Samba
237 performances · avg 25.91
Samba
Charts
Article
Samba
Category: International Latin
DWTS performances in dataset: 237
Average total score: 25.91
First appearance: Season 1, Week 4 — Joey & Ashly (Tequila)
Lift rule on DWTS: Not allowed (core ballroom/Latin style on DWTS).
Origins and history
Samba is a family of Brazilian music and dance forms with Afro-Brazilian roots, closely tied to Rio carnival. Ballroom samba adapted social and carnival movements into a couple dance with a characteristic bounce, becoming one of the five International Latin dances.
Sources
- OUPblog / Britannica family of sources: Samba — Brazilian 2/4 forms
- Wikipedia: Samba (ballroom dance) — Ballroom adaptation; bounce
- WDSF: WDSF Competition Rules — 50–52 bars/min
How it is danced
| Aspect | Detail |
|---|---|
| Time signature | 2/4 |
| Tempo (MPM) | 50–52 (WDSF) |
| Tempo (BPM, approx.) | 100–104 |
| Character | Bouncy, carnival, progressive; distinctive samba bounce and pelvic action on “a”-counts. |
| Hold / frame | Latin holds; many progressive and shadow figures. |
| Basic steps & figures | Natural basic, whisks, samba walks, volta movements, botafogo, cruzados walks, rolling off the arm. Bounce: flex and straighten through ankles/knees on a-1, a-2. |
| What judges look for | Authentic bounce (not just hopping), hip action, travel, carnival character; no lifts. |
Competition tempi cite WDSF Competition Rules E.3.2 and related DanceSport charts where applicable; theatrical styles are song-driven.
History on Dancing with the Stars
Statistics below are computed from the Data with the Stars SQLite performance and score tables (not invented).
- Times danced: 237
- Score range: 10.0 – 46.0 (total judges’ score as stored)
- Perfect nights (every judging mark = 10): 24
Average score by era
| Era | Performances | Average total |
|---|---|---|
| S1-10 | 83 | 23.72 |
| S11-20 | 79 | 27.47 |
| S21-30 | 52 | 26.62 |
| S31+ | 23 | 26.87 |
Best scores
- 46.0 — S31 W6: Heidi & Artem — ?
- 40.0 — S28 W9: Ally & Sasha — Wannabe (Spice Girls)
- 40.0 — S30 W8: Suni & Sasha — ?
- 40.0 — S31 W5: Wayne & Witney — It Takes Two (Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock)
- 39.0 — S20 W5: Rumer & Val — Poor Unfortunate Souls (Pat Carroll)
Lowest scores
- 10.0 — S8 W3: Steve & Karina — Jump in the Line (Shake, Senora)
- 12.0 — S29 W3: Carole & Pasha — Circle of Life
- 13.0 — S35 W4: Guillermo & Witney — _ Obsessed _
- 14.0 — S9 W3: Michael & Anna D. — Hard to Handle
- 15.0 — S9 W3: Tom & Cheryl — Why Can't We Be Friends?
First perfect nights (all marks 10)
- S2 W5: Stacy & Tony — Bootylicious (total 30.0, 3 judges)
- S2 W8: Stacy & Tony — Livin' la Vida Loca (total 30.0, 3 judges)
- S3 W10: Emmitt & Cheryl — Sir Duke (total 30.0, 3 judges)
- S4 W5: Apolo & Julianne — I Like to Move It (total 30.0, 3 judges)
- S4 W7: Laila & Maks — Brazil (total 30.0, 3 judges)
Most-used songs
- Hip Hip Chin Chin — Club des Belugas (4×)
- Copacabana — Barry Manilow (4×)
- Shake Your Bon-Bon — Ricky Martin (4×)
- Lean On — Major Lazer & DJ Snake feat. MØ (4×)
- Mi Gente — J Balvin & Willy William (4×)
- Blame It On the Boogie — The Jacksons (3×)
- Party in the U.S.A. — Miley Cyrus (3×)
- Magalenha — Sérgio Mendes feat. Carlinhos Brown (3×)
Charts
Watch top performances
- Ezra Frech and Daniella Karagach’s Disney Night Samba | Dancing with the Stars — S35 W8, score 37.0, _ Under the Sea _
- Amber Glenn and Pasha Pashkov’s Super Bowl Night Samba | Dancing with the Stars — S35 W5, score 34.0, Mi Gente
- Harry Shum Jr. Samba with Audio Description | DWTS Week 5 “Yeah!” — S35 W5, score 33.0, Yeah!
- Alix Earle’s Finale Samba | Dancing with the Stars — S34 W11, score 30.0, Hip Hip Chin Chin
- dwts: peta and nyle week 4 samba — S33 W5, score 25.0, _ Trashin' the Camp _
Educational fan reference. Dance histories paraphrased from cited sources; DWTS stats from project data. Not affiliated with BBC Studios or Disney.
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