ABC DWTS Mirrorball Trophy.
A ”Dancing with the Stars” champion talked about her win on another TV talent show and teased her next competition.
In 2013, Amber Riley won the 17th season of DWTS with pro partner Derek Hough. Nearly 10 years later, she took home the top prize on “The Masked Singer” in November 2022, after faking fans out with her harp costume as she crooned Lady Gaga’s “The Edge of Glory” and other songs.
In a recent interview on the “Behind the Velvet Rope with David Yontef” podcast, Riley dished on her reality TV wins.
Amber Riley Didn’t Realize She’s the Only Person to Ever Win Both DWTS & ‘The Masked Singer’
While speaking with Yontef in the interview that aired on December 20, 2022, Riley admitted it feels “amazing” to win two major TV talent competitions. But she also noted that at first, she didn’t realize she was making history when she won “The Masked Singer” and became the only person ever to win both the celebrity singing show and “Dancing With the Stars.”
“When I did ‘Masked Singer,’ ‘Dancing With the Stars’ wasn’t even on my… like, I wasn’t thinking about it until somebody mentioned it and I was just like, ‘oh yeah, like, I did win both. I did win both those competitions,’” she told Yontef.
Past “Masked Singer” champs who have also competed on “Dancing With the Stars,” but didn’t win the mirrorball trophy, include Nick Lachey and Wayne Brady.
Riley told Yontef that she plans to display her Golden Mask trophy next to her DWTS mirrorball.
“They’re gonna go next to each other,” she said. “They’re gonna sit next to each other, like on a little shelf.”
The “Glee” alum also revealed that DWTS is “definitely” much more difficult than the Fox singing competition. “’Masked Singer’ was so much fun,” she said. “Dancing With the Stars’ was fun too, but it definitely was more challenging because it’s not something that I like necessarily grew up doing. So it was definitely more challenging.”
Riley revealed that there was one talent show that never even gave her a shot. The star confirmed to Yontef that early on, she auditioned for “American Idol” and didn’t make it anywhere near the judges’ audition round.
“I actually auditioned and I didn’t even make it past the producers,” she said. “They sent me right home, but I ended up working for Fox [on ‘Glee’] anyway and they had to pay me this time, so I wasn’t singing for free. So I feel like I got a better deal out of that!”
Amber Riley Named the Show That She’s Doing Next
ABCAmber Riley and Derek Hough
While she didn’t make the cut for “American Idol,” Riley will soon appear on another TV singing show. The DWTS season 17 winner will compete against her former “Glee” co-star Chris Colfer on “Celebrity Name that Tune.”
According to ScreenRant, the celebrities will compete for a $100,000 grand prize for the charity of their choice. Riley told Yontef that while you don’t get an actual trophy on “Celebrity Name That Tune,” you get something more.
“You don’t get a trophy for that show, but you do get bragging rights if you win,” Riley told Yontef. “And Chris Colfer’s very competitive. He’s super competitive. But it was a lot of fun. That show was a lot of fun. I think people are gonna enjoy all the crap that we talked on that show.”
“Celebrity Name That Tune” premieres January 11, 2023, on Fox, according to the Futon Critic.
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DWTS Champ Reveals Where She’s Putting Her Latest Trophy & What She’s Doing Next