Welcome.
Thank you.
So good to have you.
Thank you for being here in person.
You know, it's so great to be in person not
to be staring at a green dot up there,
but I'm supposed to be talking to you,
so thank you for having me in person.
Absolutely.
I feel your energy coming off.
You just connect with people.
So I mean, you know, quarantine has been
a little bit of a challenge.
And I heard that you quarantine with your little brother.
I did.
He lives with me, and we're originally from Chicago.
So what we did was we drove 30 hours home to Chicago.
I will never do that again.
I swear.
My left hip is still jacked up from that trip.
Never do it again.
Never again?
Never again.
At least once.
So that's your youngest brother.
How many siblings do you have?
I have three brothers and a sister.
They're all younger than I am.
All younger.
Oldest of all.
Yes, yeah.
OK.
So is anybody else kind of aspiring to the business,
or are you the star of the family?
Well, my brother's a fashion designer,
the one that lives with me.
He actually made my dress for the Critics' Choice Awards,
he and his two partner's, Jose and Mesais, so yeah.
They have a thing called Tri-Collective.
They're amazing.
You know what's great is that I think that, obviously,
like, you're doing so much and you
being the oldest like your siblings will look up to you.
So I think it's really interesting the inspiration
that you pass down the family to see
the different paths that they take, and that's really dope.
Now, you went from staying at home to dancing with the stars,
right?
Yes.
I can't.
Now, an intense transition.
Let me go back for that.
Yeah, that's what I'm saying like we've
got they've got to settle in to this conversation.
I'm getting uncomfortable for this one.
An intense transition is an understatement
to that because you go from no contact to like, hey girl,
you know what I mean?
Oh yeah.
All up in your face, all sweaty, all like, I don't know you,
but we're supposed to look each other like this.
Right, right.
And also your body goes from laying down doing nothing,
to basically, I can't walk.
I can't walk.
One of the reasons I took the job, so I said, oh yeah,
you know, that'll be great.
I'll lose weight, no, I'm going to lose my foot.
But I got to say you also have one
of the best with best partners out there, so actually
is the truth.
Well, he's so awesome.
He is so great.
He's so energetic.
He's so loves dance, and it shows in his choreography.
Absolutely.
But it also it also shows what a great match-up you all are too,
because it's just like, I mean, hey,
you look like you're having the time
of your life out there like a natural dancer out there.
You've been having a good time?
I've been having a good time.
You know, it's always really scary.
No matter what, because you don't get another
take and you just go out there, but it's
such an incredible feeling to be doing that right now,
so I am having a great time.
Now have you had a chance to connect
with any of the other contestants and that?
We tried to, but we have covert officers,
constantly, you know, we have to stay apart,
we're in our own bubble with our partner and our makeup
and hair, but we'll talk to each other,
you know, of course, I'm like, hi Nelly because I love you.
You know, and everybody else, just wonderful.
AJ McLean, they're also sweet.
Everybody's a sweetheart.
That's awesome.
Now let's switch gears for a second and don't talk about one
day at a time.
Yes.
I'm going back on TV on Monday.
Yes.
So let me just say this to everybody.
You're going to be on two networks on the same night.
I mean, killing it?
Like, you know what I'm saying?
We need some Latina representation
on both of those network.
ABC and CBS.
Let's go.
I'm coming.
I know.
So here's what we need you all to do
is if you got to have one TV on ABC and then one TV on CBS.
Just leave it there.
Yes.
And then the history of the show is really interesting.
So Netflix canceled the show, CBS picked it up and--
Pop TV picked it up.
OK.
And then are we working towards a fifth season?
What's going on.
Well, we're working towards the fifth season
if we get enough eyes on the fourth season,
and that's why it's important to watch the show live and watch
both shows live, you know?
Absolutely.
It's important to do that in order
for us to get a fifth season.
You know, there is no Latinx family on network television.
This is the only one on network television.
It's 2020, you know, so it's time for things to change.
And representation is so important.
Representation matters.
100% and speaking of the important things,
you're on the set with legends, right?
Your co-stars, Rita Moreno, it's like, she's
like, she's a dancing legend.
So has she been giving you any critiques on dancing with
the stars, anything like that?
She's loving it.
I don't get critiques from her.
I just get a lot of love, a lot of support from her,
and Norman Lear.
Norman text me.
I was in the middle of an interview
with for Dancing with the Stars, and he FaceTimed me,
but because he has a private number, so I didn't know,
and they sent me a text that said, please call me back,
I really want you to hear in my voice
how much I loved your foxtrot.
That's awesome.
What?
That's what I'm saying.
You was getting nose from Norman Lear.
I've got to say this too, is that, how is life to you
right now aspiring to everything that you've been.
You're on set with Norman Lear with Rita Moreno.
You're dancing on dancing with the stars, like, I mean,
to say a star is an understatement.
Like you're a beacon right now.
And how is that been?
How do you feel about that?
It's amazing it's a weird thing to be that in these times,
you know?
But it's an amazing thing to be at the same time.
Right.
So I feel proud, I feel very much
that representation matters.
I feel very much that you have to be
able to see yourself to know that you can be that,
and I am just honored to be able to do that right now.
I'm honored.
Absolutely.
Love it.
And we love to see it.
We love to see it.