Pump up the jam! With their first dances behind them, the season 19 contestants on Dancing With the Stars came ready to rock the house in week two. Some — like Betsey Johnson — felt they had something to prove after a disappointing first performance, while others — like Alfonso Ribeiro and Sadie Robertson — worried they'd buckle under the pressure of the high expectations they'd set for themselves. The one thing they all had in common? They got to choose the song they were dancing to. Let's recap "My Jam Monday"! (Spoilers ahead.)
Randy Couture and Karina Smirnoff
After last week's romantic foxtrot, Randy was ready to turn up the sex appeal a little with a sizzling cha cha. "It's kinda naughty," he teased of the routine, which was set to The Rolling Stones' "I Can't Get No Satisfaction." Unfortunately, it wasn't quite naughty enough for Carrie Ann Inaba's taste. "I'm actually a little disappointed," she said after the performance. "It was a little underwhelming."
The other judges were a little more forgiving. Head judge Len Goodman noted that Randy needed to focus on his footwork but praised his enthusiasm and heart, while Bruno Tonioli raved that his hip action was on point. "Plenty of satisfaction in that department!" he quipped.
Score: 28 out of 40 (7 from everyone)
Janel Parrish and Val Chmerkovskiy
Val, by his own admission, pushed Janel "really hard" this week. "Val's in teaching mood. Teaching mood is kinda grumpy," she said during an aside. Ultimately, though, his grumpiness served her well. Their foxtrot to Carly Rae Jepsen's "Call Me Maybe" earned rave reviews from the judges — not to mention two nines. "That wasn't really a traditional foxtrot. But I say screw tradition, because I loved it!" Julianne Hough exclaimed. Added Bruno: "No maybe for you. You can call me anytime you want."
Score: 34 out of 40 (9 from Carrie Ann and Bruno, 8 from Julianne and Bruno)
Lea Thompson and Artem Chigvintsev
Lea was feeling pretty down on herself after nearly being eliminated last week, so she really threw herself into rehearsals. It paid off, too. The judges loved her jive to Wilson Pickett's "Land of a Thousand Dances," and rewarded her with three nines. "The ladies are killing it tonight! That was so exciting," Carrie Ann said afterward. Bruno added that Lea had the "incandescent appeal of Ann-Margret in her time," while Julianne gushed that she was "so feisty" and held her own completely with Artem
Score: 35 out of 40 (8 from Len Goodman, 9 from everyone else)
Michael Waltrip and Emma Slater
Michael may not be the most polished dancer this season, but he definitely has one of the biggest personalities. His samba to Lee Brice's "Girls in Bikinis" wasn't a triumph of technique, per se, but the judges ate it up anyway. "The world needs more of what you got," Carrie Ann quipped. "You're pure joy." Added Len: "It was wild and wacky. And I don't know why, but I did like it." Unfortunately, their compliments didn't translate into high marks.
Score: 24 out of 40 (6 from everyone)
Tavis Smiley and Sharna Burgess
Tavis' second week was a hectic one, because he was trying to balance rehearsals with the responsibilities of his book tour. Both he and Sharna were nervous going into Monday's performance; Tavis warned her that the routine had "too many movements" and "too much for [him] to remember" in the time they had left to practice. "We're gonna have a meltdown on Monday," he lamented.
The "meltdown" fear turned out to be unfounded, but Tavis' cha cha to Earth, Wind & Fire's "Boogie Wonderland" definitely wasn't his best performance. "I know you've had a tough week. Unfortunately, it showed a bit," Len admitted. Julianne and Bruno thought he "sold it," but Carrie Ann wanted to see him "perform" a bit more.
Score: 28 out of 40 (7 from everyone)
Alfonso Ribeiro and Witney Carson
Alfonso and Witney finished at the top of the leaderboard last week, but rehearsals for week two brought them down to earth pretty quickly. Both were super frustrated with their progress, or lack thereof, but they turned in a decent performance anyway — to none other than "Gettin' Jiggy Wit It," by Alfonso's former Fresh Prince of Bel-Air costar Will Smith.
"You're great. You're gonna make everything look wonderful because you have the Alfonso groove," Julianne said after his samba. "But I'm really looking forward to seeing you do something more in the latin and ballroom groove." Bruno added that his "personal style, charisma, and feel for the music" was "unique and extraordinary," while Carrie Ann said the dance was "solid" but not his best.
Score: 32 out for 40 (8 from everyone)
Bethany Mota and Derek Hough
Bethany was dealing with an ankle injury this week, but you wouldn't have known it from her performance. She and Derek performed an impressive foxtrot to Meghan Trainor's "All About That Bass," complete with a stunt involving, yes, a bass. Carrie Ann raved afterward that Bethany was a great storyteller, while Len joked that she should put it on her Twitter account. "That was a great number!" he said. Added Julianne: "That was your jam? Well, you are my jam."
Score: 33 out of 40 (9 from Len, 8 from everyone else)
Betsey Johnson and Tony Dovolani
Betsey was humiliated after her boa mishap on the premiere, which she called "an embarrassing disaster" and the "worst experience [she's] ever had." Fortunately, she bounced back nicely with an understated foxtrot to "Girls Just Want to Have Fun," which Julianne described as "simple, elegant, beautiful, and timeless."
"All hail Queen Betsey!" Carrie Ann exclaimed after the routine, standing and applauding at the judges' table. Len echoed her sentiments, saying, "Last week was a night to forget. Tonight was a night to remember."
Score: 28 out of 40 (7 from everyone)
Antonio Sabato Jr. and Cheryl Burke
Antonio and Cheryl had some tense moments during rehearsal, but they pulled it together for the performance. Though his footwork wasn't quite up to speed last week, he showed marked improvement during his sexy rumba to Miguel's "Adorn." Julianne gushed that he'd made "leaps and bounds" week over week, while Carrie Ann praised his "subtle, smooth" moves. Bruno's one tip? "You've got a very nice butt. Use it even more."
Score: 31 out of 40 (7 from Len, 8 from everyone else)
Tommy Chong and Peta Murgatroyd
Chong may be one of the oldest contestants this season, but he's also one of the most endearing. His salsa to Gloria Estefan's "Higher" was, in Julianne's words, "effing fabulous." Bruno added that Chong is "an inspiration" because he proves that "age is a state of mind" — you're only as old as you feel! "I was overdose on fun," Len quipped. "Plenty of wiggles, plenty of giggles."
Score: 28 out of 40 (7 from everyone)
Jonathan Bennett and Allison Holker
Carrie Ann and Len weren't crazy about Allison's choreography for the cha cha — which was set to Ed Sheeran's "Sing" — but fans went wild for Jonathan's energy. Julianne and Bruno were a little more complimentary, but they, too, agreed that there were issues with the content of the routine.
Score: 30 out of 40 (8 from Julianne and Bruno, 7 from Carrie Ann and Len)
Sadie Robertson and Mark Ballas
Mark had to think outside the box to come up with a jazz routine to Jason Aldean's "She's Country" — but choreography wasn't even their biggest challenge this week. Sadie's dad, Duck Dynasty star Willie Robertson, wasn't too keen on any of the costumes Mark wanted her to wear, so they had to reconsider their approach. "Those aren't dresses. Those are dish towels," Willie quipped.
Carrie Ann worried that the moves themselves were a little too risque for Willie's taste, but she thought Sadie "killed it." Len, on the other hand, said the juxtaposition of jazz and country "didn't quite gel," and Julianne said she wished there'd been more leg action.
Score: 31 out of 40 (7 from Len, 8 from everyone else)
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