Jenna Johnson (born April 12, 1994)
is an American
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...
and
ballroom
A ballroom or ballhall is a large room inside a building, the primary purpose of which is holding large formal parties called balls. Traditionally, most balls were held in private residences; many mansions and palaces, especially historic ma ...
dancer and choreographer. She first gained attention in 2013, as she finished ladies' third runner-up on ''
So You Think You Can Dance
''So You Think You Can Dance'' is a franchise of reality television shows in which contestants compete in dance. The first series of the franchise, created by '' Idols'' producers Simon Fuller and Nigel Lythgoe, premiered in July 2005 and has ...
'' season 10. Johnson continued her professional dancing career on ''
Dancing with the Stars
''Dancing with the Stars'' is the name of various international television series based on the format of the British TV series ''Strictly Come Dancing'', which is distributed by BBC Studios, the commercial arm of the BBC. Currently the form ...
'', winning her
second season with her partner, Olympic figure skater
Adam Rippon
Adam Richard Rippon (born November 11, 1989) is an American figure skater. He won the 2010 Four Continents Championships and the 2016 U.S. National Championships. Earlier in his career, he won the 2008 and 2009 World Junior Championships, the ...
.
Early life
Johnson was born in California, but raised in Provo, Utah.
Her two older sisters, Stacy and Jill, also are dancers.
Johnson is a five-time
U.S. National Latin Champion, U.S. National Youth 10 Dance Champion, as well as a three-time National Contemporary Winner. In 2012, she represented the United States at the
World Latin Dance Champions This page lists the official World Champions – Professional Latin of the World Dance Council (WDC). The championships are authorized and organized under the auspices of the WDC, and held annually in the last quarter of each year. The competiti ...
.
''So You Think You Can Dance''
Johnson was a contestant on
season 10
A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...
of ''So You Think You Can Dance''. She first auditioned the show in Memphis, Tennessee. Her two older sisters had auditioned prior to her, but were cut at Green Mile. She was paired with contemporary dancer Tucker Knox and made it to the top 8. Her specialty was Latin Ballroom. She was eliminated on August 20, 2013. In 2016, she was one of the mentors and choreographers on ''
So You Think You Can Dance: The Next Generation''. She competed alongside Jake Monreal and made it to the Top 8 before elimination on August 1, 2016. She returned to season 14 as an all-star, mentoring Kiki Nyemchek, and made it to the Top 4.
Dancing With The Stars
Johnson was a troupe member on ''
Dancing with the Stars
''Dancing with the Stars'' is the name of various international television series based on the format of the British TV series ''Strictly Come Dancing'', which is distributed by BBC Studios, the commercial arm of the BBC. Currently the form ...
'' from
season 18 to
season 22. She became a professional dancer on
season 23 and was partnered with actor
Jake T. Austin
Jake Toranzo Austin Szymanski (born December 3, 1994), known professionally as Jake T. Austin, is an American actor. Beginning his career as a child actor at the age of seven, Austin is best known for his role as Max Russo on the Disney Channe ...
. They danced jive and cha-cha and were the first couple eliminated on September 20, 2016. Due to
Sharna Burgess sitting out the October 31 and November 7 shows for a knee injury from the October 24 dress rehearsal, Johnson filled in as
James Hinchcliffe
James Douglas Meredith Hinchcliffe (born December 5, 1986) is a Canadian race car driver and commentator best known for competing in the IndyCar Series. Hinchcliffe won six races for Andretti Autosport and Schmidt Peterson Motorsports. In 2015, ...
's partner in weeks 8 and 9 and was their trio partner in Week 10.
After taking
season 24
A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and po ...
off, she returned in
season 25
A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and po ...
as a troupe member. In April 2018, Johnson was announced to be a pro for her second time on
season 26
A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and po ...
and she was paired with Olympic figure skater
Adam Rippon
Adam Richard Rippon (born November 11, 1989) is an American figure skater. He won the 2010 Four Continents Championships and the 2016 U.S. National Championships. Earlier in his career, he won the 2008 and 2009 World Junior Championships, the ...
. The couple reached the finals and won the competition on May 21, 2018. She is one of few dancers to win in her second season and to win after being eliminated first in her previous season.
Following her win, Johnson returned for
season 27 and she was paired with reality television star
Joe Amabile. Despite continually receiving low scores and criticism from the judges, the pair was consistently saved by the viewers' votes. They ultimately made it to the semi-finals of the competition where they finished in fifth place, tying with
Juan Pablo Di Pace
Juan Pablo Di Pace (born 25 July 1979) is an Argentine actor and singer. He began his career in the United Kingdom, performing in a number of musicals and appearing in films like ''Survival Island'' (2005) and ''Mamma Mia!'' (2008). He later move ...
and
Cheryl Burke
Cheryl Burke (born May 3, 1984) is an American dancer, model, and television host. She is best known for being a professional dancer on ABC's ''Dancing with the Stars''. She was the first female professional to win the show and the first prof ...
.
For
season 28, she was partnered with ''
Queer Eye'' expert
Karamo Brown
Karamo Karega Brown (born November 2, 1980) is an American television host, reality television personality, author, actor, and activist. Brown began his career in 2004 on the MTV reality show '' The Real World: Philadelphia'', becoming the first ...
. The couple was eliminated on the seventh week of competition, finishing in eighth place overall.
For
season 29, she was paired with ''
Catfish
Catfish (or catfishes; order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the three largest species alive, ...
'' producer and host
Nev Schulman. They finished in second place overall behind
Kaitlyn Bristowe and
Artem Chigvintsev
Artem Vladimirovich Chigvintsev (russian: Артём Влади́мирович Чи́гвинцев; born 12 June 1982) is a Russian-American professional dancer, specializing in Latin dancing.
Chigvintsev was a cast member of '' Burn the F ...
.
For
season 30, she was paired with dancer, singer, and YouTuber
JoJo Siwa. They finished in second place overall behind
Iman Shumpert
Iman Asante Shumpert ( ; born June 26, 1990) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Shumpert was selected by the New York Knicks with the 17th overall pick ...
and
Daniella Karagach
Daniella Karagach Pashkova (née Karagach) is an American dancer. Karagach and dance partner Leonid Juashkovsky are three-time United States junior I and II Latin champions. They were the 2007 junior II 10 dance champions. Abroad, they reached ...
.
Season 23
With celebrity partner
Jake T. Austin
Jake Toranzo Austin Szymanski (born December 3, 1994), known professionally as Jake T. Austin, is an American actor. Beginning his career as a child actor at the age of seven, Austin is best known for his role as Max Russo on the Disney Channe ...
Season 23
with
James Hinchcliffe
James Douglas Meredith Hinchcliffe (born December 5, 1986) is a Canadian race car driver and commentator best known for competing in the IndyCar Series. Hinchcliffe won six races for Andretti Autosport and Schmidt Peterson Motorsports. In 2015, ...
(Weeks 8 and 9, injury replacement)
Because of an injury to
Sharna Burgess, Johnson returned to the show as the substitute partner for the INDYCAR driver in Weeks 8 and 9, replacing Burgess. The scores listed reflect her weeks as his substitute.
''Burgess returned in Week 10. Idina Menzel was a guest judge in Week 9, taking Goodman’s place''
Season 26
With celebrity partner
Adam Rippon
Adam Richard Rippon (born November 11, 1989) is an American figure skater. He won the 2010 Four Continents Championships and the 2016 U.S. National Championships. Earlier in his career, he won the 2008 and 2009 World Junior Championships, the ...
1 Score given by guest judge
Rashad Jennings.
2 Score given by guest judge
David Ross.
Season 27
With celebrity partner
Joe Amabile
Season 28
With celebrity partner
Karamo Brown
Karamo Karega Brown (born November 2, 1980) is an American television host, reality television personality, author, actor, and activist. Brown began his career in 2004 on the MTV reality show '' The Real World: Philadelphia'', becoming the first ...
.
Due to a death in the family of Jenna's childhood best friend
Lindsay Arnold, Jenna stepped in to dance with former White House Press Secretary
Sean Spicer
Sean Michael Spicer (born September 23, 1971) is a former American political aide who served as the 30th White House Press Secretary and as White House Communications Director under President Donald Trump in 2017. Spicer was communications dire ...
for weeks 8 and 9.
1 Score given by guest judge
Leah Remini.
2 Stepping in for Lindsay Arnold to dance with Sean Spicer.
3 Score given by guest judge
Joey Fatone
Joseph Anthony Fatone Jr. (born January 28, 1977) is an American singer, dancer, actor, and television personality. He is best known as a member of the boyband NSYNC, in which he sang baritone. In 2007, he came in second place on the ABC rea ...
.
Season 29
With celebrity partner
Nev Schulman
Season 30
With celebrity partner
JoJo Siwa
1 Derek Hough was absent so score was given out of 30.
Personal life
On June 14, 2018, Johnson and fellow ''
Dancing with the Stars
''Dancing with the Stars'' is the name of various international television series based on the format of the British TV series ''Strictly Come Dancing'', which is distributed by BBC Studios, the commercial arm of the BBC. Currently the form ...
'' ballroom-dance professional
Valentin Chmerkovskiy announced their engagement. They married on April 13, 2019.
On July 15, 2022 Chmerkovskiy and Johnson announced that they are pregnant and due with their first child, a boy, in January 2023. Their son, Rome Valentin Chmerkovskiy, was born on January 10, 2023.
[ https://people.com/parents/val-chmerkovskiy-and-jenna-johnson-welcome-first-child-baby-boy/]
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Jenna
1994 births
Living people
Artists from Provo, Utah
Dancers from Utah
American female dancers
American ballroom dancers
American women choreographers
American choreographers
So You Think You Can Dance (American TV series) contestants
21st-century American dancers
Dancing with the Stars (American TV series) winners
21st-century American women