‘Dancing With the Stars’ Reveals New Voting Twist and Judges Make Surprising First Elimination

Credit: ABC/Eric McCandless

'Dancing With the Stars' Reveals New Voting Twist and Judges Make Surprising First Elimination

Someone has to go! Dancing With the Stars week two kicked off on Monday, September 23, with hosts Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews — and a new twist. This season, the fans' live votes (online and via text!) will be combined with the judges' scores. At the end of each night, two pairs will be revealed as the bottom two. Then, judges Len Goodman, Bruno Tunoli and Carrie Ann Inaba get to save the team they want to see continue! Week two was filled with many inspirational moments. Ally Brooke opened up about being bullied. "I'm really proud of my week once dance but my scores weren't positive," she said during her interview. "This isn't the first time I've been judged for my dancing. In the past, while I was in Fifth Harmony, people were really mean to me. Online, they would say, 'She's the worst dancer dancer of the group.' They would create videos and laugh at them." However, she chose to use the haters as her drive. At the end of her number, Carrie Ann came out to give her a hug. "I love when it's transformative. Dance can change people's life," the judge said. "You are a dancer. To the haters, boo ya!" Confidence seemed to be a big theme during week two. American Idol alum Lauren Alaina revealed that in the last year, she's been working on becoming more comfortable in her own skin. Partner Gleb Savchenko helped her feel that by incorporating a move where he ripped her skirt off mid-dance. She also revealed that every day in the studio, she brings a photo of her 10-year-old self. "It reminds me of a time when I didn't care what anybody thought of me," she said in her interview. She then told Gleb, "That's the most confident person I know!" Another celeb trying to focus on the positive was Lamar Odom. When Peta Murgatroyd pointed out that she had to remind Lamar of his moves repeatedly, he opened up to her about his near-death experience; he suffered from 12 strokes and six heart attacks while at a Las Vegas brothel in 2015. Peta reassured him that that was in the past and they could move ahead. At the end of the episode, the bottom two were revealed as Cheryl Burke and Ray Lewis and Mary Wilson and Brandon Armstrong. Carrie Ann saved Mary/Brandon, Bruno saved Ray/Cheryl and Len made the final choice. He saved Ray, sending home Mary. For all the scores and a breakdown for each dance, scroll through the gallery below.

Credit: ABC/Eric McCandless

'Dancing With the Stars' Reveals New Voting Twist and Judges Make Surprising First Elimination

Someone has to go! Dancing With the Stars week two kicked off on Monday, September 23, with hosts Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews — and a new twist. This season, the fans' live votes (online and via text!) will be combined with the judges' scores. At the end of each night, two pairs will be revealed as the bottom two. Then, judges Len Goodman, Bruno Tunoli and Carrie Ann Inaba get to save the team they want to see continue! Week two was filled with many inspirational moments. Ally Brooke opened up about being bullied. "I'm really proud of my week once dance but my scores weren't positive," she said during her interview. "This isn't the first time I've been judged for my dancing. In the past, while I was in Fifth Harmony, people were really mean to me. Online, they would say, 'She's the worst dancer dancer of the group.' They would create videos and laugh at them." However, she chose to use the haters as her drive. At the end of her number, Carrie Ann came out to give her a hug. "I love when it's transformative. Dance can change people's life," the judge said. "You are a dancer. To the haters, boo ya!" Confidence seemed to be a big theme during week two. American Idol alum Lauren Alaina revealed that in the last year, she's been working on becoming more comfortable in her own skin. Partner Gleb Savchenko helped her feel that by incorporating a move where he ripped her skirt off mid-dance. She also revealed that every day in the studio, she brings a photo of her 10-year-old self. "It reminds me of a time when I didn't care what anybody thought of me," she said in her interview. She then told Gleb, "That's the most confident person I know!" Another celeb trying to focus on the positive was Lamar Odom. When Peta Murgatroyd pointed out that she had to remind Lamar of his moves repeatedly, he opened up to her about his near-death experience; he suffered from 12 strokes and six heart attacks while at a Las Vegas brothel in 2015. Peta reassured him that that was in the past and they could move ahead. At the end of the episode, the bottom two were revealed as Cheryl Burke and Ray Lewis and Mary Wilson and Brandon Armstrong. Carrie Ann saved Mary/Brandon, Bruno saved Ray/Cheryl and Len made the final choice. He saved Ray, sending home Mary. For all the scores and a breakdown for each dance, scroll through the gallery below.

Credit: ABC/Eric McCandless

James Van Der Beek and Emma Slater

James Van Der Beek kicked off the night with a crisp cha-cha, the dance he did on Don't Trust the B!. Len said it included too many "gimmicks" but was a "solid" performance. Bruno and Carrie Ann pointed out that James missed a step in the beginning, but she said he was "on fire" afterward.

Score: 20/30

Credit: ABC/Eric McCandless

Sailor Brinkley-Cook and Val Chmerkovskiy

Sailor Brinkley-Cook was extremely nervous to dance a "sensual" rumba with Val Chmerkovskiy, especially since she had a serious boyfriend (who was in the audience!). Bruno told her that she was doing the right steps but needed to "link them" together more. Carrie Ann noted she was lacking consistency. 

Score: 18/30

Credit: ABC/Eric McCandless

Ray Lewis and Cheryl Burke

Ray Lewis struggled during his foxtrot, despite Cheryl Burke doing her best to make him appear lighter on his feet. The judges pointed out his mistakes but commended that he "sold it" and kept smiling.

Score: 15/30

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Ally Brooke and Sasha Farber

Ahead of her viennese waltz, Ally opened up about being bullied during her time in Fifth Harmony, explaining that fans said she was the worst dancer of the group. Afterward, Len said the dance wasn't very good, but Bruno reassured her that she could dance, despite what haters say.

Score: 20/30

Credit: ABC/Eric McCandless

Mary Wilson and Brandon Armstrong

The Supremes singer took on the cha-cha! Carrie Ann said that there was "a lot of little mistakes" but she kept smiling through it all. Len said that the number was "full of freedom."

Score: 15/30

Credit: ABC/Eric McCandless

Lauren Alaina and Gleb Savchenko

Lauren Alaina not only worked on her dancing but also her confidence for the paso doble to Demi Lovato's "Confidence." Carrie Ann loved how happy Lauren appeared but reminded her to keep her shoulders down. Len said it "lacked a bit of shaping" and blamed Gleb for leaving out certain moves.

Score: 19/30

Credit: ABC/Eric McCandless

Sean Spicer and Lindsay Arnold

Although Sean Spicer spent most of rehearsal week campaigning, he and Lindsay Arnold danced the tango, and the judges said it was better than last week.

Score: 16/30

Credit: ABC/Eric McCandless

Karamo and Jenna Johnson

Karamo's fiancé and future mother-in-law visited while he rehearsed the quick step with Jenna Johnson. Bruno complimented the Queer Eye star's "flare" and Carrie Ann called it "electrifying." However, Len "wasn't overstruck" by the dance.

Score: 19/30

Credit: ABC/Eric McCandless

Kate Flannery and Pasha Pashkov

Kate Flannery danced the foxtrot, which Carrie Ann called "amazing." She also complimented Pasha Paskov for his teaching abilities. Len said that he appreciated Kate's "sensible" outfit compared to what others wore. He called her dance "wonderful."

Score: 21/30

Credit: ABC/Eric McCandless

Kel Mitchell and Witney Carson

Kel Mitchell opened up about his tough week ahead of their samba. During rehearsals, he cried when revealing his dad had a brain aneurysm. Luckily, everything went great in the surgery. Len said he didn't love it all but thought "it was very, very well done."

Score: 20/30

Credit: ABC/Eric McCandless

Lamar Odom and Peta Murgatroyd

After opening up to Peta about his near-death experience four years ago, Lamar took on the salsa. Carrie Ann said that he did well during the solo moves but struggled with Peta. Len said he seemed "a little bit more confident" this week.

Score: 12/30

Credit: ABC/Eric McCandless

Hannah Brown and Alan Bersten

Bachelorette alum Hannah Brown revealed that she took dance classes as a child because her parents wanted her to. She also shared that during her pageant days, dancing was her talent — but now she was doing it for herself. She and Alan Bersten closed out the show with a viennese waltz. Len said she had "lovely musicality" and thought it was the best dance of the night. The pair earned the first 8s of the season!

Score: 24