Chaka is eliminated after showing poor performance in the first and second week, while Gary Busey, Paula Deen, Victor Espinoza and Kim Zolciak show a bit of improvement.
- Sep 22, 2015
AceShowbiz - "Dancing with the Stars" returned on Monday night, September 21 with more dances and the first elimination of season 21. Before the results were announced, all eleven pairs took the stage to dance with the theme of "Hometown Glory".
Tied on the top of leaderboard with Bindi Irwin last week, Nick Carter was a little disappointing this time. Judge Julianne Hough said his jive, dedicated to his teacher who inspired him to dance as a kid, "was a little bit messy." Bruno Tonioli and Carrie Ann Inaba agreed that it was rough, and the former noticed that the boybander forgot his steps. The Backstreet Boys member earned 21 out of 30 points.
Paula Deen was next to perform, dancing a rumba with Louis Van Amstel to honor her hometown of Savannah, Georgia. Bruno said the celebrity chef was "much better" this week. Julianne liked her confidence, but told her to work on her turns. She scored 19 points.
Hayes Grier and Emma Slater danced a foxtrot. The judges praised his natural ability to dance and Bruno gave him some technical criticisms, "Don't lean forward, don't stick your bum out. Try to put a bit of rise and flow, if you get it right in one then you can translate it in to the others. Learn from Emma, she is very good." The Vine and YouTube personality earned 22 points.
Up next was Chaka Khan. She danced a foxtrot with Keo Motsepe. While she's confident that she would improve, her dance didn't really show it as she forgot some steps. The judges were nice though. "You make a mistake but you keep it in check - you aren't blowing it out of proportion. It's dancing, it's supposed to be fun, tomorrow I want you to really memorize that choreography," Carrie Ann said. The singer earned 15 points.
Andy Grammer and his partner Allison Holker danced a jive. Carrie Ann commented on the performance, "You have a lot of potential, but it was a mess." Julianne added, "It started so strong, but then it got a little off. For us, technique and timing have to be there. But your performance was so strong, sometimes that can outweigh it. But, work on it!" Andy earned 21 points.
Kim Zolciak danced a quickstep with Tony Dovolani. All three judges praised her improvement as Carrie Ann said, "This is a tough week and we are watching everyone struggle. But, you just gave us pow pow! You showed us you are in the game kid!" Julianne urged Tony to keep pushing his partner. The reality TV star earned 19 points.
Alek Skarlatos and Lindsay Arnold danced a jazz to Journey's "Don't Stop Believing" that reminds him to his family and friends back home. He got mixed reviews, with the judges pointing out his hands. "Work on your hands, just relax those fingers a little bit," Julianne said. The Legion of Honour recipient earned 23 points.
Alexa Vega danced a salsa with Mark Ballas, dressing as a fierce tiger. "It was wild and wonderful but I love wild and wonderful," Bruno gushed. Julianne added, "You were sexy, you were strong, you were sassy. There was a whole another level of commitment." The actress earned 24 points.
Victor Espinoza and Karina Smirnoff followed it up with a jive, which was entertaining but bad technically. "If I could just score you on cuteness, you would be getting a 10 from me," Carrie Ann said. The jockey earned 17 points.
Tamar Braxton and Valentin Chmerkovskiy danced a hot cha cha. Julianne called it "magical," but added that she needed to work on extending her legs. Carrie Ann, meanwhile, noticed that Tamar's eyes went blank when she was in hold with Val. The singer earned 24 points.
Gary Busey and Anna Trebunskaya danced a foxtrot and Bruno was surprised that it actually looked like a foxtrot. "That was such a sweet dance, well done!" Julianne praised him. Gary earned 18 points.
Carlos Pena Jr. and Witney Carson were up next with their own foxtrot. Carrie Ann declared him "a contender." Julianne praised his natural ability but told him to "squeeze your shoulder blade." He earned 24 points.
Bindi Irwin and Derek Hough were saved for the last. A fan of rock music, she danced a tango to AC/DC's "Shook Me All Night Long". Julianne said "it was so fun," while Bruno found it "absolutely surprising!" The wildlife conservationist earned another high score of 25 to top the leaderboard.
With all pairs already dancing, it's time to announce the results. Chaka Khan and Keo Motsepe were the first eliminated pair of the season. The Queen of Funk said she's happy to have made great friends, but felt bad for Keo whom she said "by far one of the best dancers she has ever seen."
On Tuesday, September 22, the remaining pairs will return to dance in honor of the pro dancers' hometowns. Another pair will also be eliminated.
