Robert Irwin admits he warned his family about his SPICY Dancing With the Stars salsa to Kylie | NGL

What this episode is about

Robert Irwin, fresh off his Dancing with the Stars victory, reflects on using his platform to promote wildlife conservation while honoring his family's legacy. He shares the inspiration he drew from his sister's performance, emphasizing the importance of storytelling and vulnerability in his journey.

Key takeaways

• Winning the Mirrorball isn't just a trophy; it's a platform for passion—wildlife conservation shines brighter on the dance floor.
• Dancing's tough, but so is legacy-building; channel the Irwin spirit while you cha-cha.
• Unexpected wisdom on the dance floor: sometimes the best move is to let go and lean in.
• Every dance tells a story; a tribute to a parent becomes a global message of resilience and strength.
• Who knew a mirrored ballroom could reflect the depths of grief and the heights of love?

Who speaks in this episode?

• Robert Irwin (Guest) · 10 min speaking
• Kylie Kelce (Host) · 2 min speaking

What is discussed, and when

1. 0:00 – 3:00: Dancing with the Stars, Bindi Irwin
2. 3:00 – 6:00: Whitney Carson, Tarzan
3. 6:00 – 9:00: Whitney Carson

Notable quotes from "Robert Irwin admits he warned his family about his SPICY Dancing With the Stars salsa to Kylie | NGL"

• Of Dancing with the Stars, my heart always beats Khaki, it always beats that Irwin spirit. and I never thought that I would be able to bring my message and what I stand for…

  about Dancing with the Stars · at 0:59

• The glue to hold us together through the most challenging times in our life, particularly when my dad passed. and we did a contemporary dance to You'll Be In My Heart by Phil…

  about Tarzan · at 5:25

• Dance. And to have a dance that was for her that was also made by a mom. Whitney, she's an amazing and powerful mom in her own right. It just felt like this incredible celebration.

  about Whitney Carson · at 6:35

Who and what is mentioned in this episode?

People

• Whitney Carson — Person · Referenced collaborator (dance partner/choreographer) · 2 mentions · first at 3:07
  Identified as the guest’s professional dance partner/teacher on Dancing with the Stars and framed as instrumental in helping him perform emotionally significant routines (including a dedication dance to his mother).
• Bindi Irwin — Person · Referenced family member / advisor · 1 mention · first at 2:35
  Cited as a key source of encouragement and practical advice for the guest’s Dancing with the Stars run; also referenced as joining a tribute dance and as a prior winner, reinforcing the Irwin family legacy theme.
  But my sister was really the inspiration for me. I watched her I still remember 11 years old. I was in the audience in that ballroom watching her just lighting it up and sharing this beautiful sense.

Places & events

• Dancing with the Stars — Event · Core topic · 3 mentions · first at 0:00
  Main focus of the discussion, highlighting the guest's recent win and the emotional journey through the competition.

Media & podcasts

• Tarzan — Media · Referenced work · 1 mention · first at 5:40
  Mentioned in the context of a song used in a dance dedicated to the guest's mom, adding emotional depth to the discussion.

Full transcript with timestamps

0:00 You're fresh off your Dancing with the Stars win. So, congratulations. Thank you so much. It still hasn't even really set in. I It just doesn't even feel real. It's crazy. Thank you.

0:12 I love so much that with everything that you're doing that your messaging stays consistent. um and that you've taken the opportunity within your Dancing with the Stars opportunity and other opportunities that you've had to discuss animal conservation and make sure that people know that that is at the forefront of everything that you do. How have you been able to continue uh to discuss that, especially now that you're a Mirrorball Trophy winner? Ah, first of all, thank you so much for saying that, you know, because I feel like no matter what I do, whether I'm in my car key uniform like you are right now or if I am in the the the sequence of Dancing with the Stars, my heart always beats Khaki, you know, it always beats that that Irwin spirit. and and I never thought that I would be able to bring my message and what I stand for, which is wildlife conservation, to the world through through a dancing show.

1:17 But my sister was really the inspiration for me. I I watched her I still remember 11 years old. I was in the audience in that ballroom watching her just lighting it up and sharing this beautiful sense of authentic passion. And I just went, "Wow, one day I want to follow in those footsteps." And and to have that chance was everything to me. I never in my wildest dreams thought I'd make it to the end. No way. Like I was in absolute shock every week. My bags were packed. I was ready to go every week. And I realized not only am I representing wildlife conservation, but also I I'm creating my own kind of legacy. My life has been about continuing the legacy of my mom and dad and and my whole family.

2:06 But through this, I got to really, I guess, tap into a more kind of vulnerable side and tell stories that were a little more challenging, but I I hope I kind of got to put a little bit of positivity and and and passion into that ballroom.

2:21 Now, was it like a cheat code to have Bindy there cheering you on and also having won it herself?

2:29 Yeah. Well, that's the thing because like she her advice. Oh, she's amazing. You've talked to you know what she's like. She is so sweet and so kind, but then like she's got this old soul and this this real wisdom about her. It's amazing. So, when I first decided to do this, I you know, Dancing the Stars went, "Do you want to do you want to be on this season?" And I just was like, "Yes, let's go." And then I kind of thought, "Hang on a minute. I I I might have been a little hasty. like I have no idea what to do. Like what the heck did I just sign up for? And I'm talking to Vinnie. I'm like, "What? Uh I don't know how to dance. I don't know what uh" And she when we found out that I'd be partnered with Whitney. She was like, "Listen, Whitney Carson is the greatest.

3:14 You don't have to worry about the dancing thing. She'll be an amazing teacher. You got this." But the best advice that she gave to me was to just let go and lean in. Like that was it. She said, "This experience will change your life." And every time when rehearsals after 12 hours a day and you're sore and you're just giving it everything, she just said, "Remember why you're here. Remember what you represent. Remember that passion you have. Remember everything that you're about and remember that this experience is supposed to be hard. It's supposed to be a challenge." And I just went, "All right, I just got to let go and lean into this absolute hurricane." Now, there were so many emotional moments in the show. Um, I saw them all over my TikTok feed, including the dance you dedicated. Yes. In But including the dance you dedicated to your dad where Bindy joins at the end. I actually I uh

4:09 I can't watch this one. We were going to queue it up for you, but I actually I c I can't do it. Um, so

4:17 I do I I know. I mean, it just hits you right in the fields. you it's you could feel the emotion and um it was such a beautiful tribute. Um but I do want to ask did you have a favorite dance that you did this season?

4:34 Ah that is so that is such a hard question and that one I it's like it's like they're all my little children. Like I love them everyone. I love them all and they're all like the the culmination of so many months of of all of this time and energy. But, you know, I think there's that one that I dedicated to my dad and and to my sister was was beautiful. And then I also did another dance. It's just the first one that springs to my mind because it felt so there was like so much gravity and weight on this dance which was a dedication that I I did to my my mom. It was dedication week and they said, "Who do you want to dedicate a dance to?" And I dedicate it to to my mom because I felt like she really is the guiding force behind everything that we do. And she's been the glue to hold us together through the most challenging times in our life, particularly when my dad passed. and we did a contemporary dance to You'll Be In

5:38 My Heart by um Phil Collins, you know, from the Tarzan soundtrack, which I cry at that song just listening to it at the best of times. But

5:45 don't we all? Oh my gosh. But it felt like this moment to say thank you to not only my mom, but to, you know, all of the single parents of the world, all of the moms out there who I I feel like don't always get that recognition and celebration that they deserve because I know my mom worked so hard behind the scenes to keep to keep us together. And everything that dad was about was my mom. I mean, it was them together. It was my mom and dad creating this legacy. And then when he passed, she was the one person to pick up all the broken pieces and to say, "I'm going to make sure everything that he lived for continues on." And all the while, she was just the best mom to us. And and to have her in there and part of that dance. And to have a dance that was for her that was also made by a mom. You know, Whitney, she's an amazing and powerful mom in her own right. It just felt like this incredible celebration.

6:46 And it was a turning point for me because I think it was like week four and it was the first dance where I was so overcome with just so much emotion that I just kind of let go of the moves and just let my body just sort of do what it felt was right. That dance was just everything to me. Um because yeah, my my mom's um my hero, you know, she really is.

7:06 I think that your mom and dad are like the perfect uh display of a partnership. Yes. because of the way that she has continued on. The tribute to your mom was beautiful and um I'm sure she I'm sure she loved it. Did she give you feedback?

7:25 She Oh my gosh, she it was really cute because she came out at the very end of that dance and you know my sister was part of a dance for a little, you know, a little eight count there and and she knew what what it was about. She'd been on that floor so many times. But my mom was so just adamant that she got it right. And she was she practiced it and it was really cute cuz she was like, "I I don't want to mess up this dance. I feel like I I don't want to be the thing that messes it up." And I'm like, "Mom, you can't mess it up. You got this." And she came out and it was just this really beautiful moment. did a little spin and and after that my mom and my sister and I were all in in the trailer after that and we were all just balling, you know, because it just felt like it it was someone came someone knocked on our door actually like like a makeup artist or something came in and was like, "Oh, you're ready for you know the

8:17 press line that we do after." And they open the door of the trailer and here we are just all like crying and she just like closes the door again and walks away. Never mind.

8:26 Never mind. Because it is so, you know, you've poured your heart and soul into telling a story of like it really was a story of grief. And the way my mom kind of pulled me out of a lot of a lot of challenging times and and I've always felt like I never really had an avenue to say thank you and to really express the gratitude for what she has meant to me in my life. And it felt like it was this time to finally do that. And it was actually one of the most healing moments in my entire life cuz I I addressed parts of my grief journey that I'd actually never really tapped into before. But I get emotional just even thinking about it. Like I got to I got to lock in.

9:10 I'll I'll turn I'll turn it to a little more of a light-hearted topic because Queen Emma told me I have to ask you about um Tik Tok night salsa.

9:20 Oh. Oh gosh. Oh, okay. Uh, I saw that your family didn't know these moves were coming.

9:28 They didn't There was a good reason for that because I was like every dance that I had done, I would like give my family a little preview. Like they would come to a rehearsal or I'd show them a video. But then this one, there's a point in the dance where like I remove my shirt and there's a lot of like it's salsa, so it's, you know, it's a little bit spicy. And so

9:54 what a gentlemanly way of I remove my shirt. And I was like, okay, I was like, I I I can't I can't show my fan. I don't know. Uh, so I just went, you know what? I'm just going to go for it. And I said to them, so this one's a little bit edgy. and they're like, "Oh, that's great. Go for it." But then afterwards, they were like, "Whoa." But you know what? Life is short. You got to just embrace it. There's nothing wrong with that. It was fun. It was fun.

10:22 And you know, and you know what it does? It drives traffic to the page where you are discussing passionately

10:31 animal conservation. So, you nailed it. I took my shirt off for wildlife conservation. 100%. Exactly. And you know, it's so funny. I am a big believer in like for myself, I don't take I just I don't take myself too seriously. And I think it's you got to just do that. You got to just kind of send it, let go, and just go for it. And it was so it was so that dance was the hardest one because Whitney, you know, my the dance partner is like, "Okay, you have to be cool and you have to be like really edgy and like passionate." I'm like, "I don't know how to do that.

11:08 That's not my that's not me." So, I got to find this new sort of side to myself. Cool Robert. I never knew he existed, but it was it was really cool. But then I now I'm back in my t-shirt or my car keys covered in mud again and I feel much more natural.

Questions about this episode

Who speaks in "Robert Irwin admits he warned his family about his SPICY Dancing With the Stars salsa to Kylie | NGL"?

Robert Irwin (Guest), Kylie Kelce (Host).

What is "Robert Irwin admits he warned his family about his SPICY Dancing With the Stars salsa to Kylie | NGL" about?

Robert Irwin, fresh off his Dancing with the Stars victory, reflects on using his platform to promote wildlife conservation while honoring his family's legacy. He shares the inspiration he drew from his sister's performance, emphasizing the importance of storytelling and vulnerability in his journey.

What is mentioned in this Not Gonna Lie with Kylie Kelce episode?

4 people, works and ideas are mentioned, including Dancing with the Stars, Whitney Carson, Bindi Irwin, Tarzan. Each one on this page links to its own page with every episode that mentions it.

How long is "Robert Irwin admits he warned his family about his SPICY Dancing With the Stars salsa to Kylie | NGL"?

The episode runs 12 min; the transcript is about 2,138 words in 24 timestamped sections.

More from Not Gonna Lie with Kylie Kelce

• All analyzed episodes
• Books mentioned on Not Gonna Lie with Kylie Kelce
• People mentioned on Not Gonna Lie with Kylie Kelce
• Topics mentioned on Not Gonna Lie with Kylie Kelce