Gavin DeGraw's Struggle with Public Intimacy

As a musician, Gavin DeGraw is constantly performing on a stage for large audiences, but performing on Dancing with the Stars has presented a new challenge for him, as he steps out of his comfort zone and has to display intimacy through dancing.

In an interview with ET during a rehearsal for next week's shows, DeGraw admitted that he's been thrown off by having to display intimacy publicly through dancing with partner Karina Smirnoff.

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He explained that although he has previously shot music videos in which he has kissed a girl, making "sexy face" and presenting himself in any other sexy way in front of millions of viewers is very distant from how he normally prefers to present himself.

The 35-year-old musician likened the romantic moves associated with dancing as being similar to those of Looney Tunes character Pepe Le Pew, whom DeGraw grew up watching on television.

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"All I can think about is Pepe Le Pew. [Karina is] saying 'Look sexy,' and I'm thinking, 'I look like a cartoon skunk,'" he said of the more intimate dances moves he has to perform.

Check out DeGraw and Smirnoff next Monday (Apr. 2) on Dancing with the Stars at 8 p.m. on ABC.