ABC’s 30th season of Dancing with the Stars will feature a Cobra Kai villain, a WWE superstar, a Spice Girl, and a professional basketball player. The 13 just-announced celebrities will be joining previously announced contestants Gold medal Olympian Suni Lee and popstar JoJo Siwa when the 30th season kicks off on Monday, September 20, 2021.
Tyra Banks will host season 30 and Len Goodman, Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli, and Derek Hough are set to judge the celebs and their professional dancer partners.
Celebrities:
• Country singer Jimmie Allen
• Spice Girl Melanie C
• Christine Chiu (Bling Empire)
• Brian Austin Green (Beverly Hills, 90210)
• Melora Hardin (The Office)
• Social media star Olivia Jade
• Matt James (The Bachelor)
• Amanda Kloots (“he Talk)
• Martin Kove (Cobra Kai)
• Gold medal Olympian Suni Lee
• WWE Superstar Mike “The Miz” Mizanin
• Kenya Moore (The Real Housewives of Atlanta)
• Peloton star instructor Cody Rigsby
• NBA star Iman Shumpert
• Popstar JoJo Siwa
Professional dancers:
• Brandon Armstrong
• Lindsay Arnold
• Alan Bersten
• Sharna Burgess
• Cheryl Burke
• Witney Carson
• Artem Chigvintsev
• Val Chmerkovskiy
• Sasha Farber
• Jenna Johnson
• Daniella Karagach
• Pasha Pashkov
• Gleb Savchenko
• Emma Slater
• Britt Stewart
Dancing with the Stars Season 30 Celebrity Bios, Courtesy of ABC:
JIMMIE ALLEN – Signed to BBR Music Group’s Stoney Creek Records, multiplatinum recording artist and songwriter Jimmie Allen has been blazing trails since the beginning of his breakout career. He made history as the first Black artist to launch a career with two consecutive No. 1 hits off his 2018 debut album “Mercury Lane” (which The New York Times dubbed as one of 2018’s strongest) – the first being his debut single “Best Shot,” which claimed the No. 1 spot on Country radio for three weeks, and second being “Make Me Want To.” In July 2020, Allen released his star-studded collaboration project “Bettie James” that has since garnered 171+ million streams and a slew of critical acclaim for the music, the historic nature of various collaborations and its subsequent place in country music history.
On June 25, 2021, Allen released the project’s follow-up album “Bettie James Gold Edition.” The reigning 2021 ACM New Male Artist of the Year and 2020 CMA New Artist of the Year nominee has amassed more than 850 million on-demand streams. His current single “Freedom Was A Highway” with superstar Brad Paisley is climbing through the Top 20 on Country radio as he is out on the road on Paisley’s headline Tour 2021 as special guest this summer.
MELANIE C – The start of Melanie’s career really needs no explanation at all, as it is rather well documented. After the iconic 1996 debut single “Wannabe” topped the charts in 37 countries, Spice Girls’ debut album “Spice” went on to sell more than 31 million copies worldwide, becoming the bestselling album of all time by a female group. The girls went on to sell more than 85 million records, releasing three studio albums, 13 singles, and winning a host of awards including a BRIT for Outstanding Contribution to British Music. In 2012, Melanie reunited with the Spice Girls for what she described as the highlight of their career as a group – performing at the Olympic Closing Ceremony in London.
CHRISTINE CHIU – Christine Chiu most recently produced and starred in Netflix’s breakout smash hit series, “Bling Empire.” She is a co-owner and founder of Beverly Hills Plastic Surgery and the Regenerative Medicine Aesthetic Institute, as well as the SPA at BHPS. As chief creative officer, she designed the luxe clinic and developed branded partnerships in the non-invasive Spa at BHPS. She has led the development and amplification of the Dr. Chiu brand and has been the spokesperson for the Institute and a respected beauty expert in both dermatology and surgery for national and local print, digital and television media.
BRIAN AUSTIN GREEN – Brian Austin Green quickly gained overnight fame as he endeared himself to millions as the sweet and naïve David Silver on the teen phenomenon “Beverly Hills, 90210.” As an actor, director and producer on the show, his resume is as extensive as it is versatile. Green was recently seen on the reboot of “BH90210” on Fox, on which he also served as executive producer.
Green also recently became part of the Masked family at Fox, serving as part of the judging panel on the new “Masked Dancer” along with Paula Abdul, Ken Jeong and Ashley Tisdale. He also starred on the FX show “Anger Management,” opposite Charlie Sheen, playing the role of Sean who dated his ex-wife and becomes his best friend. He starred in “Wedding Band” for TBS as the lead character Tommy – lead singer of the band of four longtime friends who play in a band for hire.
MELORA HARDIN – Melora Hardin is well known for her portrayal of Jan Levinson, Steve Carell’s rigid, former corporate boss and love interest, on the critically acclaimed NBC series “The Office.” Additionally, Hardin was Emmy®-nominated in 2016 for her recurring role of Tammy Cashman on Amazon’s Golden Globe®-winning comedy “Transparent.” She recently wrapped the fifth and final season of Freeform’s “The Bold Type.” Hardin starred as Jacqueline Carlyle, a strong but nurturing editor-in-chief at a high-end women’s magazine, inspired by the life of Joanna Coles of Cosmopolitan. She also recurs on the ABC series “A Million Little Things.”
OLIVIA JADE – Olivia Jade is a content creator whose social platforms have gained a following of over 3.7 million and focus on fashion, beauty, lifestyle, and promoting confidence to young women. In 2017, Jade became a Sephora Collection Ambassador and continued this partnership throughout 2018. Previously, she landed on People’s Ones to Watch list as the Influencer to Watch and was nominated for a Shorty Award for Best Breakout YouTuber. After a nearly two-year hiatus, Jade was welcomed back to her online community with open arms.
MATT JAMES – Charismatic and engaging, Matt James was the first Black Bachelor on ABC’s 25th season of its hit romance reality series “The Bachelor.” A total package with strong family values and a great career, the 30-year-old real estate broker, entrepreneur and community organization founder has used his growing platform for good. The North Carolina native went to Wake Forest University, where he majored in economics and played wide receiver for the football team. He went on to play professional football before moving to New York City, where he now resides.
AMANDA KLOOTS – Amanda Kloots is a television host, bestselling author, Broadway actress and award-winning fitness entrepreneur. Kloots can currently be seen as a co-host of “The Talk,” CBS’ Daytime Emmy® Award-winning talk show highlighting current events, pop culture, family, celebrity and trending topics of the day. Kloots recently released her memoir, the New York Times bestseller “Live Your Life: My Story of Loving and Losing Nick Cordero” that was co-authored with her sister Anna Kloots. A former Broadway dancer and Radio City Rockette, Kloots performed on a variety of stage, film and TV productions for over 17 years. Her love of dance and fitness led her to work and lead classes at one of New York’s premiere fitness studios.
MARTIN KOVE – Seasoned actor Martin Kove is best known for his iconic portrayal of villainous karate sensei, John Kreese, in “The Karate Kid” trilogy. Kove recently reprised his role for season two of Netflix’s breakout series “Cobra Kai” (based on “The Karate Kid” franchise and set 30 years later). “Cobrai Kai” has been lauded as the most in-demand digital original series in the world (with tens of millions of views in a matter of days). With over 100 films under his belt, some of Kove’s most notable credits include “Rambo II,” opposite Sylvester Stallone, and westerns such as “Hard Ground” with Burt Reynolds and the re-make of “Gentle Ben,” both which appeared on The Hallmark Channel.
SUNI LEE – Suni Lee is a three-time Olympic medalist, taking home the esteemed gold medal as the all-around champion in women’s gymnastics at the 2020 Olympic Games. As the first Hmong-American Olympian, her story is more than just triumph, it’s one of representation. Born and raised in Minnesota, Lee’s journey now takes her to Alabama, where she will compete as a college freshman this fall at Auburn University. At just 18 years old, Lee hopes to inspire and empower her peers and the next generation to work hard toward their passions and achieve their dreams.
MIKE “THE MIZ” MIZANIN – WWE’s resident Hollywood A-lister is ready for his close-up every time he enters the ring. Born in Cleveland, Mike “The Miz” Mizanin has made a career out of turning hurdles into his own personal trail of awesomeness. While in college, he auditioned for “The Real World” and went on to become one of the most popular cast members of the show’s 10th season, “Back to New York.” It was on this show where he debuted his wrestling alter ego: “The Miz.”
In the years following, he became a mainstay on MTV, hosting various popular shows on the network and competing on “The Real World”’s sister show, “Real World/Road Rules.” After moving to Los Angeles, he auditioned for the WWE’s “Tough Enough,” where his performance impressed the WWE executives enough to grant him a developmental contract. In the 12 years and counting that followed, “The Miz” has become one of WWE’s biggest stars. He has won the WWE, U.S., Intercontinental, and Tag Team titles (making him the 25th Triple Crown and 14th Grand Slam Champion in the history of the WWE).
KENYA MOORE – Actress and producer Kenya Moore is best known for her role on eight seasons of the highly rated and über popular reality series Bravo’s “The Real Housewives of Atlanta.” Also an entrepreneur, she has grown her hair care line, Kenya Moore Hair Care, over the past four years into a national brand that is carried in over 2,200 Sally’s Beauty Supply stores across the nation. The world was first introduced to Moore in 1993 when she made history becoming the second Black woman to be crowned Miss USA.
CODY RIGSBY – Born in California and raised in North Carolina, Cody Rigsby came to New York after college and worked as a professional dancer on projects including Katy Perry, Nicki Minaj, Victoria’s Secret, ELLE Magazine, SNL and more. This city, and the dance world within, gave Rigsby the tenacity to become a Peloton instructor; and his belief that life should be experienced authentically and fully is represented throughout his rides. Rigsby’s personal fitness goals are to be driven by the intention to always present the best version of himself, while inspiring members to be the same. As the director of Cycling Content at Peloton, Rigsby reminds everyone in his class to push themselves, but have a good time doing it, because we all need to have a little more fun.
IMAN SHUMPERT – Iman Shumpert is a father, rapper, producer, entrepreneur, actor and NBA basketball player. He became a fan favorite in New York with his gritty defensive play and high-top fade haircut, reminiscent of past Knicks players. Drafted No. 17 by the New York Knicks in 2011, he played four seasons for the team. He went on to win an NBA Championship with the Cleveland Cavaliers and play for the Houston Rockets, Sacramento Kings and Brooklyn Nets.
JOJO SIWA – JoJo Siwa is a global superstar, singer, television and film star, bestselling author and social media sensation. Siwa has over 60.5 million followers on social media and over 3.6 billion views on YouTube. In 2020, she was named one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People. A consumer products powerhouse, her famous JoJo Siwa bow has sold more than 80 million bows globally to date. Next, Siwa will star in and executive produce “The J Team,” a new live-action musical premiering on Paramount+. Siwa also serves as creative director and executive producer of the upcoming series “Siwa’s Dance Pop Revolution” on Peacock.
