“Dancing with the Stars” pro Sasha Farber has joined the expert panel for the “Ohana Round” on Season 24 of “American Idol.” As a dancer and choreographer, Farber is part of a panel of industry experts providing feedback to contestants.
After the judges trio Carrie Underwood, Luke Bryan, and Lionel Richie made the biggest cut in the show’s history during “Hollywood Week,” narrowing down the group from 127 contestants to the Top 30, it’s now time for the “Ohana Round,” which will take place at the Aulani Resort in Hawaii. The upcoming March 9 episode will feature the Top 30 performing in the new round of competition, which is being introduced in Season 24 for the very first time.
Sasha Farber Joins the ‘American Idol’ Industry Expert Panel
The official Instagram account for American Idol shared the exciting announcement in a recent post. “From ballroom to Idol, @dancingwiththestars pro @sashafarber1 hits our expert panel 🕺🏻✨ Monday night!” the caption reads.
Fellow “DWTS” Pro Emma Slater showed her support for her ex-husband by commenting, “Yay!!”
Actress Selma Blair, Farber’s Season 31 partner, wrote, “Hell yeah. 🔥 ❤️”
Fans also flocked to the comment section to share their love:
“yay!! let’s gooooo!!”
“Love this outfit, Sash!! Suave 🙌”
“I’ll definitely tune in! Can’t wait to watch!”
“Ahhhh so exciting! I’ll definitely be watching. He’s my fav!”
“Im watching idol because of you ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️🔥🔥🔥”
Everything to Know About the New ‘Ohana Round’
While the judges will offer their critiques, they will also be getting some insight from three other groups of people who will be voting on their favorites. The purpose of this round is to give the judges “some sort of focus group” to inform them “who people are responding to,” showrunner Megan Michaels Wolflick explained to Deadline. “The judges will comment, and at the end, each of the groups will pick their favorite person.”
The favorite from each group will get a platinum ticket, which used to be given out during Auditions as an advantage in Hollywood Week. It’s unclear what advantage the platinum tickets will hold this season. Once all the performances are complete, there will be 10 cuts made, and only 20 artists will move on, according to TV Insider.
The three groups of voters in the Ohana round are the contestants themselves, the artists’ family and friends (each singer has two loved ones in the group), and a group of “industry tastemakers.”
The industry tastemakers are Kaniyia Brown & Terry McCaskill (social media personality duo), Sasha Farber (dancer and choreographer), Anthony Gargiula (artist and music creator), Loren Gray (singer and actress), Shirley Halperin (co-editor-in-chief of “Rolling Stone”), Cheryl Porter (singer and vocal coach phenomenon), and Kelly Sutton (country music personality and “Grand Ole Opry” announcer).
GREAT news!!