| Keo Motsepe | |
|---|---|
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| Dancer Profile | |
| Birth Date | 24 November 1989 |
| Hometown | Pretoria, South Africa |
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| Partner(s) | 19: Lolo Jones (13th) 20: Charlotte McKinney (11th) 21: Chaka Khan (13th) 22: Jodie Sweetin (6th) 24: Charo (11th) 25: Barbara Corcoran (13) Athletes: Jennie Finch (6th/5th/4th) 27: Evanna Lynch (3rd) Juniors: Mentor (11th/12th) 29: Anne Heche (13th) |
Keoikantse "Keo" Motsepe is a professional dancer in Dancing with the Stars.
Biography[]
Originally retrieved from abc.com
Born in Pretoria, South Africa, and raised in nearby Johannesburg, Keo Motsepe's love affair with dancing started when he was just five years old. Inspired by the music of childhood idol Michael Jackson, and influenced by the popular South African Latin Ballroom dance television show, The Summit, he easily replicated sophisticated choreography despite never having had a lesson.
Realizing Motsepe had a natural gift, his parents enrolled him in dance school. Within a year, the dance prodigy was catapulted onto the competitive amateur dance scene. Through the encouragement and praise of his first dance teacher who recognized Motsepe's potential, his family made the difficult decision to allow him to move away from home and in with his dance partner's family so they could practice daily. So began years of a rigorous schedule of school and rehearsals.
By age eleven, Motsepe was representing South Africa in international Latin ballroom dance competitions. He won his first contest at the age of fourteen and reigned for eight straight years as the South African Latin Dance Champion. In 2012, he made history by becoming the first South African to join the Burn the Floor world tour, where he was a principal dancer. He also performed in the show's weekly productions aboard Norwegian Cruise Line's "Getaway" Ship.
Motsepe's unparalleled talent soon caught the attention of television producers in Europe, and the following year he made his television debut in Strictly Come Dancing. In 2014, he was invited to come to America and join the cast of Dancing with the Stars. He has been partnered with athlete Lolo Jones, model Charlotte McKinney, music legend Chaka Khan, actress Jodie Sweetin and Shark Tank star Barbara Corcoran; but it was his starring turn with Charo that set the dance and television worlds on fire and blossomed his personality on the show. Motsepe has appeared in the Dancing with the Stars: Live! tours, dancing his way from coast to coast in front of thousands.
Off the floor, Motsepe spends his time volunteering at Children's Hospital of Los Angeles, Mattel Children's Hospital at UCLA and the Veterans Affairs Hospitals of Los Angeles. In 2017, he started his own philanthropic venture, Thank the Angels, a gifting service that provided boxes of food, clothing, blankets and other must-haves to local missions, shelters and homeless people around Los Angeles on Thanksgiving.
Dancing with the Stars 19[]
In Season 19, Keo was partnered with Lolo Jones. They placed 13th.
Scores[]
| Week # | Dance/Song | Judges' Scores | Result | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inaba | Goodman | Hough | Tonioli | |||
| 1 | Cha-Cha-Cha / "Tell Her" | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 | Eliminated |
Dancing with the Stars 20[]
In Season 20, Keo was partnered with Charlotte McKinney. They placed 11th.
Scores[]
| Week # | Dance/Song | Judges' Scores | Result | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inaba | Goodman | Hough | Tonioli | |||
| 1 | Jive / "Shake a Tail Feather" | 6 | 5 | 5 | 6 | No elimination |
| 2 | Cha-Cha-Cha / "California Gurls" | 7 | 6 | 7 | 6 | Safe |
| 3 | Rumba / "Empire" | 6 | 5 | 5 | 6 | Eliminated |
Dancing with the Stars 21[]
In Season 21, Keo was partnered with Chaka Khan. They placed 13th.
Scores[]
| Week # | Dance/Song | Judges' Scores | Result | ||
| Inaba | Hough | Tonioli | |||
| 1 | Cha-Cha-Cha/"Feel for You" | 5 | 4 | 4 | No elimination |
| 2 | Foxtrot/"Chicago (That Toddlin' Town)" | 5 | 5 | 5 | Eliminated |
Dancing with the Stars 22[]
Keo was partnered with Jodie Sweetin. They placed 6th.
Scores[]
| Week # | Dance/Song | Judges' Scores | Result | ||
| Inaba | Goodman | Tonioli | |||
| 1 | Tango / "Confident" | 7 | 6 | 7 | No elimination |
| 2 | Samba / "Bun Up the Dance" | 7 | 7 | 7 | Safe |
| 3 | Foxtrot / "Rise Up" | 8 | 7 | 8 | Last to be called safe |
| 4 | Cha-Cha-Cha / "Try Everything" | 7 | 6/71 | 7 | Last to be called safe |
| 52 | Paso Doble / "Under Control" | 9 | 8/93 | 9 | No elimination |
| 6 | Contemporary / "Try" | 9 | 8 | 8 | Safe |
| 7 | Quickstep / "For Once in My Life" Team Freestyle / "End of Time", "If I Were a Boy" & "Crazy in Love" |
8 8 |
9 8 |
9 9 |
Safe |
| 8 | Jive / "Something's Got a Hold on Me" Team-up Dance (Argentine Tango) / "Habanera" |
10 10 |
10 10 |
10 94 |
Eliminated |
1 Score given by guest judge Zendaya.
2 For this week only, as part of "America's Switch Up", Sweetin performed with Valentin Chmerkovskiy instead of Motsepe. Motsepe performed with Kim Fields.
3 Score given by guest judge Maksim Chmerkovskiy.
4 Due to Tonioli being the judge coaching Sweetin's team during the team-up dance, the viewers scored the dance in his place with the averaged score being counted alongside the remaining judges.
Dancing with the Stars 24[]
In Season 24, Keo was partnered with Charo. They placed 11th.
Scores[]
| Week # | Dance/Song | Judges' Scores | Result | |||
| Inaba | Goodman | Hough | Tonioli | |||
| 1 | Salsa / "Cuban Pete" | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 | No elimination |
| 2 | Paso Doble / "España cañí" | 6 | 6 | 7 | 6 | Last to be called safe |
| 3 | Foxtrot / "Chapel of Love" | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | Eliminated |
Dancing with the Stars 25[]
In Season 25, Keo was partnered with Barbara Corcoran. They placed 13th.
Scores[]
| Week # | Dance / Song | Judges' Scores | Result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inaba | Goodman | Tonioli | |||
| 1 | Salsa / "Money Maker" | 5 | 4 | 5 | No elimination |
| 2 | Tango / "Whatever Lola Wants" | 6 | 5 | 6 | Eliminated |
Dancing with the Stars: Athletes[]
In Dancing with the Stars: Athletes, Keo was partnered with Jennie Finch. They placed 5th.
Scores[]
| Week # | Dance / Song | Judges' Scores | Result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inaba | Goodman | Tonioli | |||
| 1 | Foxtrot / "All-American Girl" | 7 | 7 | 7 | Safe |
| 2 | Cha-Cha-Cha / "Do It Like This" | 6 | 7/71 | 6 | Safe |
| 3 | Viennese Waltz / "The Rest of Our Life" | 7 | 7/82 | 7 | Eliminated |
1 Score was given by guest judge Rashad Jennings.
2 Score was given by guest judge David Ross.
Dancing with the Stars 27[]
In Season 27, Keo was partnered with Evanna Lynch. They placed 3rd.
Scores[]
| Week # | Dance / Song | Judges' Scores | Result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inaba | Goodman | Tonioli | |||
| 1 | Foxtrot / "Do You Believe in Magic?" Foxtrot / "Rewrite the Stars" |
7 Did |
5 not |
6 dance |
Safe |
| 2 | Samba / "Can’t Touch It" Jive / "Heat Wave" |
8 8 |
8 8 |
8 8 |
Safe |
| 3 | Viennese Waltz / "Hedwig's Theme" | 9 | 9 | 9 | Safe |
| 4 | Salsa (trio dance with Scarlett Byrne) / "Black Magic" | 8 | 8 | 8 | Last to be called safe |
| 5 | Jazz / "When Will My Life Begin" | 8 | 8 | 8 | No elimination |
| 6 | Tango / "Disturbia" | 10 | 9 | 10 | Safe |
| 7 | Rumba / "Every Little Thing" Team Freestyle / "9 to 5" |
10 10 |
10 9 |
10 10 |
Last to be called safe |
| 8 Semi-finals |
Contemporary / "Stand Up for Something" Foxtrot / "Rewrite the Stars" |
10 10 |
10 9 |
10 9 |
Safe |
| 9 Finals |
Tango / "Disturbia" Freestyle / "It's Oh So Quiet" |
10 10 |
10 10 |
10 10 |
3rd place |
Performances[]
Dancing with the Stars: Juniors[]
In Dancing with the Stars: Juniors, Keo was the mentor of Lev Khmelev and his partner Addison Osta Smith. They placed 11th/12th.
Scores[]
| Week # | Dance / Song | Judges' Scores | Result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Moore | Chmerkovskiy | Rippon | |||
| 1 | Cha-Cha-Cha / "Burnin' Up" | 5 | 5 | 5 | Eliminated |
Dancing with the Stars 29[]
In Season 29, Keo was partnered with Anne Heche. They placed 13th.
Scores[]
| Week # | Dance / Song | Judges' Scores | Result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inaba | Hough | Tonioli | |||
| 1 | Cha-Cha-Cha / "Don't Start Now" | 6 | 6 | 6 | No elimination |
| 2 | Foxtrot / "Counting Stars" | 6 | 6 | 6 | Safe |
| 3 | Quickstep / "Zero to Hero" | 5 | 5 | 5 | Bottom two |
| 4 | Paso Doble / "Rise" | 7 | 7 | 7 | Eliminated |
Performances[]
Trivia[]
- He is the first black pro to compete in Dancing with the Stars in America.
- On 2 December 2020, he revealed that he is dating season 29 contestant Chrishell Stause.
- They announced their split on 26 February 2021.
- On 7 January 2021, he revealed that his mother had passed away.
