While Matty J showed everyone just what he’s made of during the first episode of Dancing With The Stars: All Stars, he reveals that his nerves almost got the best of him.
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“I knew I was up against such strong competition and I think being my first ever dance in Dancing With The Stars, I felt almost completely crippled by nerves,” the wildcard contestant tells New Idea in an exclusive chat.
But it was co-star Luke Jacobz who helped the former Bachelor get his confidence back.
“Luke Jacobz was someone who I relied on a lot to help me through not only rehearsals but also on the nights of the performances just to try and put me in a better mindset,” he says.
Matty explains that going into the show, he thought it would be “almost like we wouldn’t talk to the competition”, as to not give anything away leading up to the performances.
“I think the biggest surprise to me was the fact that it wasn’t at all competitive like I thought going into it,” he reveals.
“I definitely didn’t expect to get along and to have everyone be as friendly as they were.”
The reality TV star adds that it was “such an amazing group of people”, and he found everybody to be supportive.
The 33-year-old also reiterated that in a recent episode of Life Uncut podcast, where he spoke about working with co-star Schapelle Corby.
“She’s actually quite good, I was surprised at her dancing ability, but also really surprised at just how nice and genuine she is,” Matty told the podcast.
“She was really warm and genuine, and I really liked hanging out with her. She was probably one of my favourite celebrities.”
Matty J was amongst the first group of stars to dance on Sunday night, and scored a 23 for his cha cha for his first performance.
His second dance was the Viennese waltz, and in Tuesday’s night episode, he faced off against Schapelle for an elimination, after a bottom two “dance off”.
The 33-year-old admits on the show that he was finding the dance moves to his next routine “so confusing” and put it down to sleepless nights with his daughters.
“I’m exhausted. Not only is it physically demanding, but I’ve got two little girls. One is a newborn, so sleep is something that I’m not getting a lot of,” he says.
The Bachelor star is a proud dad to two little girls, 14-month-old Marlie-Mae and two-month-old Lola, whom he shares with fiancee Laura Byrne.
The couple famously met on the 2017 season of The Bachelor, and are set to tie the knot sometime later this year.
