Kellie Pickler on ‘Dancing with the Stars’ Season 16: Finale Recap
Monday night’s “Dancing with the Stars” finale was full of sequins, spray tans, and 10s! Kellie Pickler once again proved she’s in it to win it.
In the first round, each couple re-did a dance that the judges wanted them to improve from earlier in the season. Pickler and her partner, Derek Hough, did a Quickstep routine. The couple danced the Quickstep during week 6 and scored a total of 29 points. After weeks of training and getting advice from head judge Len Goodman, Pickler danced a flawless routine that the judges called “fantastic”. Goodman ranted that the dance left him “palpatating, perspirated. I got so excited, I was nearly flatulating, I tell you. That was excitement!” Judge Bruno Tonioli said, “You’re the Southern belle of the ball. More glamorous, more beautiful, brighter, lighter, better than ever,” adding, “You couldn’t have put in more content if you tried.” Judge Carrie Ann Inaba, who had taken a point away during week 6, said “The one thing I was looking for was an improvement in your body contact, and I saw it!” For the first round, Pickler and Hough scored a perfect 30 out of 30.
The second round of dances was a Cha Cha Cha Relay. In this dance, all four couples danced back-to-back and were awarded points based on how the judges ranked them. Pro-football star Jacoby Jones and his partner Karina Smirnoff came in fourth and were awarded two extra judges points. Olympic gymnast Aly Raisman and Mark Ballas came in third and earned three extra points. Pickler and Hough came in second, earning four points, while actress Zendaya and Val Chmerkovskiy came in first, earning five extra points.
For the final, and fan favorite, round of competition, the couples danced a freestyle routine. Known for being the routine to help a couple win, Pickler and Hough decided to strip down the performance to the most simple set, but most technically difficult routine. When asked for her critique, Inaba was choked up and unable to talk for several seconds. After gathering herself, she said “I have to say something. Kellie, you just bared your soul on the dance floor and it was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. Thank you.” “Good dancing engages the brain. Great dancing engages the heart. You were totally immersed in the dance, in each other,” Goodman explained. “You drew everyone into that performance.” Tonioli added to the postive feedback by saying “You did a dance of spell binding beauty. That really was a contemporary work of art… I’m sure you reached the nation tonight with that performance.” In the final round Pickler and Hough were rewarded with another perfect score.
Her final score of the night and competition was 64 out of a possible 65.
Check out her dances below:
Kellie Picker dances the Quickstep
“Dancing with the Stars” Cha Cha Cha Relay
Kellie Pickler dances a Freestyle routine
Make sure you tune in to ABC tonight to see who will take home the mirror ball trophy and title of Season 16 “Dancing with the Stars” champion.
Other stars from the season, including Wynonna, will make their way back into the ballroom and perform a dance. On top of dancing, Wynonna is also set to sing during the finale show.
Do you think Kellie will win “Dancing with the Stars?”
