kate, actually, but what I do hate is better dancers leaving before her. Up to now it hasn’t pissed me off. But if she stays again on Tuesday, it WILL piss me off. Because for her to stay, it means a MUCH better dancer will have to leave, instead of only a slightly better dancer. It means that Jake, or Niecy, or Chad, or Erin, or Nicole, or Pam will go home instead of her. Not Evan, of course, because he’s the ringer to beat. 🙂 But all the rest of them are in danger, some more than others.
Wow, you have made my day Heidi with this post. I’m so happy we get to see Derek perform again, wish he was dancing with someone to Maxwell’s Pretty Wings, namely Aliona, that would have been amazing!
For me S10 DWTS Result show artists and pro performances have taken the show up a notch, i.e. Derek/Mark/Chelsie performance, will definitely be in the books as one of the best pro performances on the show.
I am a “big” fan of Maxwell and just last week mentioned to someone that I hope they have him perform on the show. He has been away for about 10 years and came back big time. Can I say, I love him and he’s a very unique and talented artist. Love Sade as well, impressed to see her on the show-pure class!
Looking forward to Monday & Tuesday night performancs. I agree with you, next week is shaping up to be a very interesting week of shows for DWTS!Woohoo let’s go Team HoughZinger.
“Not Evan of course because he’s the ringer to be.”
I know you’d like us to forget the Zinger the Ringer because she’s with Derek, but she’s the Number One Ringer in my book. Evan is also, but since he’s so sweet and un-divaish, I sometimes forget.
i do have to agree with Joanie.
IMO Nicole is a bigger ringer than Evan, he may have the fanbase but she is not just onether c- list celeb, she is famous, the Dolls have a lot of fans (evan has more), and Nicole dancing back groung is way bigger than Evan, she is a pro, she almoust out danced Derek on the jive, her kicks were actually higher than his, if she get eliminated before the finale is because people are not connecting with her ( Sabrina).
and you may not like Evan but she is a really nice guy, no drama, has a great relationship with his partner, and a good dancer too, if he wins that will not be only becouse of his fanbase, most of the winner on dwts were just nice,drama free people (Emmety,Apolo,helio, Kristi, Brooke,Shawn).
not a criticism, just a observation.
I have to respond to Jennifer and Joanie. Evan is a nice guy and I like him too but coming off of his Olympic Gold Medal he is much more popularity right now and definitely has a fanbase well above everyone else. Nicole is not a diva and is also a very nice person who has a great relationship with her partner. She got upset with herself….not that much of a big deal but of course it’s made to look like one.
In my opinion she didn’t outdance Derek on the Jive either….I’ve never seen anyone out dance Derek & if her kicks were higher it could be that she has longer legs or a bit more flexible than Derek. JMO
Hope Evan doesn’t win..nice guy, nice personality, but he is so boring.
Kate n Pamela has the biggest fanbase.
JMO…Pamela’s fans won’t vote as much, but mostly just watch the show. Kate’s fans r a little more serious…most of the mommies, especially w/kids will b voting for her. It doesn’t matter whether she can dance or not. But the winner will b the die hard fans of the couple that know how to do multiple voting….never know tho, the show could b rigged…lol
Curls, ignore Joanie, she’s been trolling this site for a long time spouting hyperbole and trying to pick fights. Jennifer, OTOH, simply doesn’t know how we define “ringer” around here. 🙂 That much is obvious. Donny Osmond was a ringer, for example. Anyone who, as soon as their participation is announced, makes you say “they are going to win because their fanbase is HUGE” is a ringer. And we all know that voting is everything on this show. For that reason, Evan is the biggest ringer on the show – even you, Jennifer, admit he has the bigger fan base. That’s all that matters at the end of the day. Plus, the media is conveniently ignoring his obvious skill which, like for Kristi, comes from being a skater. He’s got every advantage Nicole does and more. Of course Nicole is a ringer – I don’t know how many times I’ve said that and have people very conveniently ignore it – but Evan is much, much bigger. Saying if he wins it won’t be only because of his fanbase makes no sense – it will be exactly because of his fanbase. That’s who votes multiple times. The only thing *maybe* preventing Evan from the mirrorball is a freestyle on the level of Gilles or Marie Osmond’s. 🙂 No offense to Marie fans, but that was craptastic. And that’s where Nicole has one advantage that Evan doesn’t have – Derek, who knows how to choreograph a very creative dance. I don’t know if the same can be said for Anna.
All that said, what mea32 says, above, occurred to me this morning as well. Watching all the media hype, it occurred to me that if Kate Gosselin continues to get better, she could really play spoiler and take out any of them. How you win on this show is by having a fanbase willing to spend serious time voting over and over and over. If she does make it past this week, we could be in trouble.
mea32, you are absolutely right about how to win the show. Now, I don’t believe the show is rigged, but I do think there are ways to make it extremely hard for Kate to advance. And that is if the judges score the dancers relative to each other instead of the ridiculous idea of only giving Kate a point less per judge than, say, Jake. If they scored the dancers relative to each other, you’d have Evan and Nicole at the top, Erin and everyone else a couple points below, and Kate would get a total score of 3 or something. That might be enough to do the trick. But I doubt they’ll do it.
I just hope Len doesn’t stroke out when Kate continues to advance.
Each celeb that has won was hard working and had a great relationship with their partners. But they also had the biggest fan base! Otherwise they would not have won. To say Evan is not a ringer is ridiculous. His fan base alone makes him a ringer. Nicole is not famous by herself. She is known as the main girl from the Dolls but that is not famous. From what I see, Nicole and Derek get along just fine. She works hard too. The only tough partnerships seem to Kate/Tony and Chelsie and Jake. People have this unrealistically high expectation for Nicole and when she struggles they pounce on her. While people think Evan cannot dance as well and are shocked when he dances well. As for his toes, Lance had broken toes too and danced well too.
Heidi you have a point, i just think that as far as dacing goes Nicole has a bigger advanced than Evan, he has a bigger fanbase for sure and like you said the freestyle can really hurt him because Nicole is already a great dancer and i’m sure that derek will come up with something amazing (that quicktep was a 30 freestyle for me, like his jive with Lil Kim would be 30 freestyle too)
i just hope Kate will go soon, i don’t get why people vote for her.
as far as fanbase goes, Chad has 850.000 Followers on twitter, that is a lot, but who know if that really help.
coming back to the topic of the post, Derek has a big challenge this week because Pretty womam doesn’t say tango for me at all( could be a foxtrot but not tango).
the songs this season suck, all the tango song from last week were really bad
just for the record, i didn’t say that evan was not a ringer (of course he is), i just said that IMO Nicole is a bigger ringer than he is.
Well, John, that is the way people on the internet operate – they tear down someone like Nicole to make their favorite look better. People don’t remember (apparently) but Derek and Brooke has a pretty huge fight in the middle of the season. Many of those who have won have had fights or issues with their partners on one week or another. Thing is, we see a few seconds of an entire week’s worth of rehearsing and of course the producers are going to show anything that gets people talking. But people like to ignore anything that doesn’t support their opinion – so they focus on one thing that happened one time to make a case. Of course, none of them are talking about KATE. Or Jake. Or any of the other fights that have occurred this season.
Jennifer, in case you haven’t noticed, Evan is already a great dancer too. 🙂 We’ve only had four weeks of dancing and he’s been in first place for the last two. How do you explain that? It sure isn’t because he’s naturally a good dancer like, say, Brooke was – it’s because he’s a trained Olympic athlete and his particular sport gives him a leg up on, say, a Maurice Greene or a Misty May Traynor. It’s not magic – he’s had training. For that matter, so has Erin, it’s just not as recent as Nicole and Evan have had. Nicole is not a trained *dancer*, but she has experience learning choreography and dancing, which give her a leg up. Well, Evan also has a high degree of experience in *learning choreography*. Mark Ballas – ballroom dancer – choreographed a skating routine for him. That right there should tell you that there is not a huge distance between dancing and skating.
As for who has the better pro – well, that is out of both Evan and Nicole’s control. I’m liking what Anna has come up with for Evan so far.
Don’t get me wrong, we’re talking about who’s the bigger ringer – but I feel like I need to reiterate right now that I actually like Evan a great deal. And if anyone has to beat my boy Derek, I hope it’s Evan. 🙂
Nicole is such a faker….she is not scared and worried blah blah blah. I’m sorry but thats all b.s….she knows just how good she is so shes faking a struggle for votes. She is the ringer this year and thats that. Evan may be more known and have more fans BUT those are two completely different things. Nicole will make the top three with Evan and Erin but she wont win. I think Evan and Erin are more popular and Nicole’s holier then thou (ie real attitude) will be exposed. Its already come out a few times already. Say what you want but Evan, Erin, Niecy are all REAL and are all liked by DWTS fans in general.
BTW Heid i think you like Derek so much you want him to win every season. So of course your gonna be slightly biased….just noticing a trend. Others like myself don’t have a rooting interest in the pros, although i’m not usually inclined to like Anna. Maybe that says something good about Evan because this season i like her!
I’d say that Evan is the bigger ringer just because of the fact that he’s an olympic gold medalist, but I think he’s kind of under rated right now. Nicole’s been the one who the people on the ABC message boards are after (although it’s not nearly as bad as it is with Kate). I don’t know if that means anything though, and if it’s good or bad. I’m not sure I can say that there’s much logic behind a lot of what’s said on those message boards.
Hmm Kels maybe they see what i see …concerning the fake outbursts etc with her. Maybe she just doesn’t have the likeability factor…IDK. Pam is trying to annoy me with her cougar sexpot but i like her alot lol. Atleast i sense what i’m seeing is real and shes probably does that crap in the mirror lol….which is a whole other issue but not one for me 🙂
“Well, John, that is the way people on the internet operate – they tear down someone like Nicole to make their favorite look better.” –Princess Heidi
Isn’t this what you are doing.. you are tearing down Evan to make Nicole [your favorite] look better. I have nothing against rooting for your favorite pro to win, but this is a DWTS site, I think you should keep the Derek/Nicole propping on your derek fansite.
Um Sasha? DUH. Of course I want him to win every season – that’s what having a favorite pro means. And of course I’m biased – I’ve never claimed otherwise. But YOU are also very biased. Biased against Nicole for some strange reason (or is it biased FOR Evan and threatened by Nicole?). How do you know she’s “faking”? Why can’t she be insecure? You are judging her based on your own biases. If you are going to accuse someone else of something, make sure you look in the mirror first. I also love how you know what all fans are thinking – can you give me lottery numbers too?
And to call her the ringer of the season even while admitting Evan has a bigger fanbase is illogical and nonsensical. But thanks for playing. 🙂
There’s no logic on the ABC boards in particular. Most of the Derek fans (and Cheryl fans, maybe) have left and they left a long time ago. The ABC boards are filled with vile hateful people who make no sense most of the time. Message boards are filled with extremes – not regular people. Extreme haters or extreme fans – the haters will make up anything they can to try and tear down the person they hate. The boards don’t speak to the regular viewing audience. They rarely (these days) reflect who actually wins the show.
No, I’m not tearing down Evan at all – I even like the guy. I’ve never called him the names that people are calling Nicole. As for where I keep “Derek/Nicole” propping – well, that’s not up to you. I work on this site as well and have as much right as you to comment on it. In fact – I have more right. I blog here – blogs are opinion sites, not democracies. You are free to start your own.
I think you need to read Kels comment again Sasha – she said nothing about fake outbursts. That’s YOUR bias talking. 🙂 Just because the message board people are after her doesn’t make it realistic or rational.
“Well, John, that is the way people on the internet operate – they tear down someone like Nicole to make their favorite look better.” –Princess Heidi
this is exactly what you do, you may like Evan, but every post that you do about him 9 every time that you mention him in a post) you are always tearing him down, you are not wrong, you can do whatever you want, it is your opnion ,just don’t deny it, becouse it is really obvious.
Heidi, how did I miss that last line about Debbie Allen also performing in Macy’s Stars of Dance. Wow, she is an “Amazing” performer and choreographer. I remember when I first started seeing her perform, it was on the show called Fame, back in the 80’s I believe. I’ve always been impressed by her abilities as a performer and teacher. On Fame, I was blown away at how she would be right in there dancing performing right along with the students. Love her as well. What a great night of performances Tues. on DWTS will be.
Heidi or John, just an FYI, it’s “Foxtrot” one word, not two 🙂
I appreciate anyone who read the entire post, so thanks. Foxtrot it is. 🙂
Ah, Fame, Dee. The good old days. 😉
sorry to interrupt what reads a lot like a catfight, but on a point of dance, if i may…
la bamba i8s plenty fast enough for a jive. i grew up in the jitterbug, lindy hop era, which is a large part of what jive is based on, and when we were dancing to la bamba, that’s what we were doing. you might stretch a point or consider its origins to make it a cha cha cha, but, although i don’t know the beats per second that dances are ranked by, i would wager la bamba is a good bit too hectic for a cha cha cha generally.
You’ve heard the saying “battle of wits with an unarmed man” haven’t you? 🙂 Again, I appreciate anyone willing to comment on more than one throwaway line at the end of a very long post.
I guess I phrased my comment wrong – I’m wondering more about syncopation than tempo. Will that work? I honestly have no idea – I just know when I hear that song I can’t see a jive. I guess we find out tomorrow.
Wow…after reading this post, I’m having deja vu of last season when the “Donny Mafia” more or less verbally assaulted anyone that dared to challenge the notion that Donny was NOT a ringer and yet totally deserved to win the competition based on his dancing skills gained through years in the entertainment biz. It’s almost a contradiction of terms – not a ringer, but already a great dancer so he deserves to win. And that’s exactly the vibe I’m getting from Evan fans this season – totally unwilling to admit that he is a ringer by using the weak argument that “skating is NOT dancing!”, but insisting he will win because he is just so “naturally talented”. I’m calling complete bull on this one – if “skating is NOT dancing” and Evan is relying on natural talent alone to succeed in this competition, then it’s just a complete coincidence that Kristi Yamaguchi won in season 6. There is an UNDENIABLE parallel between figure skating & dancing, both through the choreography and the methods used to train in each discipline. To try and insist that Evan is not a ringer due to his skating background is just kinda…well, ignorant.
And I do find it funny that people (namely Evan fans, from what I can tell) are awfully quick to point the finger at Nicole for being a ringer. To quote Heidi last season – “pot, meet kettle.” Nicole may be a ringer, but so is Evan – possibly an even bigger one due to his fanbase. Care to argue that? Ask anyone NOT watching the show who Nicole Scherzinger is. Or ask them if they know the name of the lead singer of the Pussycat Dolls is. I would put money on it that most would struggle to produce a name. But ask anyone who Evan Lysacek is, I’m sure more people would at least find it familiar, due to it being plastered all over the press post-Olympics. I’m sooo done with the whole “ringer” argument – it’s just pointless. It’s like a witch hunt at this point – “Oh my god! [Insert name here] is SUCH a ringer! He/She shouldn’t be allowed to do the show!” C’mon people – if the producers weeded out every single person who had dance experience, we’d be stuck with a cast full of stinkers like Jeff Ross, Tucker Carlson, & Kenny Mayne. Riveting television – NOT.
On an unrelated note, I would laugh my ass off if Evan & Anna’s rumba was to “Take My Breath Away” from Top Gun. And not just cuz I’m watching it right now. Picture it: Evan in a flight suit, rockin the aviators, taking them off to the strains of Berlin while gazing longingly at a badly-permed Anna. I wouldn’t have to do
abs for a week, my gut would be so sore from laughing! Hey, now that I think of it – Evan does look a little like Tom Cruise…
Oh, and Heidi is totally right – if Kate Haters like me want her gone, we gotta throw more votes to other couples. Her math is sound – Kate is sticking around because those that aren’t voting for her also aren’t voting for anyone else. I personally am throwing in all of my votes for Team Viva la Pam, but feel free to vote for the non-Kate couple of your choosing 😉 And if you’re voting for Kate cause “she’s a mom” – so are Niecy & Pam. And they’re wayyy cooler than Kate…just sayin 😉
i think this is the most spirited thread ever! can’t wait to see dmitry in the all guy dance. miss him so much this season. seems like they are using him every week now. maybe they realize just how popular he is with the younger crowd.
This year will shape up probably just like last year. The best dancer taking all the ringer heat and the true ringer taking home the trophy.
btw, people try and say freestyles win or lose competitions. I disagree. Shawn Johnson was always going to win b/c of her fanbase, so was Donny. The only time I think a freestyle made a difference was Helio beating Mel B.
Nah, I think they’re using Dmitry occasionally because they are trying their darnest to give the pros who got “laid off” paying work. Karina will be back shortly, Kym’s been back and likely will be again, and Lacey too. I think I read something about Lacey being on set yesterday. I think it’s very nice that they give pros who aren’t busy training a celeb a shot at earning some cash. For that matter, I think we already getting more Derek in pro dances this year than all of last year. Possibly Chelsie too. I think that has more to do with the fact that we are getting more pro dances, period. And thank god for that.
As for the all guy pro dance – well, I can’t wait to see that, period.
[…] any case, Princess Heidi did an awesome write up that includes which dance each celeb/pro is doing, possible song choices, commentary, etc. What […]
jeanmom has a good point. Emmitt and Mario both had good freestyles as did Apolo and Joey. It was just a matter of who had more fans. I think Shawn was more popular than Gilles all season as were Drew so Stacy and Gilles freestyle did not influence the outcome. Helio, Mel and Marie were all close but Mel’s freestyle was not as energetic as Helio’s while Marie’s was unique. Helio’ and maybe Brooke were the two seasons where a good freestyle got them wins.
While Shawn was likely more popular and won just because of fanbase, Gilles didn’t help himself with a CRAPPY freestyle. Tom said the votes were extremely close – I think Gilles was so good that he almost overcame a massive fanbase – but that freestyle was horrible. I think it very likely that Shawn would have won no matter what, but I don’t think you can discount the impact of a really BAD freestyle. If both are really good, the massive fanbase (Shawn) wins. Gilles was bad, Shawn’s was good – but what if it were reversed? Have we ever had a ringer who had a bad freestyle?? If not, that I don’t know if it’s possible to say, categorically, that the freestyle doesn’t matter. It’s a question of HOW MUCH it matters. In Brooke’s season, Lance did a horrible freestyle which likely cost him second place. I don’t think he ever had a shot at beating Warren or Brooke, however. For while Lance was a ringer of sorts, he is also gay and, sad to say, DWTS is often a….conservative audience. Sadly.