Carrie Ann Inaba is known for being one of the tough judges on ABC’s Dancing With The Stars. Her extensive resume consists of releasing 3 singles in Japan under Pony Canyon Records, co-founding a dance company with Alexandre Magno (Britney Spears, Madonna) called Personna Productions, being a “Fly Girl” for ‘In Living Color ‘ for 3 years, starring as “Fook Yu” in Austin Powers 3, starting her own digital video production company EnterMediaArts.Inc, and being a bald, topless pole dancer for Madonna’s ‘The Girlie Show’ tour in 1993.
US Asians were very interested in how Carrie Ann got the opportunity to be in Madonna’s show, so they asked her some questions to suet their curiosity.

On performing topless and with a shaven head:

My family still tease me about this. But I loved it! I thought hit was so amazing to be given an opportunity to be a little different, to be edgy, and not what a stereo typical Asian woman is represented as usually. I took it as a challenge. The original idea was for the show to be filled with androgyny. I loved the idea and wanted to find the beauty in that type of performance. It was risque but it was so exciting to see how people reacted to it every night.

Responsibility of opening every tour performance by going down a 50 feet fire pole:

This was huge to me. I took it very seriously. I rarely went out with everyone after the shows because I didn’t have a SWING replacement that could really do what I did and I was hired to do my special routine and did not want to let any one down. I had negotiated pretty hard with them about financial aspects and I felt that I needed to live up to what I said and would be. Before every show, my rigger, Leti Alcala, and I would check the pole and run the routine. You see, since it was dangerous stunt, we had to be careful.

Which choreographer did you work with on your opening “Pole Routine?”

Mostly it was Madonna and I. She knew what she wanted and I was the only one who knew what I could do and how to do it. So we collaborated.

How did this routine come to being created? Did Madonna have the initial idea and then flew out the stripper that inspired the concept?

Yes… she saw the stripper and got the idea.

Were you initially comfortable with going topless during your “Pole Routine?”

I was fine with going topless. At first I was supposed to wear pasties. But honestly, I didn’t like the pasties, they got in the way of the choreography- so I suggested that I go topless. We all agreed it would be more organic that way and it was the true vision so why not be true to the vision. I had only asked that in countries where it may be offensive, I could were a top. They agreed but when we go to Israel, there was no top. I remember being afraid, after all I was a slow moving target.

What was your initial reaction to shaving your head for the entire tour- in addition to being topless?

Well,. I had really long hair at the time and Madonna loved to challenge me and play with me because I guess I’m somewhat of a strong person. But she knew I was working for her so whatever she wanted for the post part went. So, I had 5 really bad haircuts on the way to shaving it. She wanted to keep me a bit different than everyone else so I had some really ugly hair days and she loved putting it up in strange hairstyles for rehearsals. Then she’d say I had to wear my hair like that for the rest of the day.

So, Team Bruno lost yet again last night.  Now he has only 4 team members to Carrie Ann’s 6.  If it continues this way, will the show end in just a few more weeks?  Can’t have much of a crew with only 2 or 3 performers. 

Team Bruno can look only as far as their leader when it comes to figuring out why they are failing so badly.  I think Bruno’s attitude is partly contributing to the fact that America just won’t vote for his team: he’s cocky, arrogant, and, frankly, quite like a catty little bitch (sad, because I loved him on Dancing with the Stars). 

Last night, he had the nerve to accuse Chris from Team Carrie Ann of always needing excuses for his performances, saying something about the microphone problem this week and relating it to the mic problem last week.  Last week was a technical problem that he had absolutely no control over.  His mic simply didn’t work, but he continued on undettered by the mishap–very admirable.  Bruno: catty little bitch; just made himself look bad by saying something so ridiculous (especially since Chris, only 18 years old vs. Bruno’s 40 or so?,  owned up to the mishap this week).  Bruno doesn’t know how to play fair and that’s gotta effect people’s voting preferences for sure. 

Carrie Ann is diplomatic, friendly and supportive in her critisms of her own team and Bruno’s team.  Carrie Ann also calls it like it is–if her team messes up, she calls them on it–constructively criticizing.  Bruno on the otherhand puts on an air of superiority, like his team can do no wrong and his team is far better all around than Carrie Ann’s.  He looked stunned and shocked that America could actually vote for Carrie Ann’s team over his; he couldn’t even believe that it could be a possibility.  

Honestly, I don’t know why he’s so surprised–Carrie Ann’s team has this raw energy about it that just keeps you glued to the TV–their always exciting to watch.  Bruno’s team–only sometimes exciting to watch, not always–they almost look like a Las Vegas show crew that’s been doing the same dance for months on end and are just a little bored (except for last night’s girls number to “These Boots”–finally saw something exciting from them).  They are good, but they really just don’t have that overall raw chemistry or charisma that you see with Team Carrie Ann.    

And, I don’t get it–I think Bruno keeps putting the wrong team members in his bottom two.  He really just needed to get rid of Phillip this week–he can’t really sing (unless they can hear something in the audience that isn’t coming across on TV).  And Kelsey–he had her in the bottom two last week–she’s the most charismatic performer his has! 

Oh–and can’t forget to mention the coreography for Team Bruno–Team Carrie Ann’s coreography is kick’n his arse! Which reminds me of another Bruno, aka catty little bitch, moment last night, when he asked how much more furniture Carrnie Ann’s team was gonna bring onto the dance floor (referencing their props that I personally thought were awesome).   Catty catty catty unconstructive digs.  It isn’t flying with America so he should just knock it off.