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As someone who deplores blackface minstrelsy, I was able to move past Whitney's Halloween costume because she really seemed to learn from the mistake and her costume was not designed to denigrate people of color, which is the root of blackface minstrelsy. She wanted to go as one of her favorite music artists. I'm not giving her a pass for her ignorance, mind you, but I do understand that many people are not raised to be aware of the racist history behind this part of our culture and I do think that she grew from this. Whitney to me is an example of someone who really matured and grew as a lady and an adult through her experience with the organization. They didn't just let her situation slide and she had to prove herself to get back in good graces, but I imagine that, at least at that point, there was nothing in the contract forbidding DCC from appearing in blackface in public. I'm sure they hadn't thought they needed to state that, of course, but my point is that it makes sense to me that violating a contract in public carries its own punishments that might be different from doing something stupid or ignorant that embarrasses the organization.

I don't think Judy hates everyone but Cassie. I think every year she votes for a great dancer or two that others don't like as much because they're focused on looks and she even was really, really nice about the mom who showed up with her daughter. That said, I was totally annoyed at the Cassie life-sized poster behind Melissa and others in some interview scenes. I was like, get over it already and show some more recent DCCs! But then I was all excited to see Kelsi Reich's poster so I guess I'm just tired of CT. I also kind of like Anthony Ramos. He's quite charming interviewing the contestants, putting them at ease in a tough situation. And he was pretty funny, too, with his "What is happening here?" and especially that "Bless her heart." Definitely one of the best, and most flexible, Southern sayings. He used it well!

Since we don't really know much for certain about the Holly-Jenna sitch, I won't really comment on that, but as for the critiques that it's not fair to hold the DCC to different standards from the players, I guess my feeling is that I don't think it's reasonable to lower DCC standards to the level that some players are held to. That said, I think a lot of the players really are standup men of high character. As for the picture @SHELLYB shared of the TCCs watching the premiere, that must be a pretty intense, surreal, and exciting thing to revisit the auditions when you don't know if you've made the team. I don't know what is going on with the line below here--it won't let me delete it for anything! As for the picture @ShellyB

I finally was able to watch the episode on CMT's site just now. If folks are still having trouble with the app, maybe try watching directly through the site. For an expanded season, CMT sure isn't doing much to ensure as wide a circulation and audience as possible. Slow to make it available through them and Amazon, and I don't even know if it's available through iTunes yet, which is my preferred way to watch. I hate the poor streaming quality of the 2 episodes I bought via Amazon last year and won't be doing that again. I think Whitney's problems with executing choreography accurately combined with her often lackluster facial expression while performing and her stubbornness in Kelli's office all factored in together in them not seeing her as being right for the team. But Kelli told her she's not right for the team before she tried to talk her way out of getting cut, so I think that aspect might just be the icing on their uncertainty about seeing her this year. Whitney is pretty and has a great figure and is a good dancer, so I think she probably scored well with the other judges. I don't think it's mean girl of Kelli to be skeptical about Whitney. This is like her 6th time trying out, so it's not like she hasn't been given 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th chances. If she's performing with the same skill, semi-soft on power, and doesn't appear more dynamic and fun to watch, I don't see why Kelli or Judy should be less skeptical. Besides, whatever they felt, they did attend to the judges' votes and advanced her to semis. I'm guessing ballroom champ didn't fare as well with most of the judges, resulting in her getting cut after prelims. She really did not have the look at auditions and I agree that her hair and makeup didn't do her any favors. What I found even more off-putting than her looks, makeup, and repeatedly dropping mention of her ballroom titles was that hideous fringe pants ballroom outfit she willingly chose for her studio segment. The all over fringe was awful enough but the vertical two-tone was ridiculous to me. Perhaps they showed her story in part to show the caliber and prestige of dancers who don't meet the DCC standards in one way or another. Loved Dayton and appreciated that she hasn't spent her whole childhood wanting to be a DCC. @ShellyB you looked fabulous and like the sweetest mama, and I loved that they showed what a special relationship you two have! I really admire the effort you put into not being an overbearing stage mom and that you put the energy instead into supporting your daughter and cheering her on to do her best and be her own person.

Wow, I thought Thunderstruck was sacrosanct! I wasn't really watching for the changes carefully before, but I will now. As for changes, I do believe that KaShara is point for their HOF performance. After reading about the mysteriously missing Holly and Jenna, I went to poke around social media for a hot minute. Yes, the virtual radio silence of H and J is interesting, and I noted that Holly retweeted something about haters gonna hate and you gotta keep on anyway. Seemed like some shade being thrown but I'm not in the know enough to get the specific reference regarding who's "hating" on Holls. Back to my point about point: Bess tweeted the triangle pic that Kelli posted, and said how proud she was of Kash being at point and telling her to show folks how it's done. The intrigue builds...

On the DCC Twitter page, yes, there are several pictures. Some have been posted upthread, alongside some videos of them dancing.

What I felt was especially dick in that goodbye "preview" was the song. It had a kind of jaunty, mocking tone to the lyrics. If they had presented it more respectfully, then maybe the ad would have been just a reminder of the girls you may have rooted for in the past and that you do get wrapped up in the journeys of some of the heartbreakers. As I watched, I was like, Awww, Alexandra! But as it plays, it does feel kind of mean, and misleading for those who actually don't know past seasons of the show. Alexandra got cut 3 seasons ago--why you gotta bring up old shit, CMT? And, ew, to CMT making light of the Tessa injury in any way. That young woman has gone through enough and her health is not for entertainment, whether or not they meant it to be funny. I'm guessing they didn't, because they're not Martians at CMT. Either way, I think they missed the mark with both promo videos.

I'm shocked that Christina still is in training camp! I've decided to embrace the suspense of no spoilers, but also I am #beyond ready for the season to start! In looking towards football season, I really liked the triangle at Oxnard. I'm surprised that it looked so good to me, because I had imagined that Lacey would be way too tall to be in a triangle with Jenna without another tall girl on the other side. But I think Jenna, Lacey, and KaShara look great dancing together! I also liked Maggie and Cersten in the extended triangle, with Holly at the 2nd row point. A very dynamic group. I'll be interested to see how they change up the triangle for the full team. And of course I'm anxious for Erica to get back into the rotation too!

I feel like I missed something on the training camp thread. All of a sudden there was a warning from a mod and the thread is locked until further notice! I'm not asking anyone to say something that would violate whatever rules, but I'm just curious for a general idea of what was going wrong and I really want to know if/when they'll open back up for the new episodes and once the team is announced. ?

Lots of pictures of the DCC with Cowboys at a big signing at a military fort on DCC Twitter page. I don't know how to post from my phone, sorry! The ladies look great and the players are pretty snazzy in their suits! It was an event like this they showed one season with Mia and one of the players, and Mia was able to name all the teams he'd played for. Aw, Mia! She was a great DCC and I'm so happy for her to be an expectant mother. Do I recall correctly that Mia and some other great retired vets filmed a night at training camp earlier this summer?? Please tell me I'm right! And please show it on the show! I'd love to see some older vets at a DCC event that is something other than the fashion show.

@spazette I in no way feel picked on! If everyone agreed on everything here, there'd be nothing to say on these boards! I glanced at Tasha's Twitter account today and see that she posted something about not being perfect and getting back up, so she at least knows to be embarrassed and is trying to move forward. I also scrolled down a little and looked again at Kelli's Show Group announcement picture. I wasn't sure before when folks here were guessing about what the various stickers on the pictures all signified, but after seeing the MTT promo and the way Meredith asked Tasha the question, I think the 78 sticker on her photo likely is her written test score. She will have to bring it this year and for real next audition season if she wants to go for round 3. Weight gain + ignorance does not equal a good DCC look. But, I have seen past DCCs who screw up and rebound in a big way to be great cheerleaders and more mature, professional women. So perhaps this will be a good life lesson for her and hopefully more than just an embarrassing situation.

Maybe my takeaway here is that I don't watch vlogs and don't have much interest in them in general....

I couldn't get through half of Kelsey's video. It underscored what seems to me an annoying level of self absorption. Doesn't everyone want to watch me riding in a car? Having my picture taken in front of a bridge? Yes, she's very pretty and seems fun. But I couldn't watch more than 3 minutes of her in that video. I did like seeing their little stop at the Magnolia silo in Waco, though!

I think this Zeke situation is an example of why the DCC have to be confident that their cheerleaders are prepared to be gracious and diplomatic ambassadors. I imagine people will ask/talk to the DCC about it, either at events or in their off time. I've wondered before about the DCC love for Zeke in relation to his past domestic violence allegations. I think that many NFL players are admirable in some way or another but I do have ambivalent feelings about the ways the league seems to allow, sweep under the rug, or overlook the violent behavior of some of its players, particularly regarding violence against women. I remember admiring how Shannon, the lady from Pittsburgh who auditioned in season 9, handled her Jason Witten/Roethlisberger question in her finals interview. She trod delicately around Roethlisberger's rape allegations--she didn't bring them up specifically, but neither did she blindly endorse someone with questionable treatment of women. She merely said she'd favor Jason Witten because her Steelers qb wasn't her favorite person off the field. I think that's an excellent example of what the judges are looking for--ladies who clearly are informed (particularly in this case about the NFL, major players, and big news about both) and who know how to be diplomatic and not throw folks or teams under the bus in what could become a charged situation. I don't think it mattered so much whether she picked Witten or Roethlisberger in her answer as much as how she answered. Along a similar ambassador vein, a Show Group member not knowing who Sean Spicer is (or, apparently, why Melissa McCarthy was charging podiums at people on SNL while wearing a frightful wig) seems like a major potential embarrassment for the organization, especially given that they go overseas to visit our military. People who put their lives on the line to protect their nation could be offended that she doesn't appear to give a shit about national affairs or our military engagements abroad. I kind of can't believe that they aired Tasha's faux pas like that in the preview and presumably in the finals episode, because it seems very embarrassing for the team to admit that they have a veteran who showed she is so blatantly ignorant and they took her back. But I'm also glad that they did, because she should be seriously embarrassed that thousands of people and her whole team now know that she is so ignorant. Clearly, she's invested in being a Trophy (as her shirt announced in one of her personal posts) and isn't concerned about much else.

Yes, but Shelby was looking kinda sad about being rejected, so maybe her ego won't be so much stroked as stricken!

I actually thought that Selina looked a little thick in the waist and thighs in some of her photos from the calendar shoot this year. She looked a little more toned at auditions, but I've been wondering since Bimini if she was on their radar. I'm way more surprised that Tasha and Stephanie were reported to be on weight watch than Selina. I'm glad they didn't drag Celinda's cut to the very end of camp. She's cute but, yeah, kind of stiff. While I admire that she's a hard worker (per her little feature extra/outtake from last season), I found her kind of blah in terms of how her personality came across on camera. So, four more projected cuts, right? For the girls' sake and the show, I hope they don't save all four til the last night. But for those who made it far enough to get the boots, congrats to them! That must feel great. It would be fun to see them passing out boots again, as it's been several seasons since they included that on the show. I loved how much Judy loved seeing how happy Jackie Bob was getting her first pair! Speaking of Jackie and boots, I saw online that Kelli gave out a boot as thank yous to a small group who had done something for the DCC (maybe help with picking winners from their cheerleader video competition). She attached a note to each boot and Jackie's note from Kelli was so sweet, saying how proud she always is of her. Awww.

I don't know who Tamra Judge is, but now that I see this video I remember what a bad cinematographer she is from when this was posted last year. Why is she a hosebeast? Deets, please! If we're in week 6 of camp, does that mean that the squad will be announced in 2 weeks?! How many cuts remain if they go for a squad of 36? I forget how many they took into camp this year. I will be perusing the rookies' Twitter pages as soon as they're up (or, more likely, scrolling hard core through social media pics folks post here), trying to get some sense of who's who going into the show season premiere. Am I correct in thinking MTT airs August 4?

Table etiquette is part of getting the DCC Southern Lady polish. I actually found it to be an interesting class/social dimension when watching the older segment y'all mentioned with Abigail. A number of the TCCs and cheerleaders do not come from families or environments that follow formal or semi-formal dining rules and they have no idea how to navigate a fancy dinner with four forks or follow basic table rules. Even ladies from fairly wealthy families may grow up in households where dining is pretty informal and/or they don't eat a range of foods that might be served at a fancy event. It's old school but revealing that not knowing proper dining etiquette is a quick giveaway of a non-elite background and can produce embarrassment for the one who is out of their element (or for the organization they are representing). Having a grasp on the rules and customs allows people to move effectively or at least not embarrassingly across some social circles and arenas. This is part of the perfect Southern lady package the DCC are expected to embody, and it probably does prove helpful to some, even outside of DCC world. This goes along with their speaking and elocution training, though I think that only some girls get that and I think fewer girls who need it have made it into camp these last few years. I remember Kimber, possibly from the same season as the French onion soup session, having to speak to Kelli in front of the group about a current event and she struggled, both with knowing about current affairs and speaking well in the situation. Kelli also corrected her grammar in an office discussion or two. Folks rightly have commented on here in the past about the apparent level of privilege many DCC seem to have (rolling up to auditions and practice in fancy cars, carrying designer handbags everywhere, years of studio dance lessons and prep classes under their belts, growing up in houses with dance studios inside, degrees from elite colleges and universities, etc.). But I think that much of what is expected of DCCs is hard to achieve without money and a middle-class or higher upbringing. It's possible, of course, but unless you're Nicole Hamilton, it's hard to waltz in without years of dance training and make the team. I am defending nothing here, one way or the other, just musing on some of the class and gender dynamics I've found interesting about being one of America's Sweethearts. I hope we get to see a segment from this year's session! With an expanded season, they should take advantage of the space to show us more of what goes into being a DCC. BUT, I really am hoping that, more than outside fluff stuff, they make sure to give us more dancing! I want to see group leaders and seconds leading rehearsals and rookies dancing waaaay more than I want to see cheerleader fork training.

Until practice ends and Kelli calls folks into the office...

Molly is so freaking cute and pretty at the same time. I knew nothing about her, including that she cheered for the Ducks, so thanks @LaurenBrook for posting the link. I still don't have know who all the rookies are, even though I look at the rookie cheat sheet folks have posted here. Based on what very little I know, I'm kind of rooting for Molly, Keyra, Tara, Alexis, Kalyssa, Gina and Savannah. I've been rewatching season 9 and its so fun to see Erica and Lacey as rookies and kind of crazy to be reminded of the rest of their rookie class...and how scared Breelan looked nearly every time she's shown on camera. I also had forgotten about her wall to wall zebra carpet in her house. Watching now reminded me that, when I watched the season back in the day, I kept thinking, I hope Erica, Melissa, and Lacey stay a long time because I'd love to see them as group leaders. They really were rockstars from the very first night of rehearsals as rookies. So glad E and L are leaders now! Really hoping that Erica's injury doesn't plague her or keep her out of parts of the season. I'm even more annoyed by Christina now that I'm rewatching season 9. She was just so incredibly clueless about her crappy kicks, and when she was in the office talking about, "To be honest, I've always struggled with flexibility and kicks...my kicks aren't bad, they just aren't great..." I was like, if you know the DCC are supposed to be among the very best, why would you think they should accept your "not great" dance skills involving their signature moves? To me, right there, she admitted that her bad kicks and splits weren't just about an injury, as she claimed when she got cut. It just annoys me when people think their below par-ness should count as the best. Judy telling her that her kick technique was "just wrong" is one of my favorite Judy-on-the-stool moments ever. So now I'm more ready for Xtina to get cut from this camp. The pictures I've seen of her non-glory splits at auditions plus the meh dance video I've seen of her posted here just irk or underwhelm me. I will be shocked and kind of annoyed if she makes the team.

Lol, look at the kind of sharing this forum produces! I kid. But this does have me thinking and smiling about the dad who took his daughter to toddler DCC camp and was so adorably dancing around with her. It was posted here (via Twitter) awhile ago. He's a former Cowboy and apparently a totally fun-loving and devoted daddy. Gives me all the feels. In training camp related matters, I've been wondering if this is a less spectacular year for DCC, given that Tasha made Show Group. I'm hoping I'm wrong and that I only think that because they've given us so little to go on this summer. Maybe Tasha has stepped it up 100 and she's a rock star now. I'm happy for Heather O and Maggie that they get to experience SG together, but I feel a little badly that little Heather is missing out on their second year adventures. Such is life, I suppose. I'd love to see a week's worth of Heather and Maggie's diet plan. Those ladies have, in my opinion, two of the best figures on the squad. Totally fit and healthy looking and still with real curves. Me, I just have the real curves.

Very happy for Stephanie, Heather O, and KaShara for making Show Group! I'm as shocked as everyone else about Tasha and as hopeful as everyone that Erica recovers fully from her injury. I also hope that she was wearing shorts in that picture with her hottie boyfriend. Those would be the definition of hot shorts, but if it's a dress it borders on indecent. When did I get so old and prude? On the flip side, I totally dislike Maddie's 1st meeting dress for someone under 40. I get the modesty thing, sure, but modest does not have to mean dressing twice your age. Judy would look great in that dress!

I'm happy to say that my dance teachers never made us do those facials at any age. I had a tap teacher who was so over the top with her own expressions and even in the 5th grade, I was like, that looks ridiculous but I'm glad she's having fun! I mean, some folks just make faces because it's part of how they're emoting while expressing themselves with the music. For me, I just always smiled because I was having fun. We competed at my studio, but there was no pressure to be all pageant-tastic with our facials and we never did weigh-ins like some of the other studios around town.

So now we know Holly has been making those faces while performing for at least a decade now. Seems to me that she actually has toned them down. Her facials in that video drove me crazy--they seemed like over the top pageant faces, which I often find creepy or obnoxious rather than cute. Holly clearly was talented back then. It's awesome to see how much more skilled and polished she's become through continuous hard work.

Thanks to a non-DCC entity for posting the first full group photo of training camp! Stephanie DW seems so lovely and like such a badass dance teacher--you have to be great with choreo and in great shape to keep up with her. I really really hope we see her on the show this season. I loved seeing her feedback for some of the rookies in the past. Brennan looks as awkward in the group photo as she has every other time I've seen her and Christina looks kind of mousy next to more glamorous ladies in both the group pic and our new gussied-up rookie photo sheet. BTW, thanks to those on here who are helping us lost ones put rookie faces with names!