ABC/Lorenzo BevilaquaPatti LaBelle, who celebrated her 73rd birthday in May, isn’t ashamed to admit her age…or admit how painful it was for her to compete on Dancing With the Stars two years ago.
As the soul/R&B legend reveals to ABC’s Robin Roberts on the new edition of Roberts’ Everybody’s Got Something podcast, “That show will kill you. It’s physical. It’s a rough show.”
LaBelle tells Roberts, “It’s a live Monday show and you have to make sure you do all of those steps and you break your knees and stuff trying to make sure Monday you’re ready. And when that live thing comes on and you’re out there dancing, you better be correct. And I was correct, but hurting.”
Even though the “Lady Marmalade” singer finished in eighth place on the dancing competition show, she says she’s proud she took on the challenge.
She says, “In life, you get choices. And I had a choice to do Dancing with the Stars or not. I said ‘no’ for two months and then I said, ‘Yes. I’m gonna do it because I can.’ Age is not gonna stop me.'”
Patti adds, “It’s like when I was told I was too ugly to be a singer. [A white manager] said I had a big nose. I had a big nose but whatever. I still looked in the mirror and saw beauty. And I certainly heard my voice.”
She adds, “People try to bring you down. If you let them. So don’t stop trying to do anything, everybody.”
Roberts’ podcast Everybody’s Got Something is available through Apple Podcasts, Spotify, the ABC News and ESPN mobile apps, Google Play Music, RobinPodcast.com and ABCNewsPodcasts.com.
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