Lilliana Belle Ketchman (born June 23, 2008), known professionally as Lilly K, is an American dancer, model and social media personality. She is known for her appearances on Lifetime's ''

Dance Moms ''Dance Moms'' is an American reality television series that premiered on Lifetime (TV network), Lifetime on July 13, 2011. Created by Collins Avenue Productions, the show followed the training and careers of children in dance and show business ...

'' beginning in season six, and for her YouTube videos.

Early life

Lilliana Ketchman was born June 23, 2008 to Stacey and Christopher Ketchman and has an older brother, Caden. Her mother is a psychologist and dancer while her father is a piano player and psychologist. Her family is from Fayetteville, North Carolina, where she attended Campaneria Ballet School. Ketchman began dancing when she was two years old and started competing at age four.

Career

YouTube

In 2015, Ketchman launched her YouTube channel, which features videos of her competitions, dance routines, cooking, fashion & beauty tips, games, and her many pranks. Her channel has more than three million subscribers and 288 million views. ''

Abby Lee Miller Abigale Lee Miller (born September 21, 1965) is an American dance instructor, choreographer, studio owner, television personality, and author. She is the founder of the Abby Lee Dance Company, and owns a studio in L.A. She appeared on the realit ...

became aware of Ketchman via her social media presence.

''Dance Moms''

When she was participating in a photo shoot in New York in 2015, someone suggested she should be on ''

'' with Abby Lee Miller; Ketchman's mother, however, put off the idea of auditioning due to Miller's reputation. After Miller began following Ketchman on social media, Ketchman was asked to send videos of her dancing. She joined season six of ''Dance Moms'' as part of the Abby Lee Dance Company (ALDC) mini team at the age of seven. Ketchman's first

solo Solo or SOLO may refer to: Arts and entertainment Characters * Han Solo, a ''Star Wars'' character * Jacen Solo, a Jedi in the non-canonical ''Star Wars Legends'' continuity * Kylo Ren (Ben Solo), a ''Star Wars'' character * Napoleon Solo, fr ...

was "Step by Step", which placed first. In 2017, she joined the ALDC Elite team. Ketchman placed first in the junior division at the national competition. During season seven, Ketchman placed first in a

Spokane, Washington Spokane ( ) is the most populous city in eastern Washington and the county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It lies along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south o ...

, competition with the ALDC. The only team member to return for season eight, Ketchman won the overall competition for week 14 with her solo "Black Widow". For her solo "Straight Escape" aired during week 16, she performed the entire routine in a

straitjacket A straitjacket is a garment shaped like a jacket with long sleeves that surpass the tips of the wearer's fingers. Its most typical use is restraining people who may cause harm to themselves or others. Once the wearer's arms are in the sleeves, ...

, earning a perfect score of 300 and finishing first. During the national competition, Ketchman placed second in the junior division and fourth overall with her solo "Inside Out".

Music

Ketchman has appeared in numerous music videos for artists including

Bianca Ryan Bianca Taylor Ryan (born September 1, 1994) is an American musician, singer and songwriter from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Ryan was the first winner of NBC's ''America's Got Talent (season 1), America's Got Talent'' at the age of eleven. Singi ...

, Sia, and fellow ''Dance Moms'' alumnus

JoJo Siwa Joelle Joanie "JoJo" Siwa ( ; born May 19, 2003) is an American singer, dancer, actress, and media personality. From 2015 to 2016, she appeared as a dancer on two seasons of the reality television show '' Dance Moms'' alongside her mother, Jess ...

. In Sia's music video of " Move Your Body", Ketchman's portrayal of a young Sia received critical acclaim. ''

Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous, metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade, regional metamorphism. It is the finest-grained foliated metamorphic ro ...

'' said her moves were what made the music video "so much fun to watch". In November 2020, Ketchman and her mother teased her own single and music video, "Underneath".

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ketchman, Lilliana 2008 births 21st-century American dancers 21st-century American women American child models American female dancers American female models Dancers from North Carolina Female models from North Carolina Living people Participants in American reality television series People from Fayetteville, North Carolina YouTube channels launched in 2015 YouTubers from North Carolina