April 16, 2024 • 48 mins
Amy and T.J. sit down with a former Dancing with the Stars dancer, for an exclusive interview.
They address, for the first time, that her podcast may have caused a fracture in her relationship with the show that gave her everything.
Cheryl Burke bonds with Amy and T.J. as she tears up over the status of her relationship with the show, why she feels she was not included in the tribute for Len Goodman, and if there is a chance to repair things.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
Hey, everybody, welcome to this episode of Amy and TJ.
We make it a habit here, don't we roll up
on this show to not necessarily talk that much about
ABC News, Good Morning America or Disney. It's kind of
a habit we have here. It's the rule.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
It's a muscle.
Speaker 3 (00:20):
We've been flexing for about a year and some change.
Speaker 1 (00:23):
Oh, we've thrown all that out the window. Today.
Speaker 4 (00:26):
We're gonna talk all about Disney and ABC and Good
Morning America, and in particular how much we hated hated
a particular day at Good Morning America every year.
Speaker 1 (00:39):
Now this comes with some context we have to give,
but we hated Dancing with the Stars mornings on Good
Morning America.
Speaker 3 (00:47):
It was a chaotic, chaotic day, and so you kind
of had to brace yourself. The next day, we'd all
be saying, tomorrow the Dancing with the Stores reveal is
taking place. We all kind of have to make sure
we got a good night's sleep because it was gonna
be a hell of a morning. I mean, it was
unreal what went on behind the scenes backstage in the
(01:10):
dressing rooms when you have the entire show taking over
Good Morning America.
Speaker 2 (01:15):
It was all about Dancing.
Speaker 3 (01:16):
With the Stars.
Speaker 1 (01:17):
I feel like we have to get right context. We
are not at all saying we hate Dancing with the stars.
Speaker 3 (01:22):
We love Dancing with the Stars.
Speaker 1 (01:23):
Okay, But our studio had a ground floor studio. We
had a second floor studio, and we had to bring
in extra people. We had deplete work late and early,
and everybody all hands on deck to rearrange that whole
studio up and downstairs, all about dancing with a Star.
How many people are how many contestants were there every year?
Speaker 2 (01:47):
I don't know how many there were.
Speaker 3 (01:48):
Okay, so you'd have the you'd have the celebrities.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
Group dancers. I mean you had it all right. I
mean you had spray tan everywhere. I know for a fact,
because like I would put that tan on in your
bathroom and that was me. It looks like someone got
murdered in me.
Speaker 3 (02:01):
Is Cheryl Burke here is with us in studio and
we're talking about She's laughing because she knows what we're
talking about.
Speaker 2 (02:09):
It was crazy.
Speaker 3 (02:10):
And if you had to run up and down the
stairs to get you to do your hit to go, oh,
you couldn't. You couldn't even make your way because dancers
would be coming at you like a sea of just
sequins and glitter and spray tan, and you couldn't even
get down.
Speaker 1 (02:23):
On a normal day, a good morning America, you have
two three celebrities, like big deal celebrities that we have
to make sure they have their own green room, they
have their people. On a Dancing with the Stars day,
you have twenty people with egos who want their own room,
they want their own hair, their own makeup, their own
(02:44):
people that all this.
Speaker 3 (02:45):
It's chaos, yes, and well earned egos, by the way,
because when they would put on those performances, it was remarkable. No.
I was in awe watching them take over the entire
studio and dance in precision with the lights and the
music in your live you don't get a second time.
They were remarkable.
Speaker 1 (03:01):
The pros were fine. I'm talking about on the celebrity
the day where we are dealing who's going to dance
on Dancing with the Stars, the place was chaotic. The
only thing we compared it to the only other day
we hate it that much. It's Halloween.
Speaker 3 (03:16):
Oh see, I like Halloween. That's on you. I loved Hollow.
It was Kaotu, it was kadd But we were creating
the chaos versus the chaos coming to us in the
form of all these celebrities and the reps. By the way,
like they all bring people, people have entourages. They don't
just come on their own, they come with their people.
Speaker 1 (03:32):
But we say all this for a reason. Look, we
Dancing with the Stars. No matter what you think about it,
it is a phenomenon and it has been for the
twenty plus years now that it has been on. It
is just a powerhouse. The concept is cool and interesting
and fun, but it is just it's been phenomenal what
(03:53):
this thing has done culturally, what it has meant in
this country, has made stars out of a whole bunch
of people, and it's just fun. I remember ginger Z
to watch Somebody You Love You know, ginger.
Speaker 3 (04:04):
Z, Sam Champion, Oh Sam, Sammy, all of Sammy, the
ones in the two so good, not the ones in
the twos. But I know, and it's true, And it
gave a lot of people second chances and third chances,
like a new boost in the career that was feeding
or had you know, seemed like it was gone all
of a sudden boom. You're on Dancing with the Stars, but.
Speaker 1 (04:26):
Your back we always loved no matter what. Yes, it
was chaotic and whatnot, but it to watch, certainly the
pros come in and the choreography and what it took
to nail it, because we saw the rehearsals and then
everybody at home only saw it live. We saw what
it took to put that on, and they nailed it
every single time. And so many of those pros we
got to know over the years, and some of them
(04:47):
we got to know year after year after year after
year because they kept coming back and they kept winning.
Speaker 3 (04:51):
Yes, even like Cheryl, like Cheryl Burke twenty six seasons,
two mirror Balls. Correct, and Cheryl, I mean you're laughing
because you're not in your We were hearing us from
our vantage point. I love that we saw, but you
saw everything in between and what it took to even
get all those folks on planes. I mean, think about
the shuffling and shuttling they did back and forth between
California and New.
Speaker 2 (05:12):
You'll know, sleep like we're going on no sleep, you guys,
And then like the last thing we want to do
is put on a skimpy costume in the middle of
Times Square mind you like we were freezing because we
also have to rehearse, so we have to rehearse literally
when it's still dark, so it's not like no one's
in the studio yet because we wouldn't have had time
to rehearse. So we're rehearsing outside. Mind you, ballroom dancing
is made for indoors. It's not an outdoor sport. So
(05:34):
this was, you know, just a lot. But I didn't
even realize how we must be so annoying because like
what I didn't realize was this, You're like, any what
a mess we were, Like, we were just such a
disaster because we were at first of all exhausted, so
we were all delirious, whether it be even like the
premiere or the finale. First of all, the finale, we're
(05:56):
for sure done. Like we were so delirious. I'll never
got Rob Kardashian, I remember I was so out of it,
and I remember Robin Roberts asking me a question. I
was like, Rob, you're gonna have to take it. You
could take it, Like I just couldn't put two words together.
But yeah, this has been. It's been. It was our
second home. Your guys, is you know sad and thank
(06:17):
you you guys.
Speaker 3 (06:18):
We're on West Coast time too, So I give it
to you like you were. Like for us, it was early,
and it was even earlier. Was still Actually most of
y'all didn't even sleep. No, we came to New York.
You were from the night before your dancers.
Speaker 2 (06:29):
Yeah, we don't. We don't. We get creative at night
to sleep during the day.
Speaker 1 (06:34):
Right now, this moment, you are two two full years
now or two full seasons removed from the show, is.
Speaker 2 (06:39):
What I would say. Two seasons two years, same thing
now because they only do one year.
Speaker 1 (06:43):
Okay, getting closer to you, if you needed to get
back in there right now, crash and start dancing and
start training somebody.
Speaker 2 (06:50):
I mean, I mean I could train you, okay, but
like as far as wearing like one of the outfits,
like I would probably get on some I don't know,
some sort of strict diet and like, but that's my
body dysmorphia that I'll forever have, you know, and I'm
very open with that. But like, I don't know, I've
I mean, you've seen me grow up on this show.
I started when I was twenty one years old. I
went through this horrific like she's too fat for TV too,
(07:13):
So It's like I was growing into my who I
am as a woman as well, and with that, I
did gain weight, you know, and it was like season
seven or something. I'll never forget it. And it was
like when you first see yourself like being talked about
like on KTLA and you're like, wait, what is that.
Speaker 3 (07:29):
You were being talked about for what your body looked like?
Speaker 1 (07:32):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (07:32):
Who was saying that you were overweight?
Speaker 2 (07:35):
I think it was just a collect I think it
was just people like people that watch the show. I mean,
you know, I did I gain a few pounds during
the hiatus, Yes, I mean naturally right, like we do,
but like I am curvy in comparison to a lot
of the other professional women. So when you know, whenever
I did gain weight, it was a thing. I just
feel like it was, you know, it was a thing
(07:56):
that back in the day. I think nowadays no one
would ever say anything. It's times have changed, but back
then it was. I'll just I based my life off
of season So I'm trying to think. I think I
was dancing with Maurice Green actually, and then it was
right before Jill, so I think that was season between
seven and eight.
Speaker 3 (08:13):
But yeah, Cheryl so you heard people talking about you
on television. Did you ever hear anything. Was there any
pressure on the show at all to be a certain size,
to fit into a certain outfit or was that just
from the noise from outside and maybe your own internal.
Speaker 2 (08:28):
I think it was my noise. I don't think that.
I mean, look nothing to me personally, Like no one
has ever come up to me and been like, you
have to lose weight? They, I think, regardless they hear,
I feel so bad for wardrobe because, like you know,
all my insecurities would go out on port Daniella, who
runs wardrobe, and it would alter it would really alter
(08:49):
my mood, you know, to where it was like if
I felt heavy or if I felt bloated and I
was putting on a costume, then all my insecurities I
would come out onto other people, onto my partner, onto
just like in general, because of that like self hate
that I had for myself. Really at that time, am
I still there? I'm not going to say I'm fully recovered,
(09:11):
but I'm definitely healing, you know, and that's going to
be a forever process.
Speaker 1 (09:15):
Where is it? Company? Was that all in turn? Take
the out?
Speaker 2 (09:18):
This was like from competitive days okay, but take.
Speaker 1 (09:20):
The outside noise and the haters and whoever else is
saying negro stuff from the outside, but take that out
of the equation. Was there anything wrong in your mind
with how you looked and so you.
Speaker 2 (09:35):
Because of my body?
Speaker 1 (09:36):
Yes?
Speaker 2 (09:36):
Absolutely? Yes? And body dysmorphia is it? I literally look
at myself in the mirror and I don't necessarily see
what other people see. Yes, yeah, because like what do
you do that? Well, I'm in therapy. I mean I've
been in therapy since I was a little girl, really
but consistently. I've been in therapy here for like the
last decade. But also doing somatic also helps because then
(09:59):
I can really, instead of completely tune out of my
body and numb, I can actually, you know, slowly but
surely learn to learn about self love and self respect
and really have to make an effort to compliment myself,
like in my gratitude journal, Like it's a whole thing
because my brain has been trained to always pick out
(10:22):
the negatives in general, was coach.
Speaker 3 (10:25):
Yeah, I feel like that's called being a woman. I
mean it is right. I mean we all saw our
moms do it, and I had to stop myself from
doing it. In front of my daughters, because it's like
this trait and if someone gives you a compliment, you
actually say, oh, but actually did you see this thing?
You know? You you never can take a COMPLI point
to something negative. It's this weird thing that I think
we learn unfortunately as women.
Speaker 2 (10:46):
The survival mode I've been in, you know, in general,
from when I was a little girl through you know,
child abuse to now it's like, you know, thank you
vessel for getting me through. Because wow, but.
Speaker 1 (10:58):
Were you two, I mean both of you now are you?
Were you all in the exact wrong businesses to Probably
there's a lot of little girls. There are a lot
of young girls who maybe feel the way you all feel.
Sure you all are on television, you all are right.
Speaker 2 (11:13):
You are looking at yourself in the Mirror's there's not
one dance studio I know that doesn't have mirrors, right,
and naturally you compare.
Speaker 1 (11:22):
Does that exacerbate the issue you all were just talking about?
The business said you.
Speaker 3 (11:26):
Walk into a dressing room, mirrors everywhere television is that
you know, you're looking at the monitor. And then now
you're in a business where people are commenting on you
wherever they want to from the privacy of their own
home anonymously, and they can actually wreak real havoc on
your psyche without a doubt.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
You're still like, I'm not gonna say that, oh whatever,
you know, but I focus on that one negative comment,
like it's just natural unless if I'm really like present, right,
but that is, I'm currently retraining. Hopefully it happens, but
we'll see.
Speaker 4 (11:58):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (11:59):
I was talking about though, take some of that power
away from them, and it empowers shame to recognize it
and then let it go, like feel it and then
let it, let it go.
Speaker 2 (12:08):
That's the hard part, easier said than done. I know,
I know I feel it. I don't know if I
let it go though.
Speaker 3 (12:14):
It's been two years.
Speaker 2 (12:15):
Yeah, I can't believe it's been two years. It's crazy,
so crazy to me.
Speaker 3 (12:19):
I really, I know you were such a staple on
that show. I know you left because you said, hey,
I'm thirty eight and my body's done doing this grind
and that makes total sense for twenty six seasons. But
you didn't necessarily want to leave the show.
Speaker 2 (12:35):
No, I didn't want to leave this show. I mean,
this was my family, Like, I mean, I don't think
I know La without Dancing with the Stars. I came
straight from Harlem to CBS on Genesee and Beverly literally
and I mean first of all, to be part of
something for so long, for twenty six seasons, is so
(12:58):
unheard of. But also for me in general, like I
have this bond, this like umbilical cord that is still
hard to I guess cut off like and to like
really separate myself because that was my identity in every
way and just now learning like, hey, well nothing outside
(13:21):
of you should be your identity. It all comes from within.
But I'm not a yogi. I'm not perfect. Like look,
I would love to get there one day. But I
guess with the general public too, it's like they do
think Cheryl Burke Dancing the Stars. And even for me,
like there was really my whole life was consumed because
I chose that path. But that was it.
Speaker 3 (13:42):
We know how that feels, Yeah, we do. We didn't
want to leave either. You didn't want to leave, but
you chose to leave. Why did you leave if you
didn't want to?
Speaker 2 (13:52):
I just I felt like it was time for me
to grow and evolve as as in my like dancing
isn't for a woman in her unfortunately in ballroom especially,
I just physically and also knowing in the back of
my mind I'm the oldest girl here, and then you
start to like, you know, the actual self hate. I
(14:16):
felt got louder, you know, and louder, and I was like,
wait a second. I believe and I still do to
this day, that I am more than capable to take
another role on the show. I don't know what that
would have been or whatever, but if judging they see that,
if they don't see that in me, then why am
(14:37):
I here?
Speaker 3 (14:38):
Did they talk to you about those roles they have but.
Speaker 2 (14:43):
In the past, right, but it was nothing like set
in Stone or anything.
Speaker 3 (14:47):
Did you tell them I would like to be a judge,
I would like to be a horse? And what did
they say?
Speaker 2 (14:53):
You know? A lot of this was also done through
my reps. I also it's interesting because like a lot
of these people behind the scenes, the producers, and I've
developed relationships with them, you know, and I never wanted
to cross that boundary, Like I always felt like I
wasn't the one to be like like using that relationship
(15:17):
to get to put me further, like I really love them,
like I loved them as individuals and as friends, like
even more than I would say. The dancers like I
became really close, right, So I never wanted to just
cross that line. Because of my connection and my longevity
on the show. I didn't feel it that that was appropriate.
Speaker 1 (15:44):
Sure, I'm listening to you now, I've read everything you
said about leaving the show. You're a staple. There's not
a list out there. If you just go Google or
ask people like who are the top pros in this show?
You're going to be in the top three names that
somebody names, maybe top five at worst. So, even listening
to you now and reading everything you said about it,
(16:06):
why do I steal feel like, wait, wait, what the
hell is going on? Something's up? Why is she not
on the show? Why would she leave the show? Did
do you feel you were do you talk about the
younger younger, the youngins that were on there, Did you
feel like you were being outdanced by anybody?
Speaker 2 (16:25):
It wasn't on a physical level, It was more on
like an emotional level. I think for me it was
like again, it was I wanted to grow within the company.
I saw other dancers who started maybe later than me
be promoted right, like they became more than a pro dancer.
I'm not saying being a pro dancer is just like, oh,
it's beneath me by any means, if anything, I know
the pros work harder than anyone else on the show,
(16:48):
but it was also for me like as a just
I just didn't understand like why I also couldn't have
that opportunity and if clearly it wasn't being given to me.
So I had to do something about it because I
felt like with a lot of the work I've been
doing in my self work and then divorcing my ex husband,
I just felt like in order for me to gain
(17:09):
respect and love for myself, I have to believe in me,
Like if they're not going to believe, then I have
to believe. And I have to really stick to my
guns here because like I I continue I've continued to
express like I no longer want to be a pro dancer,
you know period. So I mean they knew me it
(17:29):
is what it is though, by the way, and they
have every right to believe whatever they want to believe.
But then therefore I'm going to then move on.
Speaker 1 (17:36):
Yeah does that mean what do you mean? You said
they have a right to believe if they.
Speaker 2 (17:40):
Don't if they don't see me in a different role,
So be it right, like that is not in my control.
Speaker 1 (17:44):
And we've all been there. I'm putting in turn, I'm
thinking back to my career in times in my career
where you know what, I'm here, I've been a good soldier.
You all don't want me to be anything more. To
hell with y'all. I'm out of here now. I don't
want to believe those words.
Speaker 2 (17:59):
In my life. Spoke louder. Shea water now, don't get
a little toasty.
Speaker 1 (18:06):
She's a little tom before she answers that one. No,
but is that I mean, I want to put those
words in your mouth. It sounds that way.
Speaker 2 (18:14):
It's been a long long time coming, you know for
me as well. It's like I think, I mean, I'm
pretty sure you could read it somewhere where I was like, oh,
she's retiring again or she's leaving again, and it's like,
you know, I also did a quick little run at
over at NBC for a show that they did, and
you know, I think after that experience it was interesting
(18:37):
because I was like, wait a second, there's like there
is a world beyond the show, you know, like you
get very like my blinders in a way were just
like on whenever I'm in something, I'm in it right
one hundred percent. But then I think from then on
I was like, why you know, I want to be
able to do other things. It gave me a new
like energy and fire, and after twenty six seasons of anything,
(18:58):
I started to feel like I was an audit, a pilot.
You know, let's do I mean, mind you, I'm grateful
and about it. Let's do another chat.
Speaker 1 (19:05):
You know how.
Speaker 3 (19:07):
We get it?
Speaker 2 (19:09):
Chah, You're like, oh God, Like in any career, you
want to grow.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
You don't want to.
Speaker 2 (19:14):
Just stay in the same position. Some people do and
to you, but I don't. You wanted more? Did you
leave on good terms? I would say, yes, Then why
did you mean they even gave me a sendoff?
Speaker 3 (19:26):
They gave you a sendoff, but you didn't get invited back.
Speaker 2 (19:29):
No.
Speaker 3 (19:30):
Well, for Len Len's tribute, why do you think that happened?
Speaker 2 (19:34):
I would assume that they Some people may not be
happy with my my podcast that I have here with iHeart.
Your podcast is called sex License Sprays Hands. Maybe it's
the title. I actually don't think it's the content, because like,
what is wrong with us? Having literally like, Okay, we've done,
(19:56):
they've they've done. See I'm still like my vocabulary. We've
you know, they've done thirty two seasons. But like every
single celebrity and dancer on this show has had an experience.
I don't care if you're the first eliminated, or if
you went all the way till the end, or if
you had a bow out due to like Sarah Evans,
like a divorce that she was going through. This show
(20:17):
is something that is a special experience that you go
through these different emotions like and I think it's important
that we talk, and I think it's entertaining for the
bands who have been sticking by their side for so
many decades now, and it's just a great time. It's
just like an hour long. Now, look are there things
that are not necessarily maybe uh, all glitter and rhinestones
(20:41):
and all of it. Of course, because with every experience
there are also there's the bad, the good, the ugly,
there's all of it. Like, it's not just all Disney, right,
it's not all like Mickey Mouse. Like there's gonna be
people who felt so whether it's like nerves or they
just felt whatever. But regardless, I think it's the end
of the day. Everyone can say about this show is
(21:03):
that they took something away from the show and it
made them into a better person somehow, whether that be
them losing weight or them gaining confidence or whatever it is.
And I always, I always am going back to the
fact that I am in gratitude for my experience and
my time with the network and with you know, Dancing
(21:25):
with the Stars in general. I mean, I was a
ballroom dancer in Harlem. I was a starving dancer. Like
I never this was never my goal, right was to
be on TV.
Speaker 3 (21:33):
And you did a phenomenal job. And I and I
while we're talking about the lend tribute, because I just
want to make sure anyone who's at home, Len was
you know this start to finish like the consummate ballroom
dancing judge. And I know you loved him.
Speaker 2 (21:48):
He judge me as a little kid like when I
was competing.
Speaker 3 (21:50):
He was amazing and he still the hearts of everyone.
He was honest, he was witty, He had but he
knew his stuff.
Speaker 2 (21:57):
We all, yeah, we're always quiet when he speaks.
Speaker 3 (22:01):
He sadly, he sadly passed away this past April. And
you were criticized after you told people that you weren't
going or you weren't invited to come back for the tribute.
Some people criticize you for waiting to then pay your
own tribute to him that night, just before Dancing with
(22:22):
the Stars aired. Why did you choose that timing and
why did you choose that moment to honor your friend?
Speaker 2 (22:28):
Okay, so I actually had made a tribute prior to
that time, but I think for me, or I know,
it was like I was getting a lot of messages
about like it was it your choice not to be there,
and first of all I found out when everyone else
found out, and that was just such a stab in
the heart. Like for me, you know, it was like
(22:48):
I just couldn't believe that I wasn't included in just
something so special, like regardless if you want to, like
look up og in the Dictionary regardles list, like I
should be I should have been there, like we all
know this, and I know this, at least have been
in the audience. Maybe you know, but clearly that wasn't
(23:12):
the case, and I wanted it to be clear with
everybody before rumors started happening, and before it just escalated
with the like, oh I chose not to be there,
that's just not the case. And so I just wanted
to tell my truth and it ended up it wasn't
planned or any of it. Just it ended up becoming
a tribute to Len. But there's nothing wrong with that,
(23:33):
you know. And if they you know, at the end
of the day, it's like they could have eliminated all
of this, I think in the first place, if you know,
if I was there, if they had just asked you
even just asked, yeah, just asked, wait, it.
Speaker 1 (23:46):
Never came up. This is mind boggling. Like you said,
o G that there is if you are not invited
to his tribute, it's intentional, right, because that's not an oversight,
it's it's it.
Speaker 2 (23:59):
They didn't forget it oversight.
Speaker 3 (24:00):
You know, they didn't forget about you.
Speaker 2 (24:02):
No, No, I don't think so. I don't think so.
I don't know.
Speaker 3 (24:06):
I don't know.
Speaker 2 (24:08):
We know, we know they didn't forget about you.
Speaker 1 (24:10):
It's impossible to have a tribute to him without you
being a part. So we're trying to understand how have
things soured to the to a point you are the show.
What I mean by that is you cannot talk about
Dancing with the Stars without talking about Schobert. You cannot
go through the history of the show and talk about
it without talking about you. So help us understand how
(24:33):
something has soured to the point that even you can't
come together in death of someone that's beloved, even that
man couldn't bring these two sides together. Help us understand that, Gheryl,
that doesn't make it.
Speaker 2 (24:49):
I mean, I would love to be also helped here
because like I don't That's what I mean, right, Like
if anything that should have that shouldn't have mattered, whatever,
whatever is, whatever it is that they're upset about, obviously
it must be the pod. It has to be the podcast,
because that's all that in the past couple of years, right,
But then also it is it just makes me believe
(25:13):
that they're not listening to it or something, because it's like,
of course on social media, you know, as you guys know,
like we need to attract listeners, and unfortunately with that
you have to put clips together that may not may
sound a little like, oh, she's just bashing the show,
Like no, that's not what the podcast is. No, it's
telling the honest truth. But like I don't know, I
(25:35):
don't know because I can't even answer the question I
would would I love closure? Absolutely?
Speaker 3 (25:41):
Did you ask questions? Did you ask anyone, hey, what's
going on? Why am I not invited?
Speaker 2 (25:45):
I had my reps do that again, like I don't
have The answer was well, obviously my podcast.
Speaker 3 (25:54):
Okay, so they said it was the podcast?
Speaker 2 (25:57):
Well yes, I mean yes, and what specifically?
Speaker 3 (26:00):
Because you know, I also saw things online where people
they look at headlines we know what this is like,
and assume the worst because they see a headline and
they say, oh, Cheryl Burke is trashing Dancing with the
Stars and so now you look like the bad guy,
when that actually isn't the truth. It's just these headlines, clickbait,
whatever you want to call it. Did you have an
(26:21):
opportunity to at least say, do you listen to my podcast?
Do you understand what I'm doing? Was there any way
for you to at least say, hey, we go back,
we go twenty six seasons back. Can we not find
a way to bridge this?
Speaker 2 (26:35):
I get everything was done through my reps, and yes,
this is what was frustrating that it was like it
was so quick, like it was quick right, like the
I don't know who's listening. I don't know who isn't listening.
All I know is obviously, I mean I can assume
that they're upset. But I feel more than anything, I
just feel really sad. I'm just sad. It still so sad.
(26:59):
Like I'm so sad. I'm not even mad anymore.
Speaker 1 (27:03):
Were you at one point? Though? Man?
Speaker 2 (27:05):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (27:06):
How long did it take you to get past that?
Was that a question?
Speaker 2 (27:09):
It's a therapy.
Speaker 1 (27:12):
I think a lot of people know how close you
talk about he judge you when you were essentially kid. Yeah,
but I mean that's that this is a special special
moment aside forget the the you versus the company thing.
This is a very special guide to you that on
a very special moment, special night you weren't able to
be a part of. That's different.
Speaker 2 (27:32):
Yeah, I mean it's but also I think it's everything.
It's not just it's not black and white, right, like
it's it is. I don't know with any with any relationship,
there's turmoil, right, there's disagreements, but you you talk about
it exactly exactly as you don't just like literally not
(27:53):
talk about it. But like again, I mean I can
sleep at night knowing that I'm not doing anything wrong,
Like I I'm so grateful for the show for everything.
Speaker 1 (28:02):
Sure you have tears come in your eyes? Here? Is
there no one you can pick up the phone and call?
And I know you talk about rest and we all
been in this business, we.
Speaker 3 (28:09):
Know that, yes, we'll get you.
Speaker 1 (28:12):
Some tissues for this seems a little too important to
is there nothing? Is there no one? You tried to
pick up the phone and just come on, guy, let's
put it aside for a night for this guy.
Speaker 2 (28:25):
Well that moment is over unfortunately, But like as far
as that guy, but like, look, there's obviously it's so deep,
so deep.
Speaker 3 (28:37):
You're doing a podcast, and to do a podcast the
way you want to do it to tell you know,
the behind the thing, behind the scenes stories and they're
not all salacious, they're fun and lighted. I'm sure you're reminiscing.
Have you found any difficulty in getting guests to come
on the podcast for that exact same reason? Because the
(28:57):
show is unhappy with your podcast?
Speaker 2 (28:59):
I can't, like, look again, like I'm not have yes.
I mean, first of all, I do know of some
guests that have maybe said yes to that have said
yes to the show, and that all of a sudden
said no, I don't know who, what, where, when, how
it all happened, But like I can only assume, and
my feeling is that someone who isn't happy with the
(29:23):
podcast may have been influenced that may have influenced that
person or those people.
Speaker 3 (29:37):
Do you think you've been blackballed by Dancing with the Stars.
Speaker 2 (29:41):
In what sense?
Speaker 3 (29:43):
Meaning they want, well, they not to eliminate any any
sort of relationship you may have with that show, and
people who are on that show they don't want to
have a relationship with you.
Speaker 2 (29:55):
I mean, I sure hope not that's I hope that's
not the case. Do I sometimes think about it? I'm yes, absolutely,
but like I just feel like there's nothing that Again,
I know what I'm doing in and I don't understand
why why this is happening.
Speaker 3 (30:14):
Sure, I was gonna Have you lost friends over this?
Has it gotten to that point? Do you feel like
you've lost or at least lost us?
Speaker 2 (30:21):
Well, I lost my family, yeah.
Speaker 3 (30:25):
And and very important relationships. That's tough. Would you have
ever thought that was possible when you were leaving the show?
Speaker 2 (30:34):
I mean, I guess like it's a business, right, So
it's like, of course when you think like that, but
like my emotions, like I come. My mother's a business woman,
Like I understand it, but it doesn't ever feel good.
Speaker 3 (30:46):
When people tell you it's not personal, it still feels personal.
Speaker 2 (30:49):
It's so personal, it's so personal, and people can separate
the two. I'm like, are you a sociopath? Because like
I don't get it. I don't know how you do that,
Like my I don't know how you do that. I
don't know how you separate it because like for me
as an artist, like dance is so vulnerable, you know,
like literally so vulnerable, like naked and afraid.
Speaker 1 (31:14):
That's funny as you said that, Yeah, we've said that
so many times before. They you know, it's business. We
get it, it's business, we say that. So it hurts.
It hurts, well, how can we all right, let's make
lemonade here, Cheryl? What can this? How can it be repaired?
Speaker 2 (31:32):
I think that's a question for that really of course,
of course, like because again it's it's look, am I
upset about the past, Yes, but that's the past. Like
I'm really trying to be able to move forward. And
I would think that after sixteen years and blood, sweat
(31:53):
and tears, literally many tours and all of it, that
there was a chance to repair whatever it is. But
I need I don't know what it is, because like
we need to communicate.
Speaker 1 (32:05):
A chance. Maybe there's three of us can go into.
Speaker 2 (32:09):
Let's do it.
Speaker 1 (32:09):
Let's hold the hands.
Speaker 2 (32:10):
I'll teach you a few steps, some locksteps, and we
will be escorted.
Speaker 3 (32:16):
You do not want to come into that building with us.
Speaker 2 (32:24):
I'm surprised you guys haven't gotten a call yet. Exactly right,
just shimmy and shake.
Speaker 3 (32:31):
Back.
Speaker 1 (32:31):
They weren't to come back.
Speaker 2 (32:32):
They were ruffled.
Speaker 3 (32:33):
They were to say far away, what what would be
what would be the best case scenario for you if
you if to go forward to repair any bridges that
were somehow torn down? What would be best case scenario
for you? What would you want to happen?
Speaker 2 (32:54):
Like there's no necessary Like there's not out, there's not
a result. Like again, I don't think anything has been
miscommunicated on my part, Like what you see is what
you get really to a fault, like I don't know,
just to feel like I'm still part of the family.
(33:14):
I don't know. I don't I don't know what that
is exactly or what or like I don't know, maybe
some communication. Yeah, like personal communication.
Speaker 1 (33:27):
You don't feel like you're part of the family anymore.
Speaker 2 (33:28):
I definitely not to know.
Speaker 1 (33:31):
But they make you feel like that.
Speaker 2 (33:32):
But I'm not. But I wasn't invited to.
Speaker 1 (33:35):
But on the outside, right, everybody who's a fan of
that show, shog is a part of the fan.
Speaker 2 (33:40):
I don't think. I mean, I wouldn't feel comfortable, like,
I don't think I can just go see a show
like I would never do that. Damn that could be
in my own head. It's not like I was ever
like you are shunned, like I wasn't like that, but
like still, I mean, I think it's pretty freaking obvious.
Speaker 3 (33:59):
I feel like if someone said, but that's your face
or at least like you, it actually be something you
could you could you could actually have a conversation about
then you could digest but just nothing to have no
communication but action no communication, that's the worst because you're
left to guests.
Speaker 2 (34:11):
Well then yeah, and then you also feel like, well,
I guess it was really important.
Speaker 3 (34:16):
In general though, Yeah, it was a professional ghosting. You
just said it.
Speaker 2 (34:21):
Oh God, that is why I don't wish this upon
my worst enemy.
Speaker 3 (34:24):
And you, you know you you said that you had
two divorces. Yes, this was the long year.
Speaker 2 (34:31):
Yeah, this one's painful, this is heartbreaking.
Speaker 3 (34:34):
Twenty twenty two wasn't a great year for any of us. Really,
it seems like I.
Speaker 2 (34:39):
Can only go one way from here right right and
at least like yeah or just say it's fine, but
we can't go further. I can go down the hole,
can't get can't do it, can't do it.
Speaker 3 (34:49):
Where are you now right now? Like you've been through
the worst of it, You're coming out of it now,
you got your podcast. They may not like it, but
do you like?
Speaker 2 (35:00):
I love it. I love every single second of it.
Like we do three episodes a freaking week. I would
do seven if they asked, like no, but I mean,
I actually don't think I could do it anymore out it.
I mean literally my eyes are cross eyed at this point.
It's just like, hey, I'm tired of hearing my voice.
But no, it's it's been so therapeutic to do these
(35:24):
like rewatches and like I might see I'm almost at
the finale of season two and that was my first
season with dri liche and so and then and then
we do this like headlines one, which is like I mean,
I'm not one to like gossip about my friends, but
like at the same we have like reporters come on whatever.
People seem to love it. But then we have the interview,
like I'm tomorrow, I'm gonna be interviewing Jille Morini, who
(35:46):
was one of my partners, and like, this is a
great It's just so nice to have an hour with
these people because like most of them, we just we
say high in passing, like we don't have time, you know,
like we're just focused on what we need to be
folks going on and I get to really know these
people and it's so it's great, it's beautiful. We talk
(36:06):
about the most amazing thing that has affected all of
our lives and it's just that we hadn't had time
to really compress or digestive it all, you know, And
it's most of the time. And by the way, like
any relationship, there's ups and downs, but you come out there,
you come out the other side stronger, regardless of what
you've been through, whether you're Trista Sutter who got eliminated
(36:30):
first ever in the history of Dancing with Stars, or
you know whoever. It is right, like she had lots
to say.
Speaker 1 (36:39):
Yeah, I bet, I bet. Oh my goodness, But did
this gets you in trouble? Okay, you said you don't
want to you have correspondence and reporters come on because
you don't want to gossip about your friends.
Speaker 2 (36:48):
I don't have anything to say. Really, I mean it's like, but.
Speaker 1 (36:51):
Did this gets you in trouble? I mean the description
of the show when it came out sex license right hands, yes,
flirting five.
Speaker 2 (36:58):
That's not my voice.
Speaker 1 (37:00):
But still, if you read about what the show is,
and if the show were to.
Speaker 2 (37:04):
Be like Disney Mickey Mouse Sleeping Beauty, would you click
on it? Would you listen to Maybe?
Speaker 1 (37:09):
I wouldn't, but I was still Disney.
Speaker 2 (37:14):
Wait did you say that you could still be? Do
you have Disney watches on?
Speaker 3 (37:18):
iHeart?
Speaker 2 (37:18):
I'm just saying, but.
Speaker 1 (37:20):
The description of the show, if Disney reads flirting, fighting
and fleeings Cheryl Burke is ready to spill the tea,
that is exactly what your description of the podcast.
Speaker 2 (37:31):
And if you really do care about a relationship, right,
you would do a little research and you would listen
to it and you'd be like, oh, we got it.
It's clickbait. We do this all the time.
Speaker 1 (37:40):
I'm not knocking you and I get it, but like you.
Speaker 2 (37:43):
Know what I mean, Like you would just give it
an episode, Just give it one episode, and it's not
going to take too much time in your life.
Speaker 1 (37:48):
We've run into that same problem, and we have gotten
You've got calls from some lawyers and it was clear
that the only thing that was read was the headline.
Speaker 3 (37:57):
Well or they saw the t so you put together
as the chips, like maybe even a question that someone
asked us that we had nothing to do with. Suddenly
it's ruffling feathers, right because they don't know what we're
going to say. But it's called a tease for a reason,
so we knew it was working right, right, right, We
also upset some folks, yes, right, yes, but then listen
to the episode, right, they would see that it isn't
(38:19):
exactly what it's being teased breach, Yes, that's the thing.
Speaker 2 (38:23):
But then you have to care though, in order for
you to make that assessment right, like, which means you
have to take the time, maybe when you're driving on
the one oh one, put on an episode and realize
what it is, right, see it for what it is.
Don't make assumptions without doing the research, Like it's just
for me, Like that's the thing, like to be so
angry and to be to have energy, that type of energy,
(38:46):
like really first, really make sure that that is the
that is the case, right, that's what's unfolding in front
of your eyes.
Speaker 1 (38:53):
What do you want people to know about the show
that they don't know? It's not like you're trying to
do but not the show. You're not trying to trash
the show, but it is a very well packaged and
beautiful Disney bow on it, right?
Speaker 2 (39:09):
Does that?
Speaker 1 (39:10):
So what is it about the show that you would
like to I don't know if you want to say balance,
what is the right way to put what is it
you want her you want people to know about the show?
Who are fans who say, hey, guys, there's this other
side we want to expose you to as well.
Speaker 2 (39:24):
So I think this is what I find why I
love it so much is because like there are no
there's no filter, Like this is the podcast world. And
this is something I've learned with being with iHeart for
my first two podcasts with them, It's like it is
what it is like. And I have always been that
person to like always be transparent and try to also
(39:50):
speak from my own experience in hopes to help other
people in general, whether it meant be mental health or whatever.
But with this specifically, it's I'm asking questions that the
fans have asked me for decades, for decades, like literally
their mother asked them who had just past? Like whoever?
It is?
Speaker 3 (40:09):
Right?
Speaker 2 (40:09):
Like I always get my my grandma she loved you,
she loved your dumb and dumber haircut, and I'm like,
thank you so much, you know, and it's like, you know,
it was the short pop that shirt a little bit.
And it's been uh, it's been also interesting as well.
When I was like, rewatch this, this is gonna be
really boring because I'm gonna critique it as if I'm judging,
(40:30):
so it'd be like the legs weren't straight. And then
but people find it freaking interesting because they've watched something
for you invested a lot of hours into this show,
and they want to know what's the difference between heal
leads and not heel leads are like frame versus not,
you know. And I would say, I am a ballroom expert. Now,
if you don't want to put me in the judges table, fine,
so be it. But like, I still know what the
(40:51):
hell I'll talk it about, right, So, like, if anyone
were to do a podcast about dancing with the stars
of all things dancing, you're looking at her. Yeah, I've
been on the longest. You know your stuff, I do.
You know what's good, you know what's not.
Speaker 3 (41:02):
You also know what was going on behind the scenes.
I mean, like, and there's nothing that a company would
like less than a person who really knows where the
bodies are buried. Not that there were actual bodies buried,
but you really know what went on behind the scenes.
You really know.
Speaker 2 (41:17):
I mean I don't know everything, but I can only
imagine what you saw.
Speaker 1 (41:20):
Well.
Speaker 2 (41:20):
Yeah, and also what I've experienced. And it's not all bad.
Speaker 3 (41:23):
It's not all good, right, but it's not it's real
perfect either exactly.
Speaker 1 (41:27):
But it's normal.
Speaker 2 (41:29):
But isn't that the beauty of life? Yes, Like, let's
stop hiding behind the perfection because there's no such thing anyway.
Speaker 1 (41:35):
But you can get why they wouldn't want the imperfection broadcasts.
Speaker 2 (41:41):
I mean there's no such Like, what does that mean?
Speaker 3 (41:44):
What does that mean?
Speaker 1 (41:46):
I's advocate.
Speaker 2 (41:49):
Like the fact that we can dance in those costumes too.
You're like wait what, bron. You know, it's a little
bit like wait no. But but I'm also not the
one saying anything. I guess I can't control it's coming
out of my guests mouths right like they've got when
I tell you, like the I can see it almost
like the baggage, literally the weight being lifted off their shoulders.
(42:11):
For a lot of these people I've interviewed so far,
it is so therapeutic without it being a session, yeah,
or me being a professional therapist, Like, you know, it
really is.
Speaker 3 (42:23):
I totally get it. And I know that the title
is salacious, sex, Lies and spray tands, but but was
there a lot of sex going on? No?
Speaker 2 (42:32):
I literally got you know where I got that title from?
Where an US weekly cover with my face on it
that said blah blah and blah. I totally forgot what
it said. I'm sure we can google it right now.
And then I didn't realize there was a movie called
sex Life and video tape no idea. I still don't
know what the hell that is to this day. But
like it's just it's everything comes in threes, Like, honestly,
it's not that deep. It was kind of like it
(42:54):
was either gonna be sex love and you know, between
me and Amy Sugarman were just bouncing ideas off midnight,
you know, like literally, like I I remember I was
in San Francisco at my family's house and I was like,
oh my god, it's one in the morning. Can we
just stop?
Speaker 1 (43:11):
That sounds like a sugarman.
Speaker 2 (43:13):
Oh my god, she gets so excited, you know, when
she gets excited, you're like, oh, we're onto something.
Speaker 3 (43:18):
So what you're saying is that there was no sex
going on behind the scenes and no lies.
Speaker 2 (43:23):
Well, that's it just the Sprain dance who come on obviously.
I mean like, look, there was lots of dry humping,
because that happens in the rumba, right, there's lots of that. Look, dancing,
especially ballroom is an intimate contact sport and if you
(43:44):
and it happens, it does happen. And look, I'll be
the first. I'm not going to say who, but I've
had my own show mances. You know it happened.
Speaker 3 (43:51):
Did you have to keep it secret though? Was it
frowned upon? Was it was there a policy against dating
the person?
Speaker 2 (43:56):
I think it was more like within like personal preference now,
but were there headlines about it? Yeah, I mean, of
course they eat this up like this is what I
mean going back to casting, right, like the casting person
you know, and whoever else makes the decisions, they know
what they're doing.
Speaker 1 (44:12):
Wait, so it's already out there in headlines. Who you
had a showman's with?
Speaker 2 (44:15):
I had supposedly I had showmances with every single partner,
including way Newton, And that for sure is.
Speaker 1 (44:20):
A okay, you supposedly, But I was that girl.
Speaker 2 (44:24):
I was that girl.
Speaker 3 (44:25):
Yeah, I was.
Speaker 2 (44:25):
I was definitely labeled as that woman.
Speaker 1 (44:27):
Okay, well, what's a showman's.
Speaker 2 (44:28):
Is just a they you hooked up with your partner
or you're whoever.
Speaker 1 (44:32):
Just during the show, did you ever have a relationship
that continued outside the show?
Speaker 2 (44:36):
That was the problem? It was like, because it's seven
days a week, it was not the problem. Look, there's
a lot of great relationships that are people got married
from the show, right, But it's seven days a week.
You are consumed with each other like you're just constantly.
And also we've seen their insecurities. They're vulnerable, and especially
as a professional woman who was a ballroom dancer teaching.
(44:58):
Let's say the athlete, for example, who feels like this
macho mash all of a sudden has to be like
I don't know if I can ship like nervous, and
he has. In order to be successful on Dancing with
the Stars, you have to be ready to be vulnerable,
Like you gotta feel stupid, you gotta look stupid, you gotta.
Speaker 3 (45:14):
Be okay with that, like, because we need to trust you.
Speaker 2 (45:17):
That's the thing, because if your life is going to
be a living hell with me, I'll tell you that
one because that's the thing is. But the trust has
to come soon, Like it's not normal to trust someone
after only a few days.
Speaker 3 (45:28):
Right, you said you were labeled that girl. Can you
count how many showmances you had?
Speaker 2 (45:34):
Well, look, I was starting to be so First of all,
I was labeled as this party girl. So I was
always on TAMZ. If you remember, no kidd you do
anyway drinking days, yes, yes, oh I would be rolling
out of the club like yeah, this is before Ober. Okay,
(45:57):
good times. Anyway, I'm sober now for almost six years,
so congratulations, thank you. And with that comes no clubbing,
which is fine. I got that out of my system.
Speaker 3 (46:05):
But yeah, I mean, like, look I was, I was
I was asking if she could count if you actually
had a number.
Speaker 2 (46:11):
Let me, I mean, does anyone have a list of
my part I would say that's three?
Speaker 1 (46:16):
Wow?
Speaker 3 (46:17):
Three?
Speaker 1 (46:18):
Any ever? Series?
Speaker 2 (46:19):
Clearly no, No. Have I tried, Yes, we did, one
of them. We tried. It just wasn't gonna happen, like
fall in love with any of them. Like it's not
love right, Like it's like if it is in that moment,
then you're like, wait a second, how is this person
like in the real world? And then like all of
a sudden, the roles change, like I'm no longer an
influence in that set. So it's a weird control thing,
(46:41):
you know.
Speaker 1 (46:41):
How about this? Any of the three? Did they ever
make headlines? Okay? So they were so people were aware.
Speaker 2 (46:48):
So I mean one of them basically professes love to
me on Ellen DeGeneres.
Speaker 1 (46:51):
Did I miss this?
Speaker 3 (46:53):
I missed it?
Speaker 2 (46:54):
Who?
Speaker 1 (46:55):
Well, you said it's out there, so I might as
well say it now.
Speaker 2 (46:57):
Oh Joe Sinko, I don't think that's the last name.
Speaker 1 (47:03):
D Johnson, Chad good old Chad, good old Chad. So
that was a that was a good you call them,
want to call them something else?
Speaker 2 (47:15):
But it was that we were People were like, oh,
you're engaged to give you a diamonds and I was like, no,
it was never that serious. No, But like Ellen broke
the news, it was like a whole thing. I was like, head,
It's like it was slow that way.
Speaker 3 (47:29):
But you're single now and like proud ready to ingle,
not ready to mingle, proudly single?
Speaker 1 (47:35):
She need to give you a chance to get it
out this time.
Speaker 3 (47:37):
No, I know I'm not ready, but I've I've seen
I've seen your social media feed. I mean, you are
a loud and proudly single for sure. How do you
have an idea of how long you want to be
working on yourself before you're ready? Or do you not
even want to give it a timeline?
Speaker 2 (47:54):
Exactly like I I first of all, I would love
to play on my whole life like that on the timeline.
But like I'm trying to be a recovering control freak
though it's still I'm still a major micromanager. But I
just need to know me first. I need to really
be comfortable in my own skin or Also'm going to
fall into that same pattern of clearly of what didn't
(48:17):
work for me. I wasn't a great picker.
Speaker 1 (48:19):
Where are you on that journey? You said you still
have to figure out.
Speaker 2 (48:22):
I think forever I'll be on this journey like of
just learning. And this is the one thing I really
miss when I was teaching and doing all the seasons
on dancing, is that I miss learning like my brain
like I just felt like I wanted to feed my
soul with something that I don't know.
Speaker 3 (48:41):
You know, and stay tuned for more from Cheryl Burke
in our next episode.
Hey, everybody, welcome to this episode of Amy and TJ.
We make it a habit here, don't we roll up
on this show to not necessarily talk that much about
ABC News, Good Morning America or Disney. It's kind of
a habit we have here. It's the rule.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
It's a muscle.
Speaker 3 (00:20):
We've been flexing for about a year and some change.
Speaker 1 (00:23):
Oh, we've thrown all that out the window. Today.
Speaker 4 (00:26):
We're gonna talk all about Disney and ABC and Good
Morning America, and in particular how much we hated hated
a particular day at Good Morning America every year.
Speaker 1 (00:39):
Now this comes with some context we have to give,
but we hated Dancing with the Stars mornings on Good
Morning America.
Speaker 3 (00:47):
It was a chaotic, chaotic day, and so you kind
of had to brace yourself. The next day, we'd all
be saying, tomorrow the Dancing with the Stores reveal is
taking place. We all kind of have to make sure
we got a good night's sleep because it was gonna
be a hell of a morning. I mean, it was
unreal what went on behind the scenes backstage in the
(01:10):
dressing rooms when you have the entire show taking over
Good Morning America.
Speaker 2 (01:15):
It was all about Dancing.
Speaker 3 (01:16):
With the Stars.
Speaker 1 (01:17):
I feel like we have to get right context. We
are not at all saying we hate Dancing with the stars.
Speaker 3 (01:22):
We love Dancing with the Stars.
Speaker 1 (01:23):
Okay, But our studio had a ground floor studio. We
had a second floor studio, and we had to bring
in extra people. We had deplete work late and early,
and everybody all hands on deck to rearrange that whole
studio up and downstairs, all about dancing with a Star.
How many people are how many contestants were there every year?
Speaker 2 (01:47):
I don't know how many there were.
Speaker 3 (01:48):
Okay, so you'd have the you'd have the celebrities.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
Group dancers. I mean you had it all right. I
mean you had spray tan everywhere. I know for a fact,
because like I would put that tan on in your
bathroom and that was me. It looks like someone got
murdered in me.
Speaker 3 (02:01):
Is Cheryl Burke here is with us in studio and
we're talking about She's laughing because she knows what we're
talking about.
Speaker 2 (02:09):
It was crazy.
Speaker 3 (02:10):
And if you had to run up and down the
stairs to get you to do your hit to go, oh,
you couldn't. You couldn't even make your way because dancers
would be coming at you like a sea of just
sequins and glitter and spray tan, and you couldn't even
get down.
Speaker 1 (02:23):
On a normal day, a good morning America, you have
two three celebrities, like big deal celebrities that we have
to make sure they have their own green room, they
have their people. On a Dancing with the Stars day,
you have twenty people with egos who want their own room,
they want their own hair, their own makeup, their own
(02:44):
people that all this.
Speaker 3 (02:45):
It's chaos, yes, and well earned egos, by the way,
because when they would put on those performances, it was remarkable. No.
I was in awe watching them take over the entire
studio and dance in precision with the lights and the
music in your live you don't get a second time.
They were remarkable.
Speaker 1 (03:01):
The pros were fine. I'm talking about on the celebrity
the day where we are dealing who's going to dance
on Dancing with the Stars, the place was chaotic. The
only thing we compared it to the only other day
we hate it that much. It's Halloween.
Speaker 3 (03:16):
Oh see, I like Halloween. That's on you. I loved Hollow.
It was Kaotu, it was kadd But we were creating
the chaos versus the chaos coming to us in the
form of all these celebrities and the reps. By the way,
like they all bring people, people have entourages. They don't
just come on their own, they come with their people.
Speaker 1 (03:32):
But we say all this for a reason. Look, we
Dancing with the Stars. No matter what you think about it,
it is a phenomenon and it has been for the
twenty plus years now that it has been on. It
is just a powerhouse. The concept is cool and interesting
and fun, but it is just it's been phenomenal what
(03:53):
this thing has done culturally, what it has meant in
this country, has made stars out of a whole bunch
of people, and it's just fun. I remember ginger Z
to watch Somebody You Love You know, ginger.
Speaker 3 (04:04):
Z, Sam Champion, Oh Sam, Sammy, all of Sammy, the
ones in the two so good, not the ones in
the twos. But I know, and it's true, And it
gave a lot of people second chances and third chances,
like a new boost in the career that was feeding
or had you know, seemed like it was gone all
of a sudden boom. You're on Dancing with the Stars, but.
Speaker 1 (04:26):
Your back we always loved no matter what. Yes, it
was chaotic and whatnot, but it to watch, certainly the
pros come in and the choreography and what it took
to nail it, because we saw the rehearsals and then
everybody at home only saw it live. We saw what
it took to put that on, and they nailed it
every single time. And so many of those pros we
got to know over the years, and some of them
(04:47):
we got to know year after year after year after
year because they kept coming back and they kept winning.
Speaker 3 (04:51):
Yes, even like Cheryl, like Cheryl Burke twenty six seasons,
two mirror Balls. Correct, and Cheryl, I mean you're laughing
because you're not in your We were hearing us from
our vantage point. I love that we saw, but you
saw everything in between and what it took to even
get all those folks on planes. I mean, think about
the shuffling and shuttling they did back and forth between
California and New.
Speaker 2 (05:12):
You'll know, sleep like we're going on no sleep, you guys,
And then like the last thing we want to do
is put on a skimpy costume in the middle of
Times Square mind you like we were freezing because we
also have to rehearse, so we have to rehearse literally
when it's still dark, so it's not like no one's
in the studio yet because we wouldn't have had time
to rehearse. So we're rehearsing outside. Mind you, ballroom dancing
is made for indoors. It's not an outdoor sport. So
(05:34):
this was, you know, just a lot. But I didn't
even realize how we must be so annoying because like
what I didn't realize was this, You're like, any what
a mess we were, Like, we were just such a
disaster because we were at first of all exhausted, so
we were all delirious, whether it be even like the
premiere or the finale. First of all, the finale, we're
(05:56):
for sure done. Like we were so delirious. I'll never
got Rob Kardashian, I remember I was so out of it,
and I remember Robin Roberts asking me a question. I
was like, Rob, you're gonna have to take it. You
could take it, Like I just couldn't put two words together.
But yeah, this has been. It's been. It was our
second home. Your guys, is you know sad and thank
(06:17):
you you guys.
Speaker 3 (06:18):
We're on West Coast time too, So I give it
to you like you were. Like for us, it was early,
and it was even earlier. Was still Actually most of
y'all didn't even sleep. No, we came to New York.
You were from the night before your dancers.
Speaker 2 (06:29):
Yeah, we don't. We don't. We get creative at night
to sleep during the day.
Speaker 1 (06:34):
Right now, this moment, you are two two full years
now or two full seasons removed from the show, is.
Speaker 2 (06:39):
What I would say. Two seasons two years, same thing
now because they only do one year.
Speaker 1 (06:43):
Okay, getting closer to you, if you needed to get
back in there right now, crash and start dancing and
start training somebody.
Speaker 2 (06:50):
I mean, I mean I could train you, okay, but
like as far as wearing like one of the outfits,
like I would probably get on some I don't know,
some sort of strict diet and like, but that's my
body dysmorphia that I'll forever have, you know, and I'm
very open with that. But like, I don't know, I've
I mean, you've seen me grow up on this show.
I started when I was twenty one years old. I
went through this horrific like she's too fat for TV too,
(07:13):
So It's like I was growing into my who I
am as a woman as well, and with that, I
did gain weight, you know, and it was like season
seven or something. I'll never forget it. And it was
like when you first see yourself like being talked about
like on KTLA and you're like, wait, what is that.
Speaker 3 (07:29):
You were being talked about for what your body looked like?
Speaker 1 (07:32):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (07:32):
Who was saying that you were overweight?
Speaker 2 (07:35):
I think it was just a collect I think it
was just people like people that watch the show. I mean,
you know, I did I gain a few pounds during
the hiatus, Yes, I mean naturally right, like we do,
but like I am curvy in comparison to a lot
of the other professional women. So when you know, whenever
I did gain weight, it was a thing. I just
feel like it was, you know, it was a thing
(07:56):
that back in the day. I think nowadays no one
would ever say anything. It's times have changed, but back
then it was. I'll just I based my life off
of season So I'm trying to think. I think I
was dancing with Maurice Green actually, and then it was
right before Jill, so I think that was season between
seven and eight.
Speaker 3 (08:13):
But yeah, Cheryl so you heard people talking about you
on television. Did you ever hear anything. Was there any
pressure on the show at all to be a certain size,
to fit into a certain outfit or was that just
from the noise from outside and maybe your own internal.
Speaker 2 (08:28):
I think it was my noise. I don't think that.
I mean, look nothing to me personally, Like no one
has ever come up to me and been like, you
have to lose weight? They, I think, regardless they hear,
I feel so bad for wardrobe because, like you know,
all my insecurities would go out on port Daniella, who
runs wardrobe, and it would alter it would really alter
(08:49):
my mood, you know, to where it was like if
I felt heavy or if I felt bloated and I
was putting on a costume, then all my insecurities I
would come out onto other people, onto my partner, onto
just like in general, because of that like self hate
that I had for myself. Really at that time, am
I still there? I'm not going to say I'm fully recovered,
(09:11):
but I'm definitely healing, you know, and that's going to
be a forever process.
Speaker 1 (09:15):
Where is it? Company? Was that all in turn? Take
the out?
Speaker 2 (09:18):
This was like from competitive days okay, but take.
Speaker 1 (09:20):
The outside noise and the haters and whoever else is
saying negro stuff from the outside, but take that out
of the equation. Was there anything wrong in your mind
with how you looked and so you.
Speaker 2 (09:35):
Because of my body?
Speaker 1 (09:36):
Yes?
Speaker 2 (09:36):
Absolutely? Yes? And body dysmorphia is it? I literally look
at myself in the mirror and I don't necessarily see
what other people see. Yes, yeah, because like what do
you do that? Well, I'm in therapy. I mean I've
been in therapy since I was a little girl, really
but consistently. I've been in therapy here for like the
last decade. But also doing somatic also helps because then
(09:59):
I can really, instead of completely tune out of my
body and numb, I can actually, you know, slowly but
surely learn to learn about self love and self respect
and really have to make an effort to compliment myself,
like in my gratitude journal, Like it's a whole thing
because my brain has been trained to always pick out
(10:22):
the negatives in general, was coach.
Speaker 3 (10:25):
Yeah, I feel like that's called being a woman. I
mean it is right. I mean we all saw our
moms do it, and I had to stop myself from
doing it. In front of my daughters, because it's like
this trait and if someone gives you a compliment, you
actually say, oh, but actually did you see this thing?
You know? You you never can take a COMPLI point
to something negative. It's this weird thing that I think
we learn unfortunately as women.
Speaker 2 (10:46):
The survival mode I've been in, you know, in general,
from when I was a little girl through you know,
child abuse to now it's like, you know, thank you
vessel for getting me through. Because wow, but.
Speaker 1 (10:58):
Were you two, I mean both of you now are you?
Were you all in the exact wrong businesses to Probably
there's a lot of little girls. There are a lot
of young girls who maybe feel the way you all feel.
Sure you all are on television, you all are right.
Speaker 2 (11:13):
You are looking at yourself in the Mirror's there's not
one dance studio I know that doesn't have mirrors, right,
and naturally you compare.
Speaker 1 (11:22):
Does that exacerbate the issue you all were just talking about?
The business said you.
Speaker 3 (11:26):
Walk into a dressing room, mirrors everywhere television is that
you know, you're looking at the monitor. And then now
you're in a business where people are commenting on you
wherever they want to from the privacy of their own
home anonymously, and they can actually wreak real havoc on
your psyche without a doubt.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
You're still like, I'm not gonna say that, oh whatever,
you know, but I focus on that one negative comment,
like it's just natural unless if I'm really like present, right,
but that is, I'm currently retraining. Hopefully it happens, but
we'll see.
Speaker 4 (11:58):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (11:59):
I was talking about though, take some of that power
away from them, and it empowers shame to recognize it
and then let it go, like feel it and then
let it, let it go.
Speaker 2 (12:08):
That's the hard part, easier said than done. I know,
I know I feel it. I don't know if I
let it go though.
Speaker 3 (12:14):
It's been two years.
Speaker 2 (12:15):
Yeah, I can't believe it's been two years. It's crazy,
so crazy to me.
Speaker 3 (12:19):
I really, I know you were such a staple on
that show. I know you left because you said, hey,
I'm thirty eight and my body's done doing this grind
and that makes total sense for twenty six seasons. But
you didn't necessarily want to leave the show.
Speaker 2 (12:35):
No, I didn't want to leave this show. I mean,
this was my family, Like, I mean, I don't think
I know La without Dancing with the Stars. I came
straight from Harlem to CBS on Genesee and Beverly literally
and I mean first of all, to be part of
something for so long, for twenty six seasons, is so
(12:58):
unheard of. But also for me in general, like I
have this bond, this like umbilical cord that is still
hard to I guess cut off like and to like
really separate myself because that was my identity in every
way and just now learning like, hey, well nothing outside
(13:21):
of you should be your identity. It all comes from within.
But I'm not a yogi. I'm not perfect. Like look,
I would love to get there one day. But I
guess with the general public too, it's like they do
think Cheryl Burke Dancing the Stars. And even for me,
like there was really my whole life was consumed because
I chose that path. But that was it.
Speaker 3 (13:42):
We know how that feels, Yeah, we do. We didn't
want to leave either. You didn't want to leave, but
you chose to leave. Why did you leave if you
didn't want to?
Speaker 2 (13:52):
I just I felt like it was time for me
to grow and evolve as as in my like dancing
isn't for a woman in her unfortunately in ballroom especially,
I just physically and also knowing in the back of
my mind I'm the oldest girl here, and then you
start to like, you know, the actual self hate. I
(14:16):
felt got louder, you know, and louder, and I was like,
wait a second. I believe and I still do to
this day, that I am more than capable to take
another role on the show. I don't know what that
would have been or whatever, but if judging they see that,
if they don't see that in me, then why am
(14:37):
I here?
Speaker 3 (14:38):
Did they talk to you about those roles they have but.
Speaker 2 (14:43):
In the past, right, but it was nothing like set
in Stone or anything.
Speaker 3 (14:47):
Did you tell them I would like to be a judge,
I would like to be a horse? And what did
they say?
Speaker 2 (14:53):
You know? A lot of this was also done through
my reps. I also it's interesting because like a lot
of these people behind the scenes, the producers, and I've
developed relationships with them, you know, and I never wanted
to cross that boundary, Like I always felt like I
wasn't the one to be like like using that relationship
(15:17):
to get to put me further, like I really love them,
like I loved them as individuals and as friends, like
even more than I would say. The dancers like I
became really close, right, So I never wanted to just
cross that line. Because of my connection and my longevity
on the show. I didn't feel it that that was appropriate.
Speaker 1 (15:44):
Sure, I'm listening to you now, I've read everything you
said about leaving the show. You're a staple. There's not
a list out there. If you just go Google or
ask people like who are the top pros in this show?
You're going to be in the top three names that
somebody names, maybe top five at worst. So, even listening
to you now and reading everything you said about it,
(16:06):
why do I steal feel like, wait, wait, what the
hell is going on? Something's up? Why is she not
on the show? Why would she leave the show? Did
do you feel you were do you talk about the
younger younger, the youngins that were on there, Did you
feel like you were being outdanced by anybody?
Speaker 2 (16:25):
It wasn't on a physical level, It was more on
like an emotional level. I think for me it was
like again, it was I wanted to grow within the company.
I saw other dancers who started maybe later than me
be promoted right, like they became more than a pro dancer.
I'm not saying being a pro dancer is just like, oh,
it's beneath me by any means, if anything, I know
the pros work harder than anyone else on the show,
(16:48):
but it was also for me like as a just
I just didn't understand like why I also couldn't have
that opportunity and if clearly it wasn't being given to me.
So I had to do something about it because I
felt like with a lot of the work I've been
doing in my self work and then divorcing my ex husband,
I just felt like in order for me to gain
(17:09):
respect and love for myself, I have to believe in me,
Like if they're not going to believe, then I have
to believe. And I have to really stick to my
guns here because like I I continue I've continued to
express like I no longer want to be a pro dancer,
you know period. So I mean they knew me it
(17:29):
is what it is though, by the way, and they
have every right to believe whatever they want to believe.
But then therefore I'm going to then move on.
Speaker 1 (17:36):
Yeah does that mean what do you mean? You said
they have a right to believe if they.
Speaker 2 (17:40):
Don't if they don't see me in a different role,
So be it right, like that is not in my control.
Speaker 1 (17:44):
And we've all been there. I'm putting in turn, I'm
thinking back to my career in times in my career
where you know what, I'm here, I've been a good soldier.
You all don't want me to be anything more. To
hell with y'all. I'm out of here now. I don't
want to believe those words.
Speaker 2 (17:59):
In my life. Spoke louder. Shea water now, don't get
a little toasty.
Speaker 1 (18:06):
She's a little tom before she answers that one. No,
but is that I mean, I want to put those
words in your mouth. It sounds that way.
Speaker 2 (18:14):
It's been a long long time coming, you know for
me as well. It's like I think, I mean, I'm
pretty sure you could read it somewhere where I was like, oh,
she's retiring again or she's leaving again, and it's like,
you know, I also did a quick little run at
over at NBC for a show that they did, and
you know, I think after that experience it was interesting
(18:37):
because I was like, wait a second, there's like there
is a world beyond the show, you know, like you
get very like my blinders in a way were just
like on whenever I'm in something, I'm in it right
one hundred percent. But then I think from then on
I was like, why you know, I want to be
able to do other things. It gave me a new
like energy and fire, and after twenty six seasons of anything,
(18:58):
I started to feel like I was an audit, a pilot.
You know, let's do I mean, mind you, I'm grateful
and about it. Let's do another chat.
Speaker 1 (19:05):
You know how.
Speaker 3 (19:07):
We get it?
Speaker 2 (19:09):
Chah, You're like, oh God, Like in any career, you
want to grow.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
You don't want to.
Speaker 2 (19:14):
Just stay in the same position. Some people do and
to you, but I don't. You wanted more? Did you
leave on good terms? I would say, yes, Then why
did you mean they even gave me a sendoff?
Speaker 3 (19:26):
They gave you a sendoff, but you didn't get invited back.
Speaker 2 (19:29):
No.
Speaker 3 (19:30):
Well, for Len Len's tribute, why do you think that happened?
Speaker 2 (19:34):
I would assume that they Some people may not be
happy with my my podcast that I have here with iHeart.
Your podcast is called sex License Sprays Hands. Maybe it's
the title. I actually don't think it's the content, because like,
what is wrong with us? Having literally like, Okay, we've done,
(19:56):
they've they've done. See I'm still like my vocabulary. We've
you know, they've done thirty two seasons. But like every
single celebrity and dancer on this show has had an experience.
I don't care if you're the first eliminated, or if
you went all the way till the end, or if
you had a bow out due to like Sarah Evans,
like a divorce that she was going through. This show
(20:17):
is something that is a special experience that you go
through these different emotions like and I think it's important
that we talk, and I think it's entertaining for the
bands who have been sticking by their side for so
many decades now, and it's just a great time. It's
just like an hour long. Now, look are there things
that are not necessarily maybe uh, all glitter and rhinestones
(20:41):
and all of it. Of course, because with every experience
there are also there's the bad, the good, the ugly,
there's all of it. Like, it's not just all Disney, right,
it's not all like Mickey Mouse. Like there's gonna be
people who felt so whether it's like nerves or they
just felt whatever. But regardless, I think it's the end
of the day. Everyone can say about this show is
(21:03):
that they took something away from the show and it
made them into a better person somehow, whether that be
them losing weight or them gaining confidence or whatever it is.
And I always, I always am going back to the
fact that I am in gratitude for my experience and
my time with the network and with you know, Dancing
(21:25):
with the Stars in general. I mean, I was a
ballroom dancer in Harlem. I was a starving dancer. Like
I never this was never my goal, right was to
be on TV.
Speaker 3 (21:33):
And you did a phenomenal job. And I and I
while we're talking about the lend tribute, because I just
want to make sure anyone who's at home, Len was
you know this start to finish like the consummate ballroom
dancing judge. And I know you loved him.
Speaker 2 (21:48):
He judge me as a little kid like when I
was competing.
Speaker 3 (21:50):
He was amazing and he still the hearts of everyone.
He was honest, he was witty, He had but he
knew his stuff.
Speaker 2 (21:57):
We all, yeah, we're always quiet when he speaks.
Speaker 3 (22:01):
He sadly, he sadly passed away this past April. And
you were criticized after you told people that you weren't
going or you weren't invited to come back for the tribute.
Some people criticize you for waiting to then pay your
own tribute to him that night, just before Dancing with
(22:22):
the Stars aired. Why did you choose that timing and
why did you choose that moment to honor your friend?
Speaker 2 (22:28):
Okay, so I actually had made a tribute prior to
that time, but I think for me, or I know,
it was like I was getting a lot of messages
about like it was it your choice not to be there,
and first of all I found out when everyone else
found out, and that was just such a stab in
the heart. Like for me, you know, it was like
(22:48):
I just couldn't believe that I wasn't included in just
something so special, like regardless if you want to, like
look up og in the Dictionary regardles list, like I
should be I should have been there, like we all
know this, and I know this, at least have been
in the audience. Maybe you know, but clearly that wasn't
(23:12):
the case, and I wanted it to be clear with
everybody before rumors started happening, and before it just escalated
with the like, oh I chose not to be there,
that's just not the case. And so I just wanted
to tell my truth and it ended up it wasn't
planned or any of it. Just it ended up becoming
a tribute to Len. But there's nothing wrong with that,
(23:33):
you know. And if they you know, at the end
of the day, it's like they could have eliminated all
of this, I think in the first place, if you know,
if I was there, if they had just asked you
even just asked, yeah, just asked, wait, it.
Speaker 1 (23:46):
Never came up. This is mind boggling. Like you said,
o G that there is if you are not invited
to his tribute, it's intentional, right, because that's not an oversight,
it's it's it.
Speaker 2 (23:59):
They didn't forget it oversight.
Speaker 3 (24:00):
You know, they didn't forget about you.
Speaker 2 (24:02):
No, No, I don't think so. I don't think so.
I don't know.
Speaker 3 (24:06):
I don't know.
Speaker 2 (24:08):
We know, we know they didn't forget about you.
Speaker 1 (24:10):
It's impossible to have a tribute to him without you
being a part. So we're trying to understand how have
things soured to the to a point you are the show.
What I mean by that is you cannot talk about
Dancing with the Stars without talking about Schobert. You cannot
go through the history of the show and talk about
it without talking about you. So help us understand how
(24:33):
something has soured to the point that even you can't
come together in death of someone that's beloved, even that
man couldn't bring these two sides together. Help us understand that, Gheryl,
that doesn't make it.
Speaker 2 (24:49):
I mean, I would love to be also helped here
because like I don't That's what I mean, right, Like
if anything that should have that shouldn't have mattered, whatever,
whatever is, whatever it is that they're upset about, obviously
it must be the pod. It has to be the podcast,
because that's all that in the past couple of years, right,
But then also it is it just makes me believe
(25:13):
that they're not listening to it or something, because it's like,
of course on social media, you know, as you guys know,
like we need to attract listeners, and unfortunately with that
you have to put clips together that may not may
sound a little like, oh, she's just bashing the show,
Like no, that's not what the podcast is. No, it's
telling the honest truth. But like I don't know, I
(25:35):
don't know because I can't even answer the question I
would would I love closure? Absolutely?
Speaker 3 (25:41):
Did you ask questions? Did you ask anyone, hey, what's
going on? Why am I not invited?
Speaker 2 (25:45):
I had my reps do that again, like I don't
have The answer was well, obviously my podcast.
Speaker 3 (25:54):
Okay, so they said it was the podcast?
Speaker 2 (25:57):
Well yes, I mean yes, and what specifically?
Speaker 3 (26:00):
Because you know, I also saw things online where people
they look at headlines we know what this is like,
and assume the worst because they see a headline and
they say, oh, Cheryl Burke is trashing Dancing with the
Stars and so now you look like the bad guy,
when that actually isn't the truth. It's just these headlines, clickbait,
whatever you want to call it. Did you have an
(26:21):
opportunity to at least say, do you listen to my podcast?
Do you understand what I'm doing? Was there any way
for you to at least say, hey, we go back,
we go twenty six seasons back. Can we not find
a way to bridge this?
Speaker 2 (26:35):
I get everything was done through my reps, and yes,
this is what was frustrating that it was like it
was so quick, like it was quick right, like the
I don't know who's listening. I don't know who isn't listening.
All I know is obviously, I mean I can assume
that they're upset. But I feel more than anything, I
just feel really sad. I'm just sad. It still so sad.
(26:59):
Like I'm so sad. I'm not even mad anymore.
Speaker 1 (27:03):
Were you at one point? Though? Man?
Speaker 2 (27:05):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (27:06):
How long did it take you to get past that?
Was that a question?
Speaker 2 (27:09):
It's a therapy.
Speaker 1 (27:12):
I think a lot of people know how close you
talk about he judge you when you were essentially kid. Yeah,
but I mean that's that this is a special special
moment aside forget the the you versus the company thing.
This is a very special guide to you that on
a very special moment, special night you weren't able to
be a part of. That's different.
Speaker 2 (27:32):
Yeah, I mean it's but also I think it's everything.
It's not just it's not black and white, right, like
it's it is. I don't know with any with any relationship,
there's turmoil, right, there's disagreements, but you you talk about
it exactly exactly as you don't just like literally not
(27:53):
talk about it. But like again, I mean I can
sleep at night knowing that I'm not doing anything wrong,
Like I I'm so grateful for the show for everything.
Speaker 1 (28:02):
Sure you have tears come in your eyes? Here? Is
there no one you can pick up the phone and call?
And I know you talk about rest and we all
been in this business, we.
Speaker 3 (28:09):
Know that, yes, we'll get you.
Speaker 1 (28:12):
Some tissues for this seems a little too important to
is there nothing? Is there no one? You tried to
pick up the phone and just come on, guy, let's
put it aside for a night for this guy.
Speaker 2 (28:25):
Well that moment is over unfortunately, But like as far
as that guy, but like, look, there's obviously it's so deep,
so deep.
Speaker 3 (28:37):
You're doing a podcast, and to do a podcast the
way you want to do it to tell you know,
the behind the thing, behind the scenes stories and they're
not all salacious, they're fun and lighted. I'm sure you're reminiscing.
Have you found any difficulty in getting guests to come
on the podcast for that exact same reason? Because the
(28:57):
show is unhappy with your podcast?
Speaker 2 (28:59):
I can't, like, look again, like I'm not have yes.
I mean, first of all, I do know of some
guests that have maybe said yes to that have said
yes to the show, and that all of a sudden
said no, I don't know who, what, where, when, how
it all happened, But like I can only assume, and
my feeling is that someone who isn't happy with the
(29:23):
podcast may have been influenced that may have influenced that
person or those people.
Speaker 3 (29:37):
Do you think you've been blackballed by Dancing with the Stars.
Speaker 2 (29:41):
In what sense?
Speaker 3 (29:43):
Meaning they want, well, they not to eliminate any any
sort of relationship you may have with that show, and
people who are on that show they don't want to
have a relationship with you.
Speaker 2 (29:55):
I mean, I sure hope not that's I hope that's
not the case. Do I sometimes think about it? I'm yes, absolutely,
but like I just feel like there's nothing that Again,
I know what I'm doing in and I don't understand
why why this is happening.
Speaker 3 (30:14):
Sure, I was gonna Have you lost friends over this?
Has it gotten to that point? Do you feel like
you've lost or at least lost us?
Speaker 2 (30:21):
Well, I lost my family, yeah.
Speaker 3 (30:25):
And and very important relationships. That's tough. Would you have
ever thought that was possible when you were leaving the show?
Speaker 2 (30:34):
I mean, I guess like it's a business, right, So
it's like, of course when you think like that, but
like my emotions, like I come. My mother's a business woman,
Like I understand it, but it doesn't ever feel good.
Speaker 3 (30:46):
When people tell you it's not personal, it still feels personal.
Speaker 2 (30:49):
It's so personal, it's so personal, and people can separate
the two. I'm like, are you a sociopath? Because like
I don't get it. I don't know how you do that,
Like my I don't know how you do that. I
don't know how you separate it because like for me
as an artist, like dance is so vulnerable, you know,
like literally so vulnerable, like naked and afraid.
Speaker 1 (31:14):
That's funny as you said that, Yeah, we've said that
so many times before. They you know, it's business. We
get it, it's business, we say that. So it hurts.
It hurts, well, how can we all right, let's make
lemonade here, Cheryl? What can this? How can it be repaired?
Speaker 2 (31:32):
I think that's a question for that really of course,
of course, like because again it's it's look, am I
upset about the past, Yes, but that's the past. Like
I'm really trying to be able to move forward. And
I would think that after sixteen years and blood, sweat
(31:53):
and tears, literally many tours and all of it, that
there was a chance to repair whatever it is. But
I need I don't know what it is, because like
we need to communicate.
Speaker 1 (32:05):
A chance. Maybe there's three of us can go into.
Speaker 2 (32:09):
Let's do it.
Speaker 1 (32:09):
Let's hold the hands.
Speaker 2 (32:10):
I'll teach you a few steps, some locksteps, and we
will be escorted.
Speaker 3 (32:16):
You do not want to come into that building with us.
Speaker 2 (32:24):
I'm surprised you guys haven't gotten a call yet. Exactly right,
just shimmy and shake.
Speaker 3 (32:31):
Back.
Speaker 1 (32:31):
They weren't to come back.
Speaker 2 (32:32):
They were ruffled.
Speaker 3 (32:33):
They were to say far away, what what would be
what would be the best case scenario for you if
you if to go forward to repair any bridges that
were somehow torn down? What would be best case scenario
for you? What would you want to happen?
Speaker 2 (32:54):
Like there's no necessary Like there's not out, there's not
a result. Like again, I don't think anything has been
miscommunicated on my part, Like what you see is what
you get really to a fault, like I don't know,
just to feel like I'm still part of the family.
(33:14):
I don't know. I don't I don't know what that
is exactly or what or like I don't know, maybe
some communication. Yeah, like personal communication.
Speaker 1 (33:27):
You don't feel like you're part of the family anymore.
Speaker 2 (33:28):
I definitely not to know.
Speaker 1 (33:31):
But they make you feel like that.
Speaker 2 (33:32):
But I'm not. But I wasn't invited to.
Speaker 1 (33:35):
But on the outside, right, everybody who's a fan of
that show, shog is a part of the fan.
Speaker 2 (33:40):
I don't think. I mean, I wouldn't feel comfortable, like,
I don't think I can just go see a show
like I would never do that. Damn that could be
in my own head. It's not like I was ever
like you are shunned, like I wasn't like that, but
like still, I mean, I think it's pretty freaking obvious.
Speaker 3 (33:59):
I feel like if someone said, but that's your face
or at least like you, it actually be something you
could you could you could actually have a conversation about
then you could digest but just nothing to have no
communication but action no communication, that's the worst because you're
left to guests.
Speaker 2 (34:11):
Well then yeah, and then you also feel like, well,
I guess it was really important.
Speaker 3 (34:16):
In general though, Yeah, it was a professional ghosting. You
just said it.
Speaker 2 (34:21):
Oh God, that is why I don't wish this upon
my worst enemy.
Speaker 3 (34:24):
And you, you know you you said that you had
two divorces. Yes, this was the long year.
Speaker 2 (34:31):
Yeah, this one's painful, this is heartbreaking.
Speaker 3 (34:34):
Twenty twenty two wasn't a great year for any of us. Really,
it seems like I.
Speaker 2 (34:39):
Can only go one way from here right right and
at least like yeah or just say it's fine, but
we can't go further. I can go down the hole,
can't get can't do it, can't do it.
Speaker 3 (34:49):
Where are you now right now? Like you've been through
the worst of it, You're coming out of it now,
you got your podcast. They may not like it, but
do you like?
Speaker 2 (35:00):
I love it. I love every single second of it.
Like we do three episodes a freaking week. I would
do seven if they asked, like no, but I mean,
I actually don't think I could do it anymore out it.
I mean literally my eyes are cross eyed at this point.
It's just like, hey, I'm tired of hearing my voice.
But no, it's it's been so therapeutic to do these
(35:24):
like rewatches and like I might see I'm almost at
the finale of season two and that was my first
season with dri liche and so and then and then
we do this like headlines one, which is like I mean,
I'm not one to like gossip about my friends, but
like at the same we have like reporters come on whatever.
People seem to love it. But then we have the interview,
like I'm tomorrow, I'm gonna be interviewing Jille Morini, who
(35:46):
was one of my partners, and like, this is a
great It's just so nice to have an hour with
these people because like most of them, we just we
say high in passing, like we don't have time, you know,
like we're just focused on what we need to be
folks going on and I get to really know these
people and it's so it's great, it's beautiful. We talk
(36:06):
about the most amazing thing that has affected all of
our lives and it's just that we hadn't had time
to really compress or digestive it all, you know, And
it's most of the time. And by the way, like
any relationship, there's ups and downs, but you come out there,
you come out the other side stronger, regardless of what
you've been through, whether you're Trista Sutter who got eliminated
(36:30):
first ever in the history of Dancing with Stars, or
you know whoever. It is right, like she had lots
to say.
Speaker 1 (36:39):
Yeah, I bet, I bet. Oh my goodness, But did
this gets you in trouble? Okay, you said you don't
want to you have correspondence and reporters come on because
you don't want to gossip about your friends.
Speaker 2 (36:48):
I don't have anything to say. Really, I mean it's like, but.
Speaker 1 (36:51):
Did this gets you in trouble? I mean the description
of the show when it came out sex license right hands, yes,
flirting five.
Speaker 2 (36:58):
That's not my voice.
Speaker 1 (37:00):
But still, if you read about what the show is,
and if the show were to.
Speaker 2 (37:04):
Be like Disney Mickey Mouse Sleeping Beauty, would you click
on it? Would you listen to Maybe?
Speaker 1 (37:09):
I wouldn't, but I was still Disney.
Speaker 2 (37:14):
Wait did you say that you could still be? Do
you have Disney watches on?
Speaker 3 (37:18):
iHeart?
Speaker 2 (37:18):
I'm just saying, but.
Speaker 1 (37:20):
The description of the show, if Disney reads flirting, fighting
and fleeings Cheryl Burke is ready to spill the tea,
that is exactly what your description of the podcast.
Speaker 2 (37:31):
And if you really do care about a relationship, right,
you would do a little research and you would listen
to it and you'd be like, oh, we got it.
It's clickbait. We do this all the time.
Speaker 1 (37:40):
I'm not knocking you and I get it, but like you.
Speaker 2 (37:43):
Know what I mean, Like you would just give it
an episode, Just give it one episode, and it's not
going to take too much time in your life.
Speaker 1 (37:48):
We've run into that same problem, and we have gotten
You've got calls from some lawyers and it was clear
that the only thing that was read was the headline.
Speaker 3 (37:57):
Well or they saw the t so you put together
as the chips, like maybe even a question that someone
asked us that we had nothing to do with. Suddenly
it's ruffling feathers, right because they don't know what we're
going to say. But it's called a tease for a reason,
so we knew it was working right, right, right, We
also upset some folks, yes, right, yes, but then listen
to the episode, right, they would see that it isn't
(38:19):
exactly what it's being teased breach, Yes, that's the thing.
Speaker 2 (38:23):
But then you have to care though, in order for
you to make that assessment right, like, which means you
have to take the time, maybe when you're driving on
the one oh one, put on an episode and realize
what it is, right, see it for what it is.
Don't make assumptions without doing the research, Like it's just
for me, Like that's the thing, like to be so
angry and to be to have energy, that type of energy,
(38:46):
like really first, really make sure that that is the
that is the case, right, that's what's unfolding in front
of your eyes.
Speaker 1 (38:53):
What do you want people to know about the show
that they don't know? It's not like you're trying to
do but not the show. You're not trying to trash
the show, but it is a very well packaged and
beautiful Disney bow on it, right?
Speaker 2 (39:09):
Does that?
Speaker 1 (39:10):
So what is it about the show that you would
like to I don't know if you want to say balance,
what is the right way to put what is it
you want her you want people to know about the show?
Who are fans who say, hey, guys, there's this other
side we want to expose you to as well.
Speaker 2 (39:24):
So I think this is what I find why I
love it so much is because like there are no
there's no filter, Like this is the podcast world. And
this is something I've learned with being with iHeart for
my first two podcasts with them, It's like it is
what it is like. And I have always been that
person to like always be transparent and try to also
(39:50):
speak from my own experience in hopes to help other
people in general, whether it meant be mental health or whatever.
But with this specifically, it's I'm asking questions that the
fans have asked me for decades, for decades, like literally
their mother asked them who had just past? Like whoever?
It is?
Speaker 3 (40:09):
Right?
Speaker 2 (40:09):
Like I always get my my grandma she loved you,
she loved your dumb and dumber haircut, and I'm like,
thank you so much, you know, and it's like, you know,
it was the short pop that shirt a little bit.
And it's been uh, it's been also interesting as well.
When I was like, rewatch this, this is gonna be
really boring because I'm gonna critique it as if I'm judging,
(40:30):
so it'd be like the legs weren't straight. And then
but people find it freaking interesting because they've watched something
for you invested a lot of hours into this show,
and they want to know what's the difference between heal
leads and not heel leads are like frame versus not,
you know. And I would say, I am a ballroom expert. Now,
if you don't want to put me in the judges table, fine,
so be it. But like, I still know what the
(40:51):
hell I'll talk it about, right, So, like, if anyone
were to do a podcast about dancing with the stars
of all things dancing, you're looking at her. Yeah, I've
been on the longest. You know your stuff, I do.
You know what's good, you know what's not.
Speaker 3 (41:02):
You also know what was going on behind the scenes.
I mean, like, and there's nothing that a company would
like less than a person who really knows where the
bodies are buried. Not that there were actual bodies buried,
but you really know what went on behind the scenes.
You really know.
Speaker 2 (41:17):
I mean I don't know everything, but I can only
imagine what you saw.
Speaker 1 (41:20):
Well.
Speaker 2 (41:20):
Yeah, and also what I've experienced. And it's not all bad.
Speaker 3 (41:23):
It's not all good, right, but it's not it's real
perfect either exactly.
Speaker 1 (41:27):
But it's normal.
Speaker 2 (41:29):
But isn't that the beauty of life? Yes, Like, let's
stop hiding behind the perfection because there's no such thing anyway.
Speaker 1 (41:35):
But you can get why they wouldn't want the imperfection broadcasts.
Speaker 2 (41:41):
I mean there's no such Like, what does that mean?
Speaker 3 (41:44):
What does that mean?
Speaker 1 (41:46):
I's advocate.
Speaker 2 (41:49):
Like the fact that we can dance in those costumes too.
You're like wait what, bron. You know, it's a little
bit like wait no. But but I'm also not the
one saying anything. I guess I can't control it's coming
out of my guests mouths right like they've got when
I tell you, like the I can see it almost
like the baggage, literally the weight being lifted off their shoulders.
(42:11):
For a lot of these people I've interviewed so far,
it is so therapeutic without it being a session, yeah,
or me being a professional therapist, Like, you know, it
really is.
Speaker 3 (42:23):
I totally get it. And I know that the title
is salacious, sex, Lies and spray tands, but but was
there a lot of sex going on? No?
Speaker 2 (42:32):
I literally got you know where I got that title from?
Where an US weekly cover with my face on it
that said blah blah and blah. I totally forgot what
it said. I'm sure we can google it right now.
And then I didn't realize there was a movie called
sex Life and video tape no idea. I still don't
know what the hell that is to this day. But
like it's just it's everything comes in threes, Like, honestly,
it's not that deep. It was kind of like it
(42:54):
was either gonna be sex love and you know, between
me and Amy Sugarman were just bouncing ideas off midnight,
you know, like literally, like I I remember I was
in San Francisco at my family's house and I was like,
oh my god, it's one in the morning. Can we
just stop?
Speaker 1 (43:11):
That sounds like a sugarman.
Speaker 2 (43:13):
Oh my god, she gets so excited, you know, when
she gets excited, you're like, oh, we're onto something.
Speaker 3 (43:18):
So what you're saying is that there was no sex
going on behind the scenes and no lies.
Speaker 2 (43:23):
Well, that's it just the Sprain dance who come on obviously.
I mean like, look, there was lots of dry humping,
because that happens in the rumba, right, there's lots of that. Look, dancing,
especially ballroom is an intimate contact sport and if you
(43:44):
and it happens, it does happen. And look, I'll be
the first. I'm not going to say who, but I've
had my own show mances. You know it happened.
Speaker 3 (43:51):
Did you have to keep it secret though? Was it
frowned upon? Was it was there a policy against dating
the person?
Speaker 2 (43:56):
I think it was more like within like personal preference now,
but were there headlines about it? Yeah, I mean, of
course they eat this up like this is what I
mean going back to casting, right, like the casting person
you know, and whoever else makes the decisions, they know
what they're doing.
Speaker 1 (44:12):
Wait, so it's already out there in headlines. Who you
had a showman's with?
Speaker 2 (44:15):
I had supposedly I had showmances with every single partner,
including way Newton, And that for sure is.
Speaker 1 (44:20):
A okay, you supposedly, But I was that girl.
Speaker 2 (44:24):
I was that girl.
Speaker 3 (44:25):
Yeah, I was.
Speaker 2 (44:25):
I was definitely labeled as that woman.
Speaker 1 (44:27):
Okay, well, what's a showman's.
Speaker 2 (44:28):
Is just a they you hooked up with your partner
or you're whoever.
Speaker 1 (44:32):
Just during the show, did you ever have a relationship
that continued outside the show?
Speaker 2 (44:36):
That was the problem? It was like, because it's seven
days a week, it was not the problem. Look, there's
a lot of great relationships that are people got married
from the show, right, But it's seven days a week.
You are consumed with each other like you're just constantly.
And also we've seen their insecurities. They're vulnerable, and especially
as a professional woman who was a ballroom dancer teaching.
(44:58):
Let's say the athlete, for example, who feels like this
macho mash all of a sudden has to be like
I don't know if I can ship like nervous, and
he has. In order to be successful on Dancing with
the Stars, you have to be ready to be vulnerable,
Like you gotta feel stupid, you gotta look stupid, you gotta.
Speaker 3 (45:14):
Be okay with that, like, because we need to trust you.
Speaker 2 (45:17):
That's the thing, because if your life is going to
be a living hell with me, I'll tell you that
one because that's the thing is. But the trust has
to come soon, Like it's not normal to trust someone
after only a few days.
Speaker 3 (45:28):
Right, you said you were labeled that girl. Can you
count how many showmances you had?
Speaker 2 (45:34):
Well, look, I was starting to be so First of all,
I was labeled as this party girl. So I was
always on TAMZ. If you remember, no kidd you do
anyway drinking days, yes, yes, oh I would be rolling
out of the club like yeah, this is before Ober. Okay,
(45:57):
good times. Anyway, I'm sober now for almost six years,
so congratulations, thank you. And with that comes no clubbing,
which is fine. I got that out of my system.
Speaker 3 (46:05):
But yeah, I mean, like, look I was, I was
I was asking if she could count if you actually
had a number.
Speaker 2 (46:11):
Let me, I mean, does anyone have a list of
my part I would say that's three?
Speaker 1 (46:16):
Wow?
Speaker 3 (46:17):
Three?
Speaker 1 (46:18):
Any ever? Series?
Speaker 2 (46:19):
Clearly no, No. Have I tried, Yes, we did, one
of them. We tried. It just wasn't gonna happen, like
fall in love with any of them. Like it's not
love right, Like it's like if it is in that moment,
then you're like, wait a second, how is this person
like in the real world? And then like all of
a sudden, the roles change, like I'm no longer an
influence in that set. So it's a weird control thing,
(46:41):
you know.
Speaker 1 (46:41):
How about this? Any of the three? Did they ever
make headlines? Okay? So they were so people were aware.
Speaker 2 (46:48):
So I mean one of them basically professes love to
me on Ellen DeGeneres.
Speaker 1 (46:51):
Did I miss this?
Speaker 3 (46:53):
I missed it?
Speaker 2 (46:54):
Who?
Speaker 1 (46:55):
Well, you said it's out there, so I might as
well say it now.
Speaker 2 (46:57):
Oh Joe Sinko, I don't think that's the last name.
Speaker 1 (47:03):
D Johnson, Chad good old Chad, good old Chad. So
that was a that was a good you call them,
want to call them something else?
Speaker 2 (47:15):
But it was that we were People were like, oh,
you're engaged to give you a diamonds and I was like, no,
it was never that serious. No, But like Ellen broke
the news, it was like a whole thing. I was like, head,
It's like it was slow that way.
Speaker 3 (47:29):
But you're single now and like proud ready to ingle,
not ready to mingle, proudly single?
Speaker 1 (47:35):
She need to give you a chance to get it
out this time.
Speaker 3 (47:37):
No, I know I'm not ready, but I've I've seen
I've seen your social media feed. I mean, you are
a loud and proudly single for sure. How do you
have an idea of how long you want to be
working on yourself before you're ready? Or do you not
even want to give it a timeline?
Speaker 2 (47:54):
Exactly like I I first of all, I would love
to play on my whole life like that on the timeline.
But like I'm trying to be a recovering control freak
though it's still I'm still a major micromanager. But I
just need to know me first. I need to really
be comfortable in my own skin or Also'm going to
fall into that same pattern of clearly of what didn't
(48:17):
work for me. I wasn't a great picker.
Speaker 1 (48:19):
Where are you on that journey? You said you still
have to figure out.
Speaker 2 (48:22):
I think forever I'll be on this journey like of
just learning. And this is the one thing I really
miss when I was teaching and doing all the seasons
on dancing, is that I miss learning like my brain
like I just felt like I wanted to feed my
soul with something that I don't know.
Speaker 3 (48:41):
You know, and stay tuned for more from Cheryl Burke
in our next episode.
Hosts And Creators
Amy Robach
T.J. Holmes
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Decisions, Decisions
Welcome to "Decisions, Decisions," the podcast where boundaries are pushed, and conversations get candid! Join your favorite hosts, Mandii B and WeezyWTF, as they dive deep into the world of non-traditional relationships and explore the often-taboo topics surrounding dating, sex, and love. Every Monday, Mandii and Weezy invite you to unlearn the outdated narratives dictated by traditional patriarchal norms. With a blend of humor, vulnerability, and authenticity, they share their personal journeys navigating their 30s, tackling the complexities of modern relationships, and engaging in thought-provoking discussions that challenge societal expectations. From groundbreaking interviews with diverse guests to relatable stories that resonate with your experiences, "Decisions, Decisions" is your go-to source for open dialogue about what it truly means to love and connect in today's world. Get ready to reshape your understanding of relationships and embrace the freedom of authentic connections—tune in and join the conversation!