Tatyana Ali is forever grateful that James Avery’s family said “yes” to her Dancing With the Stars tribute to the late actor.
“His widow, Barbara, she was very open to it, but I had to talk to her first before,” Ali, 47, exclusively shared with Us after Dedication Night on Tuesday, October 20. “I wouldn’t have done it without her. Not just her approval, but also her knowing exactly what we had planned.”
During the show, Ali and her partner, Jan Ravnik, performed a Viennese waltz routine to “(You Don’t Know) How Glad I Am” by Nancy Wilson. Fresh Prince of Bel-Air star and DWTS cohost Alfonso Ribeiro was also involved with the dance in honor of Avery.
“I hope she’s very happy with it,” Ali said about Barbara’s reaction. “I got to perform. I got to sing. I got to really make it personal — a personal tribute to James. I’m just glad they said yes when I asked if I could.”
Avery, who was best known as Philip Banks or Uncle Phil on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, died in December 2013 at the age of 68. His cause of death was determined to be complications from open-heart surgery.
Before the emotional performance, which received a score of 32 out of 40 from judges Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough, Kym Johnson and Bruno Tonioli, Ali was able to experience rehearsals with both Ravnik, 31, and Ribeiro, 55.
It’s another memory the actress won’t soon forget as she competes on ABC’s competition show.
“Every single moment that we did, every time he stepped in during rehearsal, it just was like, ‘Oh, I can’t believe this is my life, and I get to do this,’” Ali shared with Us. “We were together when we were young. To be able to do this now on this show, it’s really special.”
Alfonso Ribeiro, Tatyana Ali, Jan Ravnik Disney/Eric McCandless
While the final episode of the popular sitcom aired on NBC back in 1996, much of the cast has been able to stay connected over the years.
“We really liked each other, love each other,” Ali shared. “It’s like cousins and family, which is lucky to have in TV.”
Despite any drama surrounding DWTS in the last week — Val Chmerkovskiy was benched for a week after posting (then apologizing for) a controversial post about Inaba, 58, after her critique over a lift — Ravnik said his partner stayed focused on the task at hand.
What came next was a performance worth celebrating.
“I think this week, we distanced ourselves the way that we always do,” he shared from the ballroom. “We work so hard. We go to the studio. We are just thinking about Tuesday.”
Dancing With the Stars airs on ABC Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET.
