Marissa M / The Jambar
This season of “Dancing With the Stars,” which airs Tuesday nights at 8 p.m., is riding a wave that the show simply hasn’t seen before — the full-force engagement of a younger, social media-savvy audience.
Thanks largely to TikTok, the ballroom competition has morphed from a traditional TV event into a digital community popularity contest with record-breaking vote totals and drastically expanded viewership.
The cast for Season 34 may seem different than years prior. The inclusion of social media influencer Alix Earle, paired with professional dancer Valentin Chmerkovskiy, and reality TV personalities, such as Jennifer Affleck and Whitney Leavitt from “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,” not only brings established names, but taps directly into younger viewers who already follow these stars online.
Meanwhile, legacy contestants, such as wellness influencer Hilaria Baldwin, with pro Gleb Savchenko, and “Boy Meets World” star Danielle Fishel, demonstrate the show’s reach to an older population of viewers.
TikTok has become central not merely for promotion, but for the very structure of the competition. Week 3, branded “TikTok Night,” featured tunes and routines selected for their viral circulation on the platform. Hashtags such as #dwts, #dancingwiththestars and #dwtsfans are populating the platform by the millions.
Also, trends such as fans rallying to “save Andy,” referring to contestant Andy Richter, or communities organising to vote off a rival have surfaced, turn each Tuesday’s show into a digital flash mob of engagement.
“Dancing With the Stars” isn’t shying away from the spotlight. New this season, the show began streaming live on its official TikTok account during Tuesday’s broadcasts, giving fans live, behind-the-scenes access to the celebrities and their professional partners.
The voting surge the show is receiving matters. While network TV has seen viewership fragment over the years, the show contradicts the trend.
Reports indicate this is the highest-voting season in the show’s history. According to Variety, fan voting started strong with 21 million votes, showing a rise of 163% over last season’s premiere episode, which saw 8 million votes.