Former Pro Says Popular DWTS Partner ‘Threw a Little Meltdown’

Heavy Lacey Schwimmer said Nick Carter threw a meltdown once.

Over the years, there have been plenty of clashes between celebrities and professional dancers on “Dancing with the Stars.” Former DWTS professional dancer Lacey Schwimmer recently opened up about some difficulties she experienced while working with *NSYNC star Lance Bass.

Schwimmer joined former “Dancing with the Stars” pro Cheryl Burke for the October 30 episode of Burke’s podcast “Sex, Lies, and Spray Tans.” Schwimmer admitted that before being paired with Bass for season 7, she had been a huge fan of his.

As excited as Schwimmer was to walk into the dance studio on the first day and see Bass there as her partner, the pair’s time together was not always pleasant. In fact, Schwimmer revealed, there was one incident where the NSYNC singer had “a little meltdown.”

Here’s what you need to know:

A Tense Moment Between Lacey Schwimmer & Lance Bass Left Her Scarred

As Schwimmer talked with Burke about her time working with Bass, she recalled the week they had to dance the rumba. Schwimmer admitted, “I’m scarred by this,” and revealed she had decided the pair would dance barefoot. Both ladies agreed that was not, in retrospect, a great idea.

Burke asked Schwimmer why that particular experience had been traumatizing. Schwimmer explained that Bass, “Threw, like, a little meltdown” during rehearsals. She noted that at least part of the conflict had been included in the video package that aired on show night.

As “Dancing with the Stars” fans could see in the pre-taped video package, Schwimmer ended up crying and had to step away to take a break. The video showed that the next day, she apologized to him and they tried to start fresh. Ultimately, the duo made it to third place in season 7.

Lance Bass Was Fun, But He Struggled to Remember Choreography

Schwimmer also told Burke she was “Dead. Dead. Deceased,” when she initially walked into the rehearsal studio the first day and learned Bass would be her partner.

“I’m an NSYNC fan. I had their posters on my wall. My second choice [for a potential partner] was gonna be Lance Bass [after Justin Timberlake,” she explained.

The former “Dancing with the Stars” pro joked that they had to film that intro several times, because, “I think the first take I literally peed myself. The 10-year-old girl in me lost everything.”

As excited as Schwimmer was that she had Bass for her season 7 “Dancing with the Stars” partner, the experience as a whole was a bit of a disappointment. “I thought he would be a more natural dancer from the get-go than he actually was,” Schwimmer admitted.

Schwimmer continued, “Little did I know he could not learn a dang thing. Oh my God, our rehearsals were painful.”

Even with the challenges in teaching Bass her choreography, Schwimmer said, “We had a lot of fun. Don’t get me wrong, like, he was phenomenal to be around.”

The big challenge, the former “Dancing with the Stars” pro noted, was that Bass “couldn’t retain the information… it took him a few days for it to sink and settle, and even then, I had to chat to him through my teeth.”

Lacey Schwimmer Felt Pressure From All Sides That Season

During her time talking with Burke, Schwimmer also opened up about the pressure put on the “Dancing with the Stars” pros back then. She explained that at times, the pro felt pressure because they got a good partner and were perceived to be “underdelivering.”

Or, Schwimmer shared, a celebrity partner might complain to producers that “she’s too hard on me in rehearsals, or she’s not hard enough.” That particular season with Bass, Schwimmer revealed she “was starting to get the sense that I was pushing the envelope too hard,” and it might have been impacting Bass’ scores.

“I got it from his side of people, like the managers, the agents, I got it from ‘Dancing with the Stars’ people,” she recalled. Schwimmer added, “They wanted me to be rebellious, up to that point they only had Maks (Chmerkovskiy)… I was 19 and I didn’t know that it could backfire eventually.”

Ultimately, Schwimmer was only with “Dancing with the Stars” for a few seasons. She walked away with plenty of stories, both good and bad, and she wasn’t afraid to dish out the scoop when she talked with Burke.