Demi Lovato’s Longtime Friend Dani Vitale: 6 Things to Know About the Dancer

Credit: Courtesy Dani Vitale/Instagram

Demi Lovato’s Longtime Friend Dani Vitale: 6 Things to Know About the Dancer

Dancer to the stars! Dani Vitale’s famous friendships with musicians including Demi Lovato, Halsey and Kelly Clarkson have led to a high-profile dance career. The Ohio native, 30, made headlines in July 2018, however, for a negative reason after being linked to the night that Lovato, 28, suffered a near-fatal overdose. After the “Skyscraper” singer was hospitalized, Vitale spoke out about the situation, calling for fans to focus on Lovato’s recovery and not point fingers at who may have been responsible. “I care about Demi just like all of you do. I have not said anything about this situation until now because her recovery has been of the most importance,” she wrote via Instagram at the time. “I was not with Demi when the incident happened, but I am with her now, and will continue to be because she means the world to me just as she does to all of you.” The backup dancer, who celebrated her 28th birthday with Lovato hours before the "Confident" singer overdosed at her Hollywood home, continued: “There is no need for any negativity towards the ones who care about Demi at this time. There is too much of it in this world as it is. Remember that we all love her more than we can ever put into words. Please continue to send her love during her recovery.” The following month, Vitale denied claims that she had given the “Sorry Not Sorry” singer drugs ahead of her hospitalization, which came one month after Lovato revealed in her single “Sober” that she relapsed after being sober for six years. [jwplayer hoeyCRmL-l3ahXupL] “I have never TOUCHED nor even SEEN a drug in my entire life. I DO NOT DO DRUGS, nor would I ever encourage, or supply them to anyone I love,” she wrote in an Instagram statement in August 2018. “This UNTRUE narrative is damaging innocent people’s lives, mine included … It is NOT okay to bully someone over false heresy.” The performer noted that she suffered “severe depression, fear, anxiety, sadness, anger, disgust, numbness and many more adjectives” after being accused of being a contributor to Lovato’s health scare. She added: “During that time, the circulation of an UNTRUE story on the internet yanked my life, my reputation, my name, and everything I have worked so hard to stand for, out from underneath me.” Vitale has since bounced back from the attack on her character and has continued to find success in Hollywood. Lovato, for her part, opened up about her near-fatal overdose in her YouTube docuseries, Dancing With the Devil, which premieres on Tuesday, March 23. “I had three strokes. I had a heart attack,” the Grammy nominee said in the trailer for her docuseries. “My doctors said that I had five to 10 more minutes.” She told reporters at the Television Critics Association panel in February 2021 that she was “left with brain damage” and still has “blind spots” in her vision. Scroll down to learn more about Lovato’s former creative director. [podcast_block]

Credit: Courtesy Dani Vitale/Instagram

Demi Lovato’s Longtime Friend Dani Vitale: 6 Things to Know About the Dancer

Dancer to the stars! Dani Vitale’s famous friendships with musicians including Demi Lovato, Halsey and Kelly Clarkson have led to a high-profile dance career. The Ohio native, 30, made headlines in July 2018, however, for a negative reason after being linked to the night that Lovato, 28, suffered a near-fatal overdose. After the “Skyscraper” singer was hospitalized, Vitale spoke out about the situation, calling for fans to focus on Lovato’s recovery and not point fingers at who may have been responsible. “I care about Demi just like all of you do. I have not said anything about this situation until now because her recovery has been of the most importance,” she wrote via Instagram at the time. “I was not with Demi when the incident happened, but I am with her now, and will continue to be because she means the world to me just as she does to all of you.” The backup dancer, who celebrated her 28th birthday with Lovato hours before the "Confident" singer overdosed at her Hollywood home, continued: “There is no need for any negativity towards the ones who care about Demi at this time. There is too much of it in this world as it is. Remember that we all love her more than we can ever put into words. Please continue to send her love during her recovery.” The following month, Vitale denied claims that she had given the “Sorry Not Sorry” singer drugs ahead of her hospitalization, which came one month after Lovato revealed in her single “Sober” that she relapsed after being sober for six years. [jwplayer hoeyCRmL-l3ahXupL] “I have never TOUCHED nor even SEEN a drug in my entire life. I DO NOT DO DRUGS, nor would I ever encourage, or supply them to anyone I love,” she wrote in an Instagram statement in August 2018. “This UNTRUE narrative is damaging innocent people’s lives, mine included … It is NOT okay to bully someone over false heresy.” The performer noted that she suffered “severe depression, fear, anxiety, sadness, anger, disgust, numbness and many more adjectives” after being accused of being a contributor to Lovato’s health scare. She added: “During that time, the circulation of an UNTRUE story on the internet yanked my life, my reputation, my name, and everything I have worked so hard to stand for, out from underneath me.” Vitale has since bounced back from the attack on her character and has continued to find success in Hollywood. Lovato, for her part, opened up about her near-fatal overdose in her YouTube docuseries, Dancing With the Devil, which premieres on Tuesday, March 23. “I had three strokes. I had a heart attack,” the Grammy nominee said in the trailer for her docuseries. “My doctors said that I had five to 10 more minutes.” She told reporters at the Television Critics Association panel in February 2021 that she was “left with brain damage” and still has “blind spots” in her vision. Scroll down to learn more about Lovato’s former creative director. [podcast_block]

Credit: Courtesy Dani Vitale/Instagram

She’s a Professional Dancer and Instructor

Vitale is a trained dancer, having grown up doing ballet training at the Cleveland City of Dance and later studying in New York and Los Angeles at Broadway Dance Center, Oberlin College and Performing Arts Center in California. She has since performed on the Grammys, Dancing With the Stars and musical tours, including Lovato’s Tell Me You Love Me Tour and Katy Perry’s Super Bowl performance in 2015.

Credit: Courtesy Dani Vitale/Instagram

She’s a Dog Mom

The Ohio native has two dogs, who she regularly features on her social media pages.

Credit: Courtesy Dani Vitale/Instagram

She’s Choreographed for the Biggest Names in Music

The dancer has choreographed for numerous musical tours throughout her career, working with Halsey, Kelsea Ballerini, Kelly Clarkson (on The Kelly Clarkson Show), Hailee Steinfeld and more.

Credit: Courtesy Dani Vitale/Instagram

She Loves Honoring Her Italian Roots

Vitale often pays homage to her Italian heritage, making homemade pasta and sharing photos on social media. She also documents all of her trips to Italy. “I have always been so proud of my name. Proud of what my parents named me and the stories behind their surnames,” she captioned a pasta-making snap via Instagram in July 2018. “Being in Italy this past week has shown me even more where my deep rooted values derived from. Everything makes much more sense to me now about how I was raised and what was stressed as important and not.”

Credit: Courtesy Dani Vitale/Instagram

She’s Been a Creative Director and Producer for the CMAs

The performer added creative director and producer to her resume over the past few years, working on the 2019 Country Music Awards, 2020 Billboard Music Awards and also directing music videos and live performances. She both choreographed and was the creative director for Halsey and Ballerini’s “The Other Girl” performance at the 2020 CMT Awards. She was nominated for an award at the World Choreography Awards in October 2020 for her work with Halsey at the American Music Awards.

Credit: Courtesy Dani Vitale/Instagram

She Is a Longtime Pal of the 'Camp Rock' Cast

After being a backup dancer in Camp Rock, Vitale maintained friendships with Lovato, and both Joe Jonas and Nick Jonas. Over the years, she has shared photos from her time spent with the Jonas Brothers members, including trips to Las Vegas and going to music festivals in the desert with them. She has even spent time with Joe’s now-wife, Sophie Turner.