‘Dancing With the Stars’ Fans Notice Tyra Banks’ Curious Omission

Dancing With the Stars premiered its 30th season Monday night, showcasing the likes of celebrities like JoJo Siwa, Olivia Jade Giannulli, Amanda Kloots and Brian Austin Green dancing around the ballroom. But fans of the show noticed a subtle omission by the show’s host Tyra Banks, who when introducing Peloton instructor Cody Rigsby for his Tango with partner Cheryl Burke, described him as a “celebrity fitness instructor” instead of using the Peloton brand name.

Rigsby, 34, is one of the most-loved instructors in the Peloton fitness world, boasting over 900,000 Instagram followers and a loyal following of fans who regularly take his classes every week. But when talking about Rigsby’s profession, Banks referred to him as a “celebrity fitness instructor” and hinted at the brand, saying fans might know him if they do cycling classes at home — never once saying the word “Peloton,” though Rigsby did mention it in his introductory video package.

Tell me why Tyra had such a hard time saying “Peloton”. 🤔 #dwts

— Amanda Jaskot (@SSGJASKOT) September 21, 2021

Fans took to Twitter to talk about the curious moment, with some speculating that perhaps it has to do with advertising reasons and others simply confused. “Can Tyra Banks not say Peloton?” one fan tweeted. “Tell me why Tyra had such a hard time saying ‘Peloton,’” someone else tweeted. Someone else speculated that perhaps each mention of Peloton “counts as an advertisement” and wondered if ABC “didn’t wanna pay.”

Rigsby and Burke’s Tango (set to “Physical” by Dua Lipa) earned a 6 from Carrie Ann Inaba, a 6 from Len Goodman, a 6 from Derek Hough and a 6 from Bruno Tonioli, combing for a total of 24 out of 40. They fell toward the lower end of the pack tied for ninth place with four other couples. 

Also competing in Season 30 of Dancing With the Stars are JoJo Siwa, Amanda Kloots, Suni Lee, Melanie C, Melora Hardin, Kenya Moore, Christine Chiu, Olivia Jade Giannulli, Brian Austin Green, Matt James, The Miz, Iman Shumpert and Martin Kove. A highlight of the evening was JoJo Siwa making history as the first celebrity to dance in a same-sex couple on the show, even earning the night’s highest score of a 29 out of 40 for her Quickstep with partner Jenna Johnson. Dancing With the Stars Season 30 airs Mondays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.