Dancing With the Stars pro Ezra Sosa is aligned with the judges critique of his and Olympian Jordan Chiles’ TikTok Night performance — and he is ready to get lower to the ground.
“I can use my plié more,” Ezra, 24, exclusively told Us Weekly after the show on Tuesday, September 30. “I got twinkey legs, so I think it’s safe to say that I can bend my knees a little bit more.”
The duo stole the show on Tuesday while performing a tango to Doechii’s “Anxiety,” receiving praise from judges Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli and Derek Hough — and one piece of constructive feedback.
“Listen, I mean I was really impressed with how you kept your frame despite the height discrepancy here,” Derek, 40, told the twosome. “I think maybe moving forward, Ezra maybe try to get a little lower if you can to help her out a little bit. But my dear Jordan, you turned anxiety into artistry.”
Ezra and Jordan were ultimately awarded a score of 24 out of 30, taking over the top of the judges’ leaderboard in a tie with The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star Whitney Leavitt and pro Mark Ballas. (Fifth Harmony’s Lauren Jauregui and pro Brandon Armstrong were sent home at the end of the night after being tied at the bottom of the leaderboard with comedian Andy Richter and pro Emma Slater.)
The score marked Ezra and Jordan’s highest yet, after previously receiving a combined total of 10 out of 20 and 22 out of 30 on the Premiere Night and One-Hit Wonder Night, respectively.
After performing on Tuesday, Jordan was seen wiping tears from her face. She later explained to Us that the emotions “really came from being able just to express not only what I’ve gone through as an athlete, but really just to let myself loose.”
“Being able to dance is like art,” Jordan, 24, said. “So being creative in the art world, I was just so happy I was able to do that on the dance floor.”
With each step onto the ballroom floor, Jordan shared that her confidence has continued to grow.
“Week one, I felt like it was dipping myself into the water just a slight bit,” she said. “Then week two and week three, I was able to [apply] what the judges said week one. I’ve been taking every single week just like that so I can keep my brain understanding this is a competition. This is something that we’re gonna continue to elevate. It’s the beginning, but now we’re progressing.”
As she advances further into the competition, Jordan shared that she has “no” hesitation about trying her hand at different tricks and kicks in her dances. Ezra, meanwhile, joked that Jordan should have a bit more fear before attempting the challenging moves.
“Honestly, she should [have hesitation] sometimes, but I think that’s one of the greatest things about her is how fearless she is,” Ezra told Us. “That’s how someone like her is where she’s at.”
Dancing With the Stars airs on ABC and Disney+ Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET. Scroll down to see each couple’s scores from TikTok Night:
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