Lauren Alaina Advances to ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Finals With 2 Dances [WATCH]
Lauren Alaina will be dancing in the Dancing With the Stars Season 28 finals. The country star and her dance partner, Gleb Savchenko, performed two dances during the semi-finals on Monday night (Nov. 18).
For their "Redemption Round" dance, Alaina and Savchenko performed a paso doble, assigned by DWTS judge Len Goodman and danced to, fittingly, Kelly Clarkson's "Stronger." The two previously performed that style of dance in Week 2, and Goodman praised their improvement.
"You have come so far. You have become a woman who commands the dance floor," added judge Carrie Ann Inaba. Alaina and Savchenko earned 27 out of a possible 30 points for their first dance.
Alaina and Savchenko's second semi-finals dance was a Viennese waltz, performed to Tim McGraw's song "Humble & Kind." The country star dedicated the performance to her parents, who, she shared before the dance, sacrificed quite a bit to let their daughter pursue her dreams.
"Honestly, the song sounds like everything my mom's ever said to me," Alaina said of "Humble & Kind." Judge Bruno Tonioli praised Alaina and Savchenko's performance as "so sophisticated, so classic," and he and his fellow judges awarded the pair another 27 points out of 30.
Alaina and Savchenko will compete in the Dancing With the Stars Season 28 finale against comedian Kel Mitchell, former Bachelorette contestant Hannah Brown and Fifth Harmony member Ally Brooke. Actor James Van Der Beek was eliminated during the semi-final round on Monday night. The show pairs celebrities with professional dancers, with the pairings competition in an elimination-style competition until a winner is crowned at the end of the season.
Alaina is far from the first country artist to compete on Dancing With the Stars: Wynonna Judd, Chuck Wicks, Sara Evans, Billy Ray Cyrus, and Jana Kramer also previously appeared on the show. Kellie Pickler won the show back in 2013, while country radio DJ Bobby Bones won the show's 27th season in 2018; in fact, it was Bones who convinced Alaina to accept the competitor spot.
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