Keyra

* She started dancing when she was three and has been dancing with Cersten since 5th grade. As they’ve gone on, they’ve become best friends and got really close at LSU. Cersten knows everything about her. This is her fourth time trying out, but what’s stopped her in the past wasn’t dance skill, but she thinks it was maturity. It was weight, and then the third time she tried out, she was just getting out of an engagement, so she was stressed. I got cut at semifinals, and at that moment, she decided if she wanted to be serious about this, she needed to get things in ine. She thinks this is her year to make DCC. She’s fit. She’s focused. She knows want she wants, and nothing will stop her.

## **Confessionals**

Total: 23

Season 12: 19 (T9th most)

Season 13: 4

### **Season 12**

**(12.4)**

* [Jerry Jones comes to start of their first practice] “Wow.”

**(12.5)**

* "Hearing Jordan (Johnson) say that I’m a star, like, he’s been on “So You Think You Can Dance?” So, when he said I was a star, I was like, ‘you’re a star, well thank you’."

**(12.7)**

* "Denise (Dicharry) was my coach when I was a Tiger Girl. She’s probably one of the most intense coaches I’ve ever had. She makes me nervous because her standards are so high."
* "As a rookie, if I make [show group], I’m gonna be like ’’Woo hoo’’!"

**(12.8)**

* [Cameos] "So, I’ve never modeled before, but my dad is a photographer, so I feel like I’m photogenic."
* I do not know if tonight’s a cut night, but I didn’t even know Celinda was going to be cut the other night, so you just never know. So, you should always bring your ‘A’-game.
* (*Biography*)

**(12.9)**

* [DCC entrance] "It is crucial to master this. I just want to make sure I don’t have to think about it. I can just do it in my sleep."

**(12.11)**

* [Before office] "I don’t know if it’s a cut night, but if it is, it’s unfortunate ‘cause I am the only rookie going in. I’d be definitely devastated."
* [After office] "I feel like 100 times better because there’s been a lot of thing I had to sacrifice to get this far. I’m so deep in now that I cannot give up. I’ll just take what they say and fix everything."

**(12.12)**

* "When you set the bar high, Kelli and Judy expect even more out of you, and you set that pedestal for yourself. So, I just feel like I need to claim my spot and earn my stars, and just be the best I can be every day."
* [Before office] "I would be blindsided if I was released tonight. I am like probably days away from making the team. Last week I was in the office, so I don’t know if this like a follow-up. But yeah, it’s definitely a little nerve-wracking."
* [After office] "I think I did have a mini-heart attack. But I’m back. Whew. I need to get back to being me, because there’s only one me. We don’t need to give her any more pep talks. We’re going to have to tell her to calm down over there."
* "My goal is to stand out and be like firecracker Keyra, because last practice, I was called into the office."
* "(Kelli and Judy) said I was a little soft, so I feel like I can do better."

**(12.13)**

* [After making team] "You can just imagine how I’m feeling inside, like ‘Ah!’ But trying to keep it together."
* "I have to think of Kalyssa shimmying big and make sure I’m doing everything super full out."
* [Interspersed with flashbacks] "When I first came into training camp, I thought that I could just make it off of my talent. I just kind of felt like, ‘it’s how good you are, not necessarily how hard you work.’ And I learned really fast that it needs to be a good mix, or you’ll be, like, outta here. Towards the end of training camp, I got called into the office twice. So, I was like, ‘I need to fight for my spot.’ That’s what I learned. How to adapt, and how to take feedback, and how to be the absolute best version of myself. This has been the hardest process of my life, but it was all worth it, and now I’m a DCC."
* [After first game] "I kicked butt! I’m ready for next week already."

### **Season 13**

**(13.3)**

* "Going into finals, my biggest challenge is not getting in my head, of course, so how I stop myself from over-thinking is, I get in my mirror, and I’m like, “You can do this. You’ve danced your whole life. Keyra, you are it.” I know it’s cheesy, but it works."
* [Names announced for training camp] "I feel good going into announcements. I feel like I brought my best foot forward today. I felt like I showed the judges that I will be a strong vet, so I just hope that they think the same thing."
* [One name left] "To come back for another season definitely would mean the world to me. So, if (Kelli) didn’t call my name, I’d probably be devastated."
* [Not invited back] "I didn’t get called back, but I kinda left my heart out there, so I would just, of course, want an explanation, what exactly went wrong this year, and I wish (the judges) could have told me."

## **Commentary**

### **Season 12**

**(12.4)**

* “She’s our little firecracker.” – Kelli
* “Kalyssa, you and Keyra are going to be competing for firecracker award.” – Kelli
* Keyra, more body language when you are facing the back, also. – Judy

**(12.5)**

* "Keyra, you were late on your split in the air. You took off a little late or something." – Kelli
* [Kelli asks Jordan Johnson who he noticed] “(Keyra)’s a star. You’re very commanding. It’s like, okay, everybody else is out here, but you’re just going to watch me.” – Jordan

**(12.6)**

* [Kelli asks Keith Green for his choreographer’s choice] "I’m not going to call you Keyra. I’m going to call you Kee-rah, because that’s more hip-hop. You have those cool moments. So, now I think your goal should be to manipulate those cool moments all of the way through." – Keith

**(12.7)**

* “Keyra, good style and power.” – Kelli
* "Keyra, on that, you graduated from firecracker to dynamite." – Kelli
* “Damn, girl. The skills are coming out.”
* “Keyra’s right [kick] is pretty, her left is not.” – Kelli
* "Keyra, are you hurt on your left leg?" – Kitty Carter/"Because your left leg is surprisingly lower, and your right is so pretty." – Kelli
* "Out of this group, Keyra step forward, Jenna step forward, and Stephanie step forward. Those were the people I thought killed it last night out of this group." – Kitty

**(12.8)**

* [Cameos] “The boots shorten her legs and her legs got thicker on camera.” – Kelli
* “Keyra looks and photographs more … athletic. I personally lean toward a longer figure for presence on the field. But she just continues to be this big performer that gets noticed and she’s fun to watch. Ultimately it will come down to how she completes our whole picture.” – Kelli
* [Keyra mistakenly doesn't go into the jump split] "Did y’all get the memo on doing a jump split?" – Judy/"No ma’am, but I can do it now." – Keyra/"Full out." – Judy
* "Keyra not going down in the jump splits today was a very dangerous moment. One person goes down differently from the rest, you can injure someone on your side." – Judy
* "I mean, isn’t it fully out unless you tell them to mark it?" – Nick Flores/"Yes, especially if you’re being judged." – Judy
* [Improv dancing] "Who loved that she started against the wall? I mean, if this was an audition, I’d already be watching her. Because I’m like, she made a choice, so kudos. That was awesome." – Nick
* "Keyra, I think you could let loose. I think everyone can, but I think you can let loose a lot more on that dance. You looked like a half beat behind because you weren’t sure of the next step. Is that one in your head as good as some of the others, or am I crazy?" – Judy/"I think you’re crazy because I was going to call you out. I was watching you, Keyra." – Melissa Rycroft/"I can be crazy." – Judy/"Yeah, I think you are. I mean, for being on the end, and you’re short, I mean you totally make up for that space. I kept looking at you, and you looked like you were having a lot of fun." – Melissa

**(12.9)**

* [DCC entrance] “Keyra’s off the count.” – Kelli
* [Entrance] "You’re letting us psych you out." – Judy/"I know. I don’t know what’s going on." – Keyra/"Shake it off and let’s try it again." – Judy
* “Keyra, I love your extra little pops that you give it, but then you don’t do the whole dance that way. I keep wanting you to do all those great little accents throughout the whole thing.” – Judy

**(12.10)**

* [DCC entrance] “Keyra’s crossing the line too far.” – Kelli

**(12.11)**

* [Photographer is taking pictures of field practice] “Keyra needs better facials.” – Kelli/“She needs to smile more.” – Judy
* [Looking at sideline shots] "All right, there is little Keyra. She is pursing her lips too much. I was hoping she was going to be cute on the field." – Kelli/"Does she ever smile?" – Judy/[Flipping through photos] "No smile, no smile, no smile, no smile. Good question." – Kelli
* "Being photogenic is a big part of being a DCC, and I’m not sure how we get Keyra to that point where she’s comfortable in front of the camera." – Judy

**(12.12)**

* "Is Keyra starting to concern you?" – Kelli/"She has from the beginning, but everyone else seems to love her. She doesn’t know these dances well, either." – Judy
* "Keyra, you don’t know that (dance) very well. You don’t attack it." – Judy
* "Keyra and Kalyssa, the is the right time for y’all to start fizzling out. But neither one of y’all tonight have the edge that you had in the first half of training camp." – Kelli [Keyra says they’ll dial it up]
* "This girl is so freaking talented. She would be in my top 5 if I had to pick 5." – Kitty Carter
* "Didn’t get it. Keyra, you gotta be up by eight. Even if there’s six of y’all coming up at eight from Maddie down to Keyra, you gotta be up by eight. – Kelli
* "Keyra and Gina are softer on your accents and Tara’s out-snapping you, out-popping you. Her pom-poms are probably making more noise. Make noise from your poms. [Has first Gina repeat, then Keyra] That sounded a little quiet. [Has Tara repeat, then asks veterans who was loudest, who say Tara] Then Gina, then Keyra.” – Kelli
* [Says some of the cheerleaders don’t know the routine well] "Neither does Keyra." – Judy

**(12.13)**

* "How do you think Keyra looks on the board?" – Kelli/"I think she does things small. Like, what was that shimmy? I don’t think I’ve ever seen the firecracker that everyone else sees today." – Judy
* "Keyra, on that one, isn’t there two shimmies in that dance? You could do so much more." – Judy [Keyra starts shimmying and asks if she should do more of that, and J says yes]
* "There’s firecracker Keyra." – Judy

### **Season 13**

**(13.3)**

* [Finals judging] "Eyecatching, she’s great." – Judy/"She was late to our Christmas hospital visit appearance, and then she rushed in late to do our Star grand opening. So, for me, it’s that, am I sure she’s going to be the veteran that I’m telling all these other girls to follow?" – Kelli
* [After Keyra is not invited back to training camp] "Keyra didn’t make it back because she was late to our hospital visit appearances, and punctuality and professionalism are more important for veteran consideration." – Kelli

## **Office Visits**

### **Season 12**

**(12.11)**

* [End of episode, 1st of 2] When Kelli asks Keyra how she’s doing, she responds by saying she wouldn’t say good, but nervous, though that’s anyone who gets called in. Kelli says they have some sideline photos they’d like to talk with her about what the camera says of her as a performer. Tonight, they looked at how she would photograph in-game, and this is what they saw through 50 exposures. [*They show her photographs through a monitor on the table*] There’s no smiles. She has really intense faces. Keyra says, ‘like a closed mouth?’ Kelli says that’s what’s going to happen at a football game, and that’s not what they want. So, that might be an awareness thing, because she’s always been a bright performer. Keyra says maybe she shouldn’t think so much of being… [*makes sultry looks*]. Kelli says she may be trying to be... but Keyra interjects and says ‘too sexy or scary?’ Kelli says honestly, she doesn’t think sexy is her trademark. She has been powerful, energetic, and dynamic, and don’t try to be something she isn’t. Because she is better at just being ‘Keyra the firecracker.’ Keyra agrees and says she’ll just bring her smile. Kelli adds 'power.' Keyra agrees. Kelli says her adjective is power and dynamite. Keyra says she can do that.

**(12.12)**

* [Early episode, only one called in] Tonight they noticed she’s seemed to have lost some of her sparkle and pizzazz. Is there anything that’s changed? Keyra asks if Kelli thinks the energy’s not the same. Kelli says she’s shocked that they’re even having this conversation because it’s just who she’s been as a performer during this training camp. Judy says the choreography she seems a little more unsure, so it looks like she’s thinking a lot instead of just performing. Keyra feels like she’s had so much feedback from the veterans that is different that it’s kind of hard to know what to do. Kelli says she used to command everyone’s attention. But that’s not who she was tonight. It’s kind of a plateau for her. Keyra says that unfortunately it might be a little anxiety, like nervousness. Kelli says they’ve released some people over tension and anxiety. Keyra says she knows. She has to bring it, she has to be consistent, and she has to bring her "A" game every day. Kelli says yes, she does. If she needs to hit her restart button, it’s time to hit the restart button, because they’re close to the game. She’s better than this. Keyra says she’s just happy that they care and they’ll tell them so the cheerleaders can get better. But they make her nervous. Kelli says they all make her nervous too.

## **End of Journey**

### **Season 11**

**(11.1)**

* Makes it to semifinals but isn’t chosen for finals.

### **Season 13**

**(13.3)**

* One of two veteran cuts at finals (not invited back to training camp).

## **Other**

### **Season 6**

**(6.1)**

* Shown early in the audition process, unsure how far she progressed.

### **Season 12**

**(12.2)**

* Shown dancing when Judy says she’s looking for a technical dancer with a lot of power, who has a lot of punch, and is able to learn quickly.

**(12.5)**

* Makeover glamour shot (no ‘before’ shot).
* Flashback of her making an intense face is shown as Judy says they don’t just have to make intense faces.

**(12.8)**

* Final cameo shown on screen.

**(12.12)**

* Shown on screen when Judy is rhetorically asking if they cut the girl that doesn’t take the best photographs for the final cut.
* The judges scores can be seen on her audition photo: 9 yeses, 5 maybes, and 1 no.
* One of five rookies specifically asked to perform by Judy at the final practice.

**(12.13)**

* Locker room cameo photo shown.

### **Season 13**

**(13.2)**

* Shown performing with other veterans at the 2018 NFL Draft.

**(13.3)**

* She’s shown successfully naming a current Dallas Cowboy at panel interviews.
* Shown performing her solo at finals.