Did 'Dancing With The Stars' Insult Lil' Kim?
Did Bruno go too far when he called Lil' Kim a "tramp?"
Lil' Kim, rapper and Dancing With The Stars contestant, is no stranger to criticism.
But many think judge Bruno Tonioli may have crossed the line Monday night from "tough judge" to just plain "jerk." If you missed it, the comment came after Kim and partner Derek Hough finished an elegant waltz.
Bruno, after saying he thought the other judges' favorable scores were due to "medication," ripped into Kim.
"You try to be a lady, but you're more comfortable being a tramp," said Bruno.
Many across the country were stunned--including Family Law attorney and marital expert Vikki Ziegler. What did the women's advocate and founder of DivorceDating.com have to say for Bruno?
"It was inappropriate and uncalled-for," said Vikki.
"I think he should issue a public apology. I think it sends a really poor message to women. [Lil' Kim is] in a competition, and her outfits, her behavior, are all 'it's a show!' I mean, isn't that what it's about?"
Ziegler explained to Musictoob what Bruno really meant.
"Calling her a 'tramp,' or 'looking like a tramp,' says to...young women, who want to be stars, want to be rappers, that somehow her behavior in a dancing competition evidences a lack of morals. That's what he was trying to say, and I think it was disrespectful and inappropriate."
The second dance of the night for Derek and Lil' Kim was the salsa; a dance that saw the return of what Kim called the "Bionic Booty."
But, perhaps anxious to begin damage control, Bruno gave a standing ovation to the pair as soon as they finished the sizzling Latin number--with not one mention of "unladylike" behavior.
The couple scored three nines, for a total of 27, on the salsa, making Kim one of the longest-running musicians on the show--easily beating out Belinda Carlisle and Chuck Wicks.
Musictoob exclusive: See Dancing judge Carrie Ann Inaba try to rap
Musictoob has exclusive, behind-the-scenes video of Dancing With The Stars judge Carrie Ann Inaba showing off her rap skills.
In the video, a promotional clip for Dr. Scholl's For Her, Carrie Ann Inaba introduces her on-set dance partner, then after a "blip" she raps: "Here she is/She's gonna give you some good/dance/shoe/tips!" and throws up a "sign."
To be fair, Carrie Ann says she's "obviously not a rapper." Luckily Lil' Kim wasn't there to turn the tables on Inaba and critique her hip-hop skills.
Go to musictoob.com for more ladies and tramps!
Bruno has been dying to see Lil' Kim voted off the entire show. He's come close to disrespect several during the season, but those comments were by far the most disrespectful. It's intolerable and if Lil' Kim doesn't speak out then she's just as guilty! Be the voice Lil' Kim and make it known that you will not be disrespected!
Bruno Tonioli (born 25 November 1955) is a choreographer and TV personality, who presently appears as a judge on the hit shows Strictly Come Dancing for BBC TV (UK) and its American adaptation, Dancing with the Stars for ABC TV in the U.S. Bruno has become widely known for his jubilant comments and critiques after couples' performances on both of these shows. Additionally, Bruno co-created and appeared on the BBC talent show, DanceX, as well as its American adaptation, Dance War: Bruno vs. Carrie Ann.
Bruno has worked extensively in the music business, choreographing videos, stage shows and tours for many artists, including Tina Turner, Sting, Elton John, The Rolling Stones, Freddie Mercury, Boy George, and Duran Duran. His close association with Bananarama produced many videos from Venus to Movin' On.
In the early eighties, Bruno was a leading member of the Paris based company La Grande Eugene; he then joined the Lyndsay Kemp Company. He worked extensively as a freelance dancer — including appearing in Elton John’s “I'm Still Standing” video — before starting his career as choreographer working with Pamela Stephenson on Not the Nine O'Clock News.
In January 2008, ABC premiered Dance War: Bruno vs. Carrie-Ann. On the show, despite losing the first two elimination weeks, Bruno’s team went on to win the show, earning a contract with Hollywood Records.
Bruno’s motion picture credits include: Ella Enchanted, The Gathering Storm, Little Voice, Dancin' thru the Dark, Enigma, The Parole Officer, and What a Girl Wants. His television film credits include: Miss Marple The Body in the Library, Blonde Bombshell, Scarlet Pimpernel and The Bare Necessities. Theatre credits include; La Vie Parisienne, Godspell and Steve Coogan’s show The Man Who Thinks He's It.
Additionally, Bruno’s other television credits include: Ab Fab (2003), French & Saunders Christmas Special, The Tony Ferrino Phenomenon (winner of the silver rose at Montreaux 1997), Ghosts of Oxford Street, The BRIT Awards (1988, 1990, 1991), many Top of the Pops, three Royal Variety Performance shows, Miss World (1998-1999), and the Australian edition of Dancing with the Stars as a guest judge.
In the U.S., Bruno has appeared on numerous talk show programs, including Larry King Live, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Bonnie Hunt Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live, The View, Live with Regis & Kelly, Rachael Ray, and The Soup.
Born in Ferrara, Italy, Bruno is fluent in English, Spanish, French, and Italian.[1]
Glad to see you're not a closet racist. Your just a regular racist.
Sorry, I wasn't talking about you. I was talking about the people who were saying they'd like to see Bruno try to dance, because he doesn't know anything about it.
Lil Kim (as a person) has danced in a sexy, provacative way since day one of the show AND Bruno has been commenting on her sexy dancing style since the beginning of the season...why the big hoopla now that he called her a tramp? he choice of words could have been better but let's face she has danced like that all season and he has alluded to it all season!