© 2026 ABC News

Burke also opened up about how her past experiences with addiction allowed her to develop a close bond with current \"DWTS\" celebrity partner AJ McLean.

\"We just bonded right away,\" Burke said when recounting how she and the Backstreet Boys singer met via Zoom for the first time. Now, they can talk freely about their therapy and self-help because of their past struggles.

While most of their deep discussions wind up being cut, Burke said she completely understands why \"DWTS\" shies away from airing such sensitive content.

\"It's not about us. It's about the celebrity, 100%,\" she explained.

","canonicalUrl":"https://abcnews.com/GMA/Culture/dancing-stars-pro-cheryl-burke-years-sober/story?id=73338330","legacySlug":"/culture/story/dancing-stars-pro-cheryl-burke-years-sober-73338330","noIndexNoFollow":false},"publishTime":"14:26","publishDate":"09-30-2020","updatedTime":"17:33","updatedDate":"09-30-2020","socialImage":{"alt":"Dancer/TV personality Cheryl Burke at Universal Studios Hollywood on Sept. 25, 2020, in Universal City, Calif.","credit":"Paul Archuleta/Getty Images","ratio":"16x9","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/burke-gty-ml-200930_1601474533697_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg","width":992,"height":558},"datePublished":"9/30/2020 14:26:00 GMT","video":{"live":false,"id":73338330,"headline":"'DWTS' pro Cheryl Burke is 2 years sober","mediaAssetTitle":"GMA CHERYL BURKE","description":"\"It was just a decision that I made for myself.\"","duration":"20:33","posterImg":{"url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","width":608,"height":342},"video":{"feed":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2020/09/200903_gma_digital_dwts_full_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8"},"playlist":["72885629","72805430","63250486"]},"relatedItems":[{"contentType":"story","date":"September 9, 2020","headline":"How 'Dancing With the Stars' will change amid COVID-19","section":"culture","slug":"/culture/story/dancing-stars-change-amid-covid-19-72885629","id":72885629,"image":{"alt":"How 'Dancing With the Stars' will change amid COVID-19","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/dwts-tyra-banks-abc-llr-200908_1599595622683_hpMain_4x3t_240.jpg","credit":"Kevin Mazur/Getty Images, FILE","ratio":"1x1"}},{"contentType":"video","date":"September 3, 2020","headline":"Carole Baskin, AJ McLean, Nelly and ‘Dancing With The Stars’ cast exclusive interview","section":"culture","slug":"/video/72805430","id":72805430,"image":{"alt":"Carole Baskin, AJ McLean, Nelly and ‘Dancing With The Stars’ cast exclusive interview","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/200903_gma_digital_dwts_hpMain_1x1_240.jpg","credit":"ABCNews.com","ratio":"1x1"}},{"contentType":"story","date":"May 24, 2019","headline":"Cheryl Burke of 'DWTS' marries 'Mrs. Doubtfire' star Matthew Lawrence","section":"culture","slug":"/culture/story/cheryl-burke-dwts-marries-mrs-doubtfire-star-matthew-63250486","id":63250486,"image":{"alt":"Cheryl Burke of 'DWTS' marries 'Mrs. Doubtfire' star Matthew Lawrence","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/matthew-lawrence-cheryl-burke-file-gty-ml-190524_hpMain_4x3t_240.jpg","credit":"Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic/Getty Images","ratio":"1x1"}}],"relatedContentSection":"news","schemaContent":{"name":"'DWTS' pro Cheryl Burke is 2 years sober","description":"\"It was just a decision that I made for myself.\"","duration":"20:33","uploadDate":"09-30-2020","publication":"09-30-2020","images":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","url":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2020/09/200903_gma_digital_dwts_full_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","contentUrl":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2020/09/200903_gma_digital_dwts_full_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","link":"https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/culture/story/dancing-stars-pro-cheryl-burke-years-sober-73338330"}},"playlist":[{"id":"133220149","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133179167","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133144373","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133144059","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133143081","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133075455","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133063114","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133063086","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133015093","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132998564","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132998072","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132977374","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132977531","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132962364","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132958371","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132932494","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132927870","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132911868","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132911765","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132880952","contentType":"story","section":"news"}],"kvps":{"pgtyp":"article","lang":"en","sp":"goodmorningamerica","programmatic":"true","bundleId":"com.abcnews"}},"analytics":{"accountID":"wdgnewwdgnewgmaweb","ns":"gma","pageName":"gma:culture:video","pageType":"video","globalSpecVersion":"v1.08","siteDifferentiator":"gma:site","tagID":"g_page01","userABCookie":"0","section":"culture","title":"'DWTS' pro Cheryl Burke is 2 years sober","pubTime":"10:26","pubDate":"09-30-2020","modTime":"13:33","modDate":"09-30-2020","taxonomyTags":"none","id":73338330,"editorialOtherSubjects":"","wordCount":"none","columns":"none","authors":"Tony Morrison, Brittany Berkowitz","authorsUnit":"none","authorsBureau":"none","subBrand":"Good Morning America","provider":"Good Morning America","videoName":"'DWTS' pro Cheryl Burke is 2 years sober","mediaAssetTitle":"GMA CHERYL BURKE","videoId":73338330,"mediaOnPage":"video","legacySlug":"/culture/story/dancing-stars-pro-cheryl-burke-years-sober-73338330"},"taboola":{}},"request":{"headers":{},"httpVersion":"1.1","method":"GET","url":"/video/73338330","vary":{"host":"www.goodmorningamerica.com","cached":true,"path":"/video/73338330","forwarded-proto":"https","device":"desktop","userab":"0"}},"viewport":{"width":1260,"height":0},"user":{}};