Charity Lawson Tops DWTS Leaderboard With Impressive First Dance

ABC Charity Lawson topped the night one leaderboard on DWTS.

On the season 32 premiere of “Dancing With the Stars,” Charity Lawson proved that she’s ready to rumba — even though she and partner Artem Chigvintsev danced the tango.

At the end of the night, the former “Bachelorette” lead topped the leaderboard with the highest score, even getting the only “8” of the night. Lawson and Chigvintsev’s tango earned them a 22 out of 30, with an “8” from judge Bruno Tonioli.

“A feeling I can’t describe. So grateful- and we keep climbing from here,” Lawson wrote on her Instagram Stories after learning that she was safe from elimination. The first couple eliminated was Matt Walsh and Koko Iwasaki.

Lawson’s fiance, Dotun Olubeko, whom she got engaged to on the finale of her season of “The Bachelorette,” was in the audience cheering her on.

Here’s what you need to know:

Fans Reacted to Charity Lawson’s Night 1 Dance on Social Media

Lawson and Chigvintsev danced their tango to “Only Girl (In The World)” by Rihanna and totally wowed viewers.

“I’m calling it right now. It’s going to be between her and Jason Mraz,” one person commented on a post shared on the official “Dancing With the Stars” Instagram page.

“Yep. Former Cheerleaders are usually stiff as a board but Sis KILLED IT!!!!! OMG!!!The toe points, good execution and the kicks were well done! So GOOD!!! Top 3 finalists contender incoming,” someone else wrote.

“SHE ATE!!! She absolutely deserved that 8! Love that partnership,” a third comment read.

“So amazing… partly because Charity is great and put in the hard work… but also Artem is such a good coach. He has this label of being tough and no nonsense, but it brings results,” a fourth Instagram user added.

Charity Lawson Has Admitted That She Feels Pressure Due to ‘Bachelorette’ Success Rates on ‘Dancing With the Stars’

After finding out that she was going to be a part of season 32 of “Dancing With the Stars,” Lawson admitted that she felt “pressure” to do well after two former “Bachelorette” stars took home Mirror Ball Trophies. Both Hannah Brown and Kaitlyn Bristowe finished the show in first place on back-to-back seasons. Not to mention, Gabby Windey was the runner up on season 31.

“I’m excited. I really am,” Lawson said in an interview with NBC Universal after being confirmed as part of the season 32 cast. “The pressure is on, but I am learning to obviously, like, take that, maybe use it as a little bit of motivation,” she added.

As she embarks on this new journey, which seems as though it will be going on for several more weeks, Lawson says that she has the full support of her fiance.

“He is truly my number one fan. He’s been helping me with my diet, my wellness, all those things. Also, the mental and emotional too. He’s always checking in, so I’m super grateful for him,” she told People magazine.

“Dotun has been great. Obviously, we have been celebrating engagement and life after the show, so that’s been a lot. But it’s been all good. Honestly, we’re really thriving,” she also told the outlet.

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