Photo:Ralph Bavaro/BRAVO via Getty
Ralph Bavaro/BRAVO via Getty
Ariana Madixhas “Love” in her heart and her late father on her mind as she readies for her third week in theDancing with the Starsballroom on Tuesday night.
As part of Motown Week, theVanderpump Rulesstar and her partnerPasha Pashkovwill perform a quickstep toThe Supremes' “You Can’t Hurry Love.”
“This week I’m really excited about my dad,” she tells PEOPLE about memories of her father James Madix, who died unexpectedly of a heart attack on Aug. 15, 2013.
“I grew up listening to Motown music because that was one of my dad’s favorites,” explains theSingle AF Cocktailsauthor, 38. “And so I’m really looking forward to this week especially and being able to celebrate my dad even though he can’t watch the show or be here. Hopefully I can honor him with that dance.”
arianamadix/Instagram
Tuesday’s performance also falls very near the one-year anniversaries of the loss of both her grandmother Bonnie, who died last September, and herbeloved dog Charlottethat died on Aug. 2, 2022.
Of theChihuahua mixed breed, the Bravo star quipped thatDWTSshould have a “Charlotte theme week.”
ABC/Christopher Willard
Ariana has enjoyed a solid first two weeks on ABC’s ballroom dancing competition,scoring 21 out of 30for her debuttangotoHailee Steinfeld’s “Love Myself” andnetting 20 out of 30 last weekfor asambatoBad Bunny& Chencho Corleone’s “Me Porto Bonito.”
During the season 32 premiere, though, the reality star had another, less pleasant man in mind when she was “closing the book on the drama of my life.”
ABC/Eric McCandless
When Ariana stepped into the ballroom on Sept. 26 — nearly seven months after theScandovalerupted — shereinventedher herfamous “revenge dress"fromVPR’s season 10 reunionto prove that “scandal does not define me.”
She garnered praise from judgeDerek Hough, 38, who told her after the routine: “Ariana that was fantastic! The power. That was killer.”
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Dancing with the Starsairs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on ABC and Disney+.
source: people.com
