Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 28, Number 7, 1 July 2010 — Dancing on cloud 9 [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Dancing on cloud 9

By Howard Dashefsky t took nearly a full month for Hawai'i's Nieole Scherzinger to return to earth. She was dancing on cloud nine for weeks after capturing the grand prize in the wildly popular ABC reality program Dancing with the Stars, with partner Derek Hough. "It's finally getting back to normal," said Scherzinger, who is part-Hawaiian. "After the linale I went overseas for some r 'n' r, then eame back to L.A. I took another eouple days to relax, then hit the studio." But for the entertainer previously best known for her

vocals, as lead singer of the Pussycat Dolls, the experience is still difficult to grasp. "It's overwhelming. It's such a huge blessing to be part of this season and the No. l-watched show in the entire country," she said. "And for me the timing was perfect. My heart was in the right plaee, my spirit was in the right plaee and I was ready to go for it and work hard. So no matter how it turned out, I knew going in the experience would be wonderful." The spirit Scherzinger refers to, is the aloha spirit. Something she says defines her, wherever she goes and whatever she does. "The aloha spirit is more than just a catch phrase," said

Scherzinger. "It's how you live your life, every minute of every day, and how you put your heart into everything you do. So I always thought of that before I hit the stage, and I always want to represent the islands and the people of Hawai'i as best I ean." Though she was born on O'ahu, Scherzinger moved to the U.S. continent as a young girl. But as the saying goes, you ean take the girl out of Hawai'i, but you can't take the Hawai'i out of the girl. "Hawai'i's been a huge part of our family," said Scherzinger's mother Rosemary Scherzinger, who returned to Hawai'i years ago and lives on 0'ahu's west side. "We have a huge 'ohana. My mom has 15 brothers and sisters and I have 10. So we've always had big family gather-

ings and singing and dancing was always a big part of them. So Nicole's Hawaiian heritage is very important to her." A dancer herself as a young girl, Rose Scherzinger says she taught her daughter a few moves here and there, but nothing like what she witnessed on TV. "I was hlown away," said Rose. "To do that kind of dancing is so technical. We went to the second show and I saw her effort. She's a perfectionist who works so hard and gives 1 10 percent all the time." Although she scored perfect 10s performing the waltz, the tango and several other difficult dance moves, Nieole says when it comes to hula, she'U leave it to her cousins. "Growing up on the mainland I was a little behind the rest of the family in that department," she said. "But my mom's a great dancer, so I shook what my momma gave me." And while her dancing

may be on the back burner for now while she focuses on a new alhum, Nieole says her Hawaiian ancestry will always be front and center. "For me, having family from Hawai'i and being of Hawaiian descent is so important. They are warriors and I am a warrior. To be in this business and to have the courage to carry on and to keep the faith is not easy. I'm always reminded of a verse from an Israel Kamakawiwo'ole song that says being Hawaiian is not stepping on the toes of others. It's about being in the right spirit, having your heart in the right plaee and allowing your aloha and spirit to shine." ■ Howard Dashefsky is a eontrihuting writerfor Ka Wai Ola A 25-year veteran in broadcast news, he teaches journalism at the University ofHawai'i-Mānoa and produces showsfor OC 16.

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N AT I V E H A W A I I A N S AT KŪLIA I K A NU'U

THE T 0 P 0 F T H E I R GAME / S T R I V E T 0 REACH THE SUMMIT

Nieole Scherzinger, right, with her tūtū Katherine Nakuauaokalani Frederick and "Dancing with the Stars" partner Derek Hough. - Photo: Courtesy of Rosemary Scherzinger