'Dancing With the Stars' judge Carrie Ann Inaba lists her favorite moments from season 30
The season 30 finale of "Dancing With the Stars" will air Monday night, with four couples fighting to win the famed mirrorball trophy: YouTube personality JoJo Siwa and Jenna Johnson; former NBA player Iman Shumpert and Daniella Karagach; "The Talk" co-host Amanda Kloots and Alan Bersten; and Peloton instructor Cody Rigsby and Cheryl Burke.
Here, "Dancing With the Stars" judge Carrie Ann Inaba reflects on her favorite moments from this season in an essay for "Good Morning America."
The finale of "Dancing With the Stars" will air live at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
Season 30 has been the most incredible season to date and quite honestly, my favorite season of all time! The level of competition, the artistry and athleticism has been superior to any season in the past and it just feels amazing in the ballroom.
I've loved getting glammed up every Monday night to sit at our judges table and witness the magic. The season started out with a bang, and immediately, I was blown away with the talent. We have not had so many great performers compete at the same time in the past and that has made for a truly competitive and wildly exciting race to the finale. I can't wait to see what our four finalists do tonight!
Personally, the season has been rewarding for me as judge because I have been able to give very detailed critiques to our dancers, fine-tuning already incredible performances to help them on their journey of transformation through dance. On the surface, "Dancing With the Stars" is a ballroom dance competition, but at a much deeper level, I view our show as a vehicle of real and lasting transformation and evolution. Stars compete on our show to not only win our mirrorball trophy and the bragging rights that come along with it, but also to grow and expand, to challenge themselves and to show the world more of who they are through the vehicle of dance.
I consider it an honor to be a part of someone's life that way, by giving honest and hopefully constructive feedback to them in their most vulnerable moments -- assisting them toward a breakthrough that can not only change their life but also inspire millions of people who are watching from home.
What really makes this season so spectacular is how competitive it has been. The leaderboard has never seen so many different couples at the top and that makes for fierce competition. We had some experienced dancers this year, but instead of just having one or two, we had quite a few who had dance training in their background and that elevated the show right off the bat.
From day one, the bar was set very high and for that reason, everyone who has competed this season should be proud of themselves. People who were cut on week 5 or 6 could have won in seasons prior. So I say, "Bravo!" to all. And for those who had dance experience, we pushed them past their limits to be sure they didn't rely on their past experience but actually learned the styles of our show, which can be difficult when other styles are embedded into your body knowledge. That is what keeps our show exciting.
Ballroom and Latin dancing are the heart of our show, and not easy to learn, even for a trained dancer in jazz or ballet. It's so specific and so different to dance with a partner and learn each specific style, I think it's hard for the people to imagine. But I will say it again: It made for an incredible season with so many outstanding and memorable moments.
Also, one last thing before I share my most memorable dances of season 30 list: I loved the themed nights! Not only did I enjoy celebrating the music of Janet Jackson, Queen, Britney Spears and "Grease," but I also loved the immense creativity and production values on horror night and the Disney heroes and villains nights.
In some ways, it seemed that the themes added creative obstacles for our pros, and pushed everyone to produce performances to the likes we have never seen before. And may I just take a moment to say that the professional partners are the heroes of our show, and I have so much love and respect in my heart for all that they do each week to make our stars shine and our Monday nights so much fun!
So here it is, my list of the eight most-memorable moments leading up to the finale -- in no particular order.
1. Iman Shumpert and Daniella Karagach's horror night contemporary
This was mesmerizingly powerful and raw, and the choreography was absolutely genius. I will never forget this number.
2. Olivia Jade and Val Chmerkovskiy's tango
This was Olivia's best dance of the season for me. It was classic, passionate and so finely executed. It was a classic tango.
3. Melora Hardin and Artem Chigvintsev's quickstep
Melora earned the highest score of the season up to that point with this high-energy quickstep that she performed like she had been dancing it her whole life. It was effortlessly polished and performed with so much exuberance.
4. Amanda Kloots and Alan Bersten's contemporary
It was a moment that probably changed her life as she let herself go fully into the moment of that dance -- a beautiful tribute to a life lost too soon.
5. Suni Lee and Sasha Farber's samba
This was the brightest breakout performance for Suni! This moment made me proud of her for tapping into another side of her that we had never seen before. She lit up the ballroom that night and I will always remember cheering for her as she danced because it was such moment!
6. JoJo Siwa and Jenna Johnson's foxtrot
JoJo elegantly floated and led Jenna through this incredibly refined foxtrot. This was the first time JoJo really held her composure and stayed completely in the style of the dance and in character, telling a traditional story with a slight twist in perfection.
7. Jimmie Allen and Emma Slater's contemporary
It was an emotionally connected and intimate performance from the heart that moved us all.
8. Kenya Moore and Brandon Armstrong's rumba
Kenya may not have garnered a perfect score for this dance, but she stole our hearts for her incredible comeback after being in the bottom two. She proved herself a superstar with her sensual fluidity and powerful and commanding performance.
