Christie Brinkley has joined the season 28 cast of Dancing With the Stars, and she isn’t the only one who is excited about the news!
“I haven’t really heard from [Billy Joel], although I did hear through [my daughter] Alexa that he was very excited,” the model, 65, told Us Weekly exclusively of her ex-husband, 70. “He thought that it was a really fun, great thing to be doing.”
The Timeless Beauty author and the singer wed in 1985 and welcomed their daughter, Alexa, that same year. Brinkley went on to give birth to Jack, 24, and Sailor, 21, with her now-ex-husband Peter Cook.
Back in August 2014, the former couple’s roles were reversed when Brinkley cheered on the “Piano Man” singer at his Madison Square Garden concert, writing on Twitter, “Billy’s still got it!” Joel serenaded her while singing “Uptown Girl.”
Not only is the Grammy winner excited about the Los Angeles native’s spot on the ABC show, but her children are also showing their support. “They’re all rescheduling their lives so that they can try to be there on the first dance,” she told Us. “[It’s] nice to know that I’ll have my little cheering section there.”
The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model went on to gush about the “great” professional dancer she’s been paired with, telling Us, “I have the perfect partner. I really do. … He’s the perfect amount of push when he knows that he’s getting somewhere and then [knows] when to laugh and play around and have fun. He’s got a very good balance with that, and he knows how to describe things really beautifully. … I know I lucked out in my teacher department.”
Dancing With the Stars premieres on Monday, September 16, at 8 P.M. ET on ABC.
With reporting by Kayley Stumpe
