Dance Showdown season 2 airs today (Friday 10/5) at 12PM EST/9AM PST on YouTube, and this is one dance competition that will have you up on your feet and ready to dance through your hallways. Dance Showdown garnered over 10 million views in the first season, which aired last fall, and the competition is back this year with full force. Season 2 returns this fall with Joey Fatone, Laurieann Gibson, Ryan Higa, Dave Days, Shane Dawson, and 12 of the biggest online celebrities for one of the fiercest dance battles you’ve ever seen. These people mean business, and each of the stars come to the competition ready to prove to themselves — and to the world — that their body is made to move.
In celebration of the premiere, we thought we’d chat with two of the show’s judges: famous Dancing with the Star‘s contestant and ‘N Sync lad Joey Fatone and world-renown dance choreographer Laurieann Gibson. They were awesome to chat with, and they took time out of their busy schedules so you could get an in-depth look at the show. So check out what they had to say and don’t forget to watch the Dance Showdown premiere below!
CDL’s Chat with Joey Fatone:
You were involved with two dance shows this Fall, Dance Showdown (as a judge) and Dancing with the Stars (as a contestant). What was it like juggling the two shows?
My amazing team takes good care of me and my scheduling!
Who were you eyeing as your biggest, fiercest competition on DWTS? Were you surprised by this week’s elimination?
It’s a completely different season, a season where six people have won it already. Some of them are out for blood, some of them are here to have fun. I was here to have fun, maybe I should have been more out for blood, but hey, I had a good time.
Do you bring any of the knowledge / training you’ve gotten from DWTS’s partner Kym Johnson to Dance Showdown?
I love that she always knows how far to push me.
CDL’s Chat with Laurieann Gibson:
What do you think is the most important quality in a dancer, someone who has the arduous task of balancing both physicality and creativity?
The most important quality in a dancer is passion. It’s what I call the Eye of the Tiger. They need to have the ability to dance which is a gift — it’s the passion, that’s what really separates someone who’s doing dance steps from someone who’s a real dancer.
What do you hope dancers are able to take away from the opportunity to compete on an intense show such as Dance Showdown?
I hope that they take away belief in themselves that in the most uncomfortable and unlikely situations you can rise to the occasion. Actually, not only rise to it, you can do it and you can do it really well. There’s nothing you can’t achieve if you believe in yourself and your own abilities.
You’ve choreographed some of the entertainment industry’s biggest stars, including Lady Gaga and Nicki Minaj. You understand talent and, likewise, you know what it takes to make it in this industry. What will you be looking for in these dancers as you judge/advise them throughout the competition?
I’m looking for the contestants to complete the task to the best of their ability and not give up. I’ll be looking for rhythm, passion, and connection to the moment. The most important thing to me is that they do their best and won’t give up.
Can you give us any spoilers? Who should we keep our eyes on? Who, from what you know about the contestants, is going to prove to be the fiercest competition?
Brittani Louise Taylor, the quirky comedian, and MissHannaMinx — that girl is a diamond in the rough. You’d really think there’s a pop star in there!
When you’re pitching this show to fans, what do you tell them?
This is like no other dance show because there’s not a professional dancer, who used to dance or has been in the industry. These contestants come from a completely different world. They are regular people stepping into a highly professional environment. They are going from imagining it in their room to taking it to a real stage. That they are real people is what makes it amazing.
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If you don’t watch the show for the dancing, definitely check it out for the quirky, hilarious, fun-loving charm that judge Lauriann Gibson brings to the show. She definitely stood out in the exclusive clip that was sent to CDL, and we can’t wait to see what she does on the show this season — and on future shows! So, in the words of Lauriann herself, “Get ready for some real ja-jing, some real dancing, some real boom-cax. Get ready to change your life, honey-bunches. Keep watching, I say! 5, 6, 7, 8!”
Don’t forget to subscribe to the DanceOn YouTube channel, the spot where all the episodes of Dance Showdown will stream, and let us know what you think of the premiere!
Image credit to Dance Showdown