Dancing With the Stars is kicking off Week 5 with Dedication Night, as the 10 remaining couples will pay tribute to the influential people in their lives with “moving and meaningful” performances. And for the first time in the history of the show, the friends and family members selected by each celebrity contestant will actually join them on the ballroom floor in routines.
Former pro and two-time Mirrorball champion Kym Johnson will also be on hand as a special guest judge for the festivities, alongside Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli and Derek Hough. The dancers will begin the night with a troupe dance to “Mystical Magical” by Benson Boone. Other group performances will include routines to the “Man I Need” by Olivia Dean, “Green Light” by Lorde, and “Back On 74” by Jungle.
But the big question is who each contestant will be bringing on the show to dedicate their performance to. We’ll break it down, below.
The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star Jen Affleck
Affleck will dedicate her routine to her mother, Maria Affleck. She and her partner Jan Ravnik will be performing a Viennese Waltz to “Rescue” by Lauren Daigle.
“My mom is everything to me, she means the world,” Affleck shared in a video ahead of the episode. “I didn’t realize how much she did for me growing up until I became a mom myself. So I want this song to be dedicated to her and all the moms out there. If you’re a mom watching this, you’re seen, you’re loved, and you’re appreciated.”
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Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles
Olympic gold medalist Jordan Chiles and her partner partner Ezra Sosa will honor her father Timothy Chiles by performing a Viennese Waltz to “Daughters” by John Mayer.
“He’s such an amazing person and not only that, he’s been there with me through think and thin,” Chiles said in her video. “I love you daddy, and I’m so excited to get on the floor with you. We’re about to crush this, and. hope everybody understands the message that no matter what, we’re all in this together and our connections matter.”
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Social media personality Alix Earle
Earle and partner Val Chmerkovskiy will perform a Contemporary to “Sparks” by Coldplay. The routine will be dedicated to her younger sister, Izabel, who she previously brought with her to walk the runway for Sports Illustrated Swimsuit.
“I wanted to dedicate the dance to her because when I was her age, it was a really hard time for me in my life,” Earle explained. “My parents had split up and I was just emotional, angsty, and when Izabel was born I went to go visit her in the hospital and I had this overwhelming sensation that came over me of basically I am an older sister to her, I want to look out for her.”
“I want to protect her, and suddenly that became more important than the other emotions I was dealing with, so it really helped me mature and helped bring our family back together,” she added.
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Reality television personality Dylan Efron
Despite speculation that The Traitors star might be dedicating his routine to his famous brother, Zac Efron, Dylan will be paying tribute to their little sister Olivia with his performance. However, he and his partner Daniella Karagach will perform a Contemporary to “Rewrite the Stars” by Zac Efron and Zendaya from the 2017 film The Greatest Showman.
Ahead of Season 34, Dylan shared a sweet video of Olivia giving him “his first ever dance lesson.”
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Boy Meets World actress Danielle Fishel
Fishel has a real treat for Boy Meets World fans. She’ll be dedicating her routine to her co-star William Daniels, who played Mr. Feeny on the series and its spinoff, Girl Meets World. She and her partner Pasha Pashkov will perform a Jive to the “Boy Meets World” theme song by Twenty Cent Crush featuring Phil Rosenthal.
However, Fishel will also be joined by seven of her other casemates, including Will Friedle (Eric Matthews), Matthew Lawrence (Jack Hunter), Betsy Randle (Amy Matthews), William Russ (Alan Matthews), Trina McGee (Angela Moore), Bonnie Bartlett (Dean Bolander), and Alex Désert (Eli Williams).
“I feel such an overwhelming responsibility to give a full out, joyous, celebratory dance to the man who is responsible for THOUSANDS of people becoming teachers and who has helped raise multiple generations,” the 44-year-old shared to Instagram ahead of the episode. “This dance is a dedication from me to Bill but I am representing ALL OF YOU who loved and appreciated him and his career for so many decades.”
She added that her “Pod Meets World” co-host Rider Strong would be absent due to prior obligations.
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Actress Elaine Hendrix
Hendrix is dedicating her routine to her longtime best friend and The Parent Trap co-star, Lisa Ann Walter, who currently stars on ABC’s Abbott Elementary. She and her partner Alan Bersten will be performing a Foxtrot to “This Will Be (An Everlasting Love)” by Natalie Cole, which was featured at the end of the movie.
“I am dedicating this to my best friend in the world, Lisa Ann Walter,” Hendrix explained in her video. “We met doing that movie, we have been friends ever since, which is almost 30 years ago. Hard to believe! At this point, she is my chosen family. She’s my ride or die, and I can’t imagine doing life without her.”
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Pentatonix singer Scott Hoying
Hoying and partner Rylee Arnold will perform a Foxtrot to his own song, “Parallel,” and he’s dedicating the routine to his husband, Mark Manio.
“I cannot wait just to see everything unfold, because he’s an incredible dancer,” Manio told People last month. “But I don’t think people know how good of a dancer Scott is, because he’s never really taken dance classes before or anything of that sort. So I just can’t wait for him just to explode with creativity on that ballroom floor.”
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Wildlife conservationist and television personality Robert Irwin
Irwin and partner Witney Carson will perform a Contemporary to “You’ll Be In My Heart” by Phil Collins, and he’s dedicating the routine to his mother, Terri Irwin.
“My mum is just my biggest inspiration in life, and I love that I get to dedicate this song to her, because it’s a song about lifting each other up,” Irwin said in his video message. “It’s so beautiful, it’s heartfelt, and it’s a way to convey this story of how instrumental my mum has been in my life—through all of the ups, the downs, the highest highs, the lowest lows, the grief, the adventures, everything in between—she’s always been there.”
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The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star Whitney Leavitt
Leavitt and partner Mark Ballas, who have been parked at the top of the leaderboard since Week 1, will be performing a Contemporary to “Heal” by Jamal Roberts. The mom of three is dedicating the routine to her husband, Connor Leavitt.
“I chose Connor because I truly would not be where I am today without that man,” Leavitt said last week. “[He’s] believed in my dreams from the very beginning, and continues to believe in my dreams, my biggest supporter , I wouldn’t be here without him.”
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Actor and comedian Andy Richter
Richter is dedicating the routine to his daughter Cornelia, whom he shares with his second wife, Jennifer Herrera. The 58-year-old and his partner Emma Slater will perform a Salsa to “Jump In the Line” by Harry Belafonte.
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“The reason I picked her is because the song makes me feel joy, this competition makes me feel joy, and she makes me feel joy,” Richter explained. “So, it was a natural thing to push ’em all together.”
