Mel C got some words of wisdom from her fellow Spice Girls before hitting the ballroom floor. Following her Dancing with the Stars debut on Monday, ET’s Lauren Zima spoke to the 47-year-old British pop star about the advice Victoria Beckham, Emma Bunton, Geri Halliwell and Mel B gave her about performing.
Mel B placed second on the show back in 2007, and Emma placed third on Strictly Come Dancing, the U.K. version of the show, the year prior.
“I have spoken to all of the girls. They are super supportive and so excited for me,” Mel C told ET. “Of course Melanie did amazing on the show back in 2007. Em has actually done Strictly, which is the U.K. version of the show, so we have a lot of experience between us.”
“The biggest advice… is just enjoy it, because it is a wonderful experience,” she continued. “What a great opportunity for everyone.”
In a previous interview with ET, Mel C shared more about what Mel B told her about competing on DWTS. “She said, just enjoy it, lap it up,” she said.
The advice from Mel B is part of the reason Mel C is looking forward to having her in the audience this season. “Melanie is due over at some point, so it will be great to see her,” she told ET on Monday.
The Spice Girls’ support seems to have paid off, as Mel C and her partner, Gleb Savchenko, wowed with their Cha Cha performance, which was set to the girl group’s iconic track, “Wannabe.” They earned at 27 out of 40 for their inaugural dance, which came amid the group’s 25th anniversary.
“It was such a crazy time. I cant believe it was 25 years ago. I actually cant think of a better way to celebrate [than] opening the show dancing to ‘Wannabe,'” Mel C said. “Being here in L.A., the U.S. is such an important place to the Spice Girls. We had so much fun here. We spent months touring here. It is just really great to be back.”
“I felt it was the only way to introduce the Spice Girls into the ballroom,” she added. “It was huge pressure, but also a huge honor to be the first at the same time. I was incredibly nervous.”
Mel C’s nerves “surprised” Gleb, but he was proud of how his partner pushed through.
“You handled it so well. It was great,” Gleb praised. “She was so nervous… but what I have learned is she is such a hard worker. She is so competitive. She wants to be a professional. She wants everything to be perfect. My biggest thing to note tonight is just to relax and enjoy.”
Gleb himself is enjoying the experience, telling ET that he’s “living out my dream” by performing with Mel C, whom he considers to be his favorite Spice Girl.
“Even two days ago we were working on a routine, and I messed up because I was thinking that I am dancing with the actual Sporty Spice,” he admitted, before revealing the pair’s strategy going forward.
“Take it a week at a time, work super, super hard,” he said. “[We] just don]t want to be good, but be just a little bit better than everybody else every single week.”
