DWTS 14 Week 6: Jaleel White in second

Jaleel White has showed early promise “Dancing with the Stars” and the Pasadena-born TV star had a smooth dance style but in this highly competitive season 14, he needed something more. Last night during Motown Week, White and his partner Kym Johnson finally brought it to the floor.

White and Johnson were initially tied for first after the individual dances, but despite impressive lifts, they fell to second after finishing third during the Motown Marathon.

White and Johnson’s cha cha cha to ”Ain’t Too Proud to Beg” by The Temptations  was the season’s high score for that dance. Watching the rehearsal package, we saw Johnson drilling White on sharpening his moves and getting that free hand to place with conviction and control. This week his turns were so crisp they crackled and he hit his marks with a new sharpness.

The previous high score for the cha cha cha this season had been telenovela star William Levy and his partner Cheryl Burke with 24 (8, 8, 8). If you want to compare the styles: White is cool and fun while Levy is hot with sex appeal.

Head judge Len Goodman expressed how disappointed he was that White had fallen off the contender path since week 1, but told him with this performance he was back.

Bruno Tonioli told him he  burned that floor and his performance was “the biggest sizzler of the season” and concluding by announcing, “You’ve come back big time.”

Carrie Ann Inaba warned that White has to bring his A-game every time and this time he brought it.

Head judge Len Goodman hasn’t yet given out a perfect ten so he actually rated four teams the same las night:

• Katherine Jenkins and Mark Ballas
• Jaleel White and Kym Johnson
• Donald Driver and Peta Murgatroyd
• Maria Menounos and Derek Hough

Yet remember Levy had less time to practice for his week 1 performance and Levy showed just how much he had improved by beating White during the Motown Marathon which was also a cha cha cha.

Yet because Levy and Burke’s rumba was too raunchy they got an 8 from Goodman in the individual dances and that might have decided who was second at the end of the night.

• Compare rumba

Will White and Johnson survive? I hope so, but White and Johnson have been in the bottom two while lower scoring celebrities such as Gladys Knight and Melissa Gilbert have not. White and Johnson survived last week by outdancing Gavin DeGraw and Karina Smirnoff in the cha cha cha. I hope White and Johnson continue because he’s a hometown boy and I like his style.

LEADER BOARD
Individual dance + Motown marathon

Katherine Jenkins and Mark Ballas: 29 (10, 9, 10) + 10 = 39
Jaleel White and Kym Johnson: 29 (10, 9, 10) + 8 = 37
William Levy and Cheryl Burke: 27 (9, 8, 10) + 9 = 36
Donald Driver and Peta Murgatroyd: 27 (9, 9, 9) + 7 = 34
Maria Menounos and Derek Hough: 26 (8, 9, 9) + 4 = 31
Melissa Gilbert and Maksim Chmerkovskiy: 24 (8, 8, 8) + 6 = 30
Roshon Fegan and Chelsie Hightower: 23 (7, 8, 8) + 5 = 28
Gladys Knight and Tristan MacManus: 21 (7, 7, 7) + 3 = 24

Individual Dances

Katherine Jenkins and Mark Ballas: 29 (10, 9, 10)
Jaleel White and Kym Johnson: 29 (10, 9, 10)
William Levy and Cheryl Burke: 27 (9, 8, 10)
Donald Driver and Peta Murgatroyd: 27 (9, 9, 9)
Maria Menounos and Derek Hough: 26 (8, 9, 9)
Melissa Gilbert and Maksim Chmerkovskiy: 24 (8, 8, 8)
Roshon Fegan and Chelsie Hightower: 23 (7, 8, 8)
Gladys Knight and Tristan McManus: 21 (7, 7, 7)

Motown marathon

• Katherine Jenkins and Mark Ballas: 10
• William Levy and Cheryl Burke:  9
• Jaleel White and Kym Johnson:  8
• Donald Driver and Peta Murgatroyd:  7
• Melissa Gilbert and Maksim Chmerkovskiy:  6
• Roshon Fegan and Chelsie Hightower: 5
• Maria Menounos and Derek Hough: 4
• Gladys Knight and Tristan McManus:  3

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