Jason Mraz said partner Daniella Karagach isn’t the only one who helped him end season 32 of Dancing With the Stars as the first runner-up.
“Her husband also got to be a mentor for me,” Mraz, 46, exclusively told Us Weekly of Pasha Pashkov after the DWTS finale aired live on ABC and Disney+ on Tuesday, December 5. “Being the last male celeb, I got to watch all my competitors with these great male leads who all became my friends and mentors to help me kind of understand how I’m supposed to lead a partner around the floor. So Pasha was great. In fact, [for] tonight’s Foxtrot, right before we started, I said, I’m just going to do my best Pasha Pashkov impersonation. That’s the best thing I can do right now.”
Pashkov, 36, came in third with partner Ariana Madix. “I’m so proud of him,” Karagach, 30, told Us. “He deserves it more than anyone, so I’m really proud of him.”
Mraz added that it was exciting to work on the Foxtrot with Karagach since it wasn’t her specialty. (The pro is trained in Latin and Ballroom dancing.)
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“We were both newbies at it, and that felt so special to go into that challenge together,” he told Us of their final dance.
Mraz’s imitation of Pashkov resulted in a perfect score of 30. However, it wasn’t enough to take first place as Xochitl Gomez and partner Val Chmerkovskiy took home the Len Goodman Mirrorball trophy.
“Don’t be sorry,” Mraz said of coming in second place. “We did win. Did you see us out there? First runners up! We were in the show down to the buzzer. That is a win.”
He continued, telling Us, “The way I also see it is anybody who got to dance in the finale tonight is the winner because we can’t go any further. We’re all going home tonight. So I’m so proud of everyone and I love the family that we made here. In fact, I was joking with some of the other celebs. I feel like we kind of ruined the show because none of us were that competitive. We were always cheering each other on.”
The “I Won’t Give Up” singer couldn’t stop gushing over his wonderful experience on the show, explaining to Us that “dancing just rattles your bones, your muscles, your fascia, and it all comes pouring out.”
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“Everything you’ve been storing and hiding in there. Dancing is a great medium, not just for self-expression, but for evolution,” he added. “Dancing every week is physical, it’s mental, it’s emotional. It really gets you. And also being paired with this pro here who taught me everything I know is I couldn’t be more grateful for this experience.”
Mraz said Karagach will help him ahead of the Dancing With the Stars tour this summer, but for now, he plans to celebrate by going home to his cat and sleeping.
Reporting by Hannah Kahn
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