Another thrilling season of Dancing with the Stars is nearly upon us and just weeks after the list of celebrity contestants who have signed on to compete for the Dancing with the Stars Championship title we get our first look at the promo photos of all of the contestants paired up with their professional partners. As I’ve mentioned in seasons past, I am not a fan of the show … but I do tend to have a favorite or two that I tend to root for on the sidelines. This time around, I’m throwing all my support around the fabulous Lil’ Kim:

Kim is paired up with professional dancer Derek Hough … and they will face 12 other pairs of contestants when the next season of Dancing with the Stars hits the airwaves next month. After the jump, check out the rest of the promo pics of this seasons stars and their professional dancing partners …

Here we have Belinda Carlisle and Jonathan Roberts, Cheryl Burke and Gilles Marini, Kym Johnson and David Alan Grier, Lacey Schwimmer and Stephen Glover (Steve-O), Karina Smirnoff and Steve Wozniak, Chelsie Hightower and Ty Murray:

And here we have Jewel and Dmitry Chaplin, Edyta Sliwinska and Lawrence Taylor, Julianne Hough and Chuck Wicks, Shawn Johnson and Mark Ballas, Nancy O’Dell and Tony Dovolani, Denise Richards and Maksim Chmerkovskiy:

Clearly, the DWTS Photoshopper is really fond of using the lens flare tool on these promo pics … which gives that cheese effect in each of the photos. Meh, when in Rome, I suppose. While I am really rooting for Lil’ Kim to win it all I am also loving that Belinda Carlisle is in competition this season … tho, I fear that they cast her as the elder contestant a la Cloris Leachman last season — OUCH! On the celeb man front, I think I’ll throw my support behind French actor Gilles Marini. I really became a big fan of his after seeing him in the Sex and the City Movie last Spring … I woudn’t mind rooting for him. Are any of y’all excited for this new season? Will you be watching the show this time around? If so, who are YOU supporting to win it all?

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