Season 30 of Dancing with the Stars is on fire this season. Real Housewives of Atlanta star Kenya Moore is being competitive as always. She is partnered with pro Brandon Armstrong and is doing well for having no prior dance experience. Before she hit the ballroom, Kenya asked another ballroom vet, and current Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star, Erika Jayne for some pointers.
Another DWTS competitor has ignited controversy for several reasons. Olivia Jade is a YouTube influencer, but she is known more for her parents’ participation in the college admission scandal.
Olivia’s father, designer Mossimo Giannulli and her mother, actress Lori Loughlin, paid $500,000 so that both of their daughters would be accepted to the University of Southern California. Olivia and her sister had never rowed crew, but they were admitted to the university as crew recruits. Lori and Mossimo’s involvement in the bribery scheme resulted in jail time for both.
DWTS host Tyra Banks defended Olivia’s participation on the show. “I think Olivia is so brave. I think people don’t know her; they know what happened to her,” Tyra said. The host added, “She is having to deal with that, and I think she’s coming to Dancing with the Stars to be able to tell her story and show her vulnerability.”
Olivia, who is partnered with Val Chmerkovskiy, has been impressing the judges with her dance technique and personality. Now she is facing a new scandal. According to US Weekly, Olivia responded to rumors shared by a TikTok user. The user posted a shady video, which has since been deleted, that alluded to a DWTS contestant getting very cozy with their married partner. Val is married to another pro on the show, Jenna Johnson. They tied the knot in April of 2019.
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While Olivia and Val were not mentioned by name, Olivia clapped back at the speculation in a TikTok video posted on October 17, 2021. “Hey guys, I just wanna clear the air before this goes any further or this video blows up anymore. First of all, the woman that posted it blocked me,” Olivia explained.
“Someone had to send me this video. I’m just going to be super blunt and straight up, and just say that Val and I are not hooking up,” she stated. “We’ve never hooked up. This is a complete rumor; we are genuinely good friends and I adore his wife.” Good to know.
“It’s just a dance show and we’re just friends,” the influencer remarked. “I don’t know why everything has to be something, but I’ve already obviously seen a ton of negative comments.” Olivia continued, “And I’d get it if it was true, but it’s not, so let’s end this here and let’s f–king dance and have fun on this show, and not create lies especially when you also have almost 400k followers. It’s not cool,” she added.
Val also has Olivia’s back. On September 30, 2021, Val told US Weekly, “I think this is a great experience for Olivia, but this is an experience that she has — and continues to — earn every single day. She came into the room with the desire to do her best, to learn the craft,” he remarked. “She respects the show, she loves the show, she’s a fan of the show. All I want to do is teach her how to dance and let her shine.”
RELATED: Tyra Banks Defends Casting Olivia Jade On Dancing With The Stars Following College Admissions Scandal
TELL US- WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT OLIVIA CLAPPING BACK AT THE RUMORS? WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT HER DWTS PERFORMANCES?
[Photo Credit: ABC/Maarten de Boer]
