Sultry singer Mya is the prohibitive favorite to take home the Mirrorball Trophy next week when she competes in the finals of the pop culture phenomenon “Dancing with the Stars.” The childhood-trained dancer finished the semifinals with by far the highest score of all four dancing couples. Three teams remained after Kelly Krupa and her partner were eliminated.
Mya, the Baltimore-bred bombshell whose latest album is the Beauty and the Streets Mixtape, will compete in the finals against former TV-reality star Kelly Osbourne and former Osmond lead singer Donny Osmond. Mya and her partner have been the season’s most consistent performers, landing the first perfect score on last week’s show.
A win is not guaranteed for Mya, however. Osmond, who came to fame in a 60s-era group that was almost a replica of the Jackson Five, is the sentimental favorite of all the dancers and boasts the largest fan base. And Osborne, who starred with her legendary heavy-metal father Ozzy Osbourne in the MTV-reality show “The Osbournes,” is considered the Cinderella story of the season and has the youth demographic on lock. Elimination is determined by a combination of judges’ scorecards and audience members’ votes.
Mya, who studied tap under Savion Glover at the venerated Dance Theater of Harlem as child, came to fame at age 18 with her eponymous debut album, which scored three top 10 hits. The former Ford Agency model has acted in several films, including Chicago, Shall We Dance, Cursed and Dirty Dancing: Havana. The Grammy-winning, multiplatinum artist is also the executive director and teacher of her own foundation, the Mya Arts & Tech Foundation. The nonprofit organization helps underprivileged youth get opportunities through the arts and technological education.
–terry shropshire
