Dancing With the Stars recap: There's a new frontrunner after Hair Metal Night rocks the ballroom
Published on March 04, 2026 EDT

Warning: This article contains spoilers for Dancing With the Stars season 33, episode 4, "Hair Metal Night."

Are you ready to rock and roll all night, and party every day? Ready or not, the Dancing With the Stars competitors are jamming, jiving, and foxtrotting in full throttle.

Last night, we saw the stars get down on it to funky tunes that celebrated Soul Train. Tonight, Gene Simmons joined the judges' table to encourage the stars to "release the Kraken" and channel their inner rock star for Hair Metal Night.

NFL star Danny Amendola started out the show rockin' and rollin' with a powerful paso doble to "Livin' on a Prayer" by Bon Jovi. The judges enjoyed the way he attacked the dance, but Bruno Tonioli wants to see improvement, saying “You’ve got the power, I want the finesse.”

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Model Brooks Nader and pro Gleb Savchenko were visibly agitated with their scores after performing a sizzling, yet simple, rumba last night. Tonight they took to the dance floor with a content-filled cha-cha, determined to get the judges excited. One judge in particular might've gotten a little too excited, as Simmons keyed in a nine when scoring the routine, but tried changing it to a 10 when he revealed his paddle. But the producers said the nine was the final score, which still contributed to the couples' highest score yet with a 33 out of 40.

DWTS is all about growth and learning in the ballroom, especially for the athletes. Hard work definitely paid off tonight for Olympic gymnast Stephen Nedoroscik, who took the judges' critiques from his previous dance, a quickstep, and implemented them for his heavy metal foxtrot. His timing and frame improved — and so did his score, as he earned a 32 out of 40. The same went for NBA star Dwight Howard, who realized practice makes almost perfect with his well-received paso.

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But not every score can go up, as two surprising upsets shocked viewers in the ballroom and at home. Olympic rugby player Ilona Maher danced a jive to "Cum On Feel the Noize" by Quiet Riot, and while the passion was there, the footsteps were not. Her mistakes on the dance floor led to an emotional, tear-filled moment, but the judges assured her that she'll be back next week better than ever.

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And Disney star Chandler Kinney, who's been on top of the leaderboard every week, had her No. 1 title snatched from her when former Bachelor Joey Graziadei broke out his drum kit and wacky wig for a tango that earned him four nines from the judges.

Rock and roll may live inside all of us, but in the end, Eric Roberts and Reginald VelJohnson had to rock and roll on home.

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Here's where each couple landed on the leaderboard:

Joey & Jenna - Tango, 36 out of 40Chandler & Brandon - Jive, 33 out of 40Brooks & Gleb - Cha-cha, 33 out of 40Stephen & Rylee - Foxtrot, 32 out of 40Jenn & Sasha - Paso doble, 31 out of 40Danny & Witney - Paso doble, 30 out of 40Dwight & Daniella - Paso doble, 29 out of 40Phaedra & Val - Paso doble, 26 out of 40Ilona & Alan - Jive, 26 out of 40Eric & Britt - Paso doble, 22 out of 40Reginald & Emma - Cha-cha, 21 out of 40

Get those tissues ready, because next week is Dedication Night. Plus, judge Derek Hough and wife Hayley Erbert will perform a dance to commemorate her return to the ballroom after her brain surgery last year.

Dancing With the Stars airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC and Disney+.

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