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The Bossticks
Derek Hough On The Dark Side Of Success, Elite Discipline, Loneliness At The Top, & His Wife's Health Battle
01:08:16
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- [00:02]
Lauren Bostic
Welcome to the Bostics starring Lauren Bostic and Michael Bostic.
- [00:08]
Derek Hough
Together they are the Bostics.
- [00:11]
Lauren Bostic
Hello everybody. Welcome back to another episode of the Bostics. Today we have Derek Hough in the studio. He is an American dancer, choreographer, actor and television personality. Best known for his work on Dancing with the Stars where he won a record six mirror ball trophies as a professional dancer before becoming a judge. He's an Emmy award winning choreographer recognized for his innovative and high energy routines. Beyond the ballroom. Huff has appeared in films and stage productions including Hairspray Live and Singing in the Rain and has toured globally with his own dance shows. He's also a musician and fitness enthusiast known for blending performance, storytelling and athleticism. Across his work today, some of the topics include how to master your own discipline, navigating loneliness at the top of success, and finding happiness beyond your current profession. In his case, the dance floor. This is an uplifting episode. It's inspiring. We talk all about longevity, redefining success, career transition lessons and when to pivot so that you can find happiness in your own personal life. We had an incredible time with Derek and this episode has a lot of insight with that. Derek Hough, welcome to the Bostics.
- [01:12]
Michael Bostic
We were just talking off air about how when you were 12. Yeah, you, I'm not going to say you got sent away, I'll let you say it. You went to England.
- [01:20]
Derek Hough
Yes.
- [01:21]
Michael Bostic
Was that a choice you made?
- [01:22]
Derek Hough
It was very much my choice. Yeah. In fact I actually was like begged my parents to go because I went to England for this big Latin ballroom competition called Blackpool and I got kicked out the first round. I was like, oh, I am nowhere near the level of these dancers. You know, I'm like just a different, you know, it's a different level. And so I knew in order to get to where I wanted to go, even at 12 years old, I kind of had clear goals. I knew I needed to be there. I needed to be around that, you know, environment and those coaches. And so when the opportunity came up, I was like, please let me go. Yeah, I want to go.
- [02:01]
Michael Bostic
How did you have the foresight at 12 years old to be that smart to know you needed to get around people who were better than you to get better.
- [02:08]
Derek Hough
It was, it was, it was a combination of things I think during my parents divorce. So the home was, the whole foundation was completely, you know, uprooted. My both my parents lived in different apartment buildings opposite each other at the time. And, and yeah, I was at work all the time. My mom was kind of gone and so I would get kicked, you know, beaten up at school and I was, you know, got kicked out of schools and then dance was sort of my refuge. And I just fell in love with it, the community, the people. And I gotta travel, I gotta go to la. I got to go to New York. And then the coaches, Shirley Ballas, you know, and Corky Ballas, Mark Ballas parents came and taught and they were just like, hey man, you're really talented. Why don't you go, why don't you come with us for a few months and we'll train you? And I was like, yes, like, you guys are the, the best. And so I was only supposed to go for a few months, but I ended up staying for almost 10 years because I just competed and became a champion in this division and in this division. And then, yeah, I just had clear goals, I had a clear direction of what I wanted to do. But it's funny because then I look back, I look now at my nieces and nephews, I'm like, you're. You're how old I was?
- [03:19]
Lauren Bostic
It's wild.
- [03:20]
Derek Hough
What? That's crazy. Like, I can't. It's hard to fathom that way. At that time though, I felt like an adult. I was like, oh, yeah.
- [03:27]
Lauren Bostic
Do you think with the split of your parents it kind of like in a way forced you to grow up a little faster?
- [03:32]
Derek Hough
Yeah, I think so. I mean, yes, I guess I define growing up, I suppose.
- [03:38]
Lauren Bostic
I guess, like the way I'm thinking about it, I know a lot of, like, I have friends that have 12 year olds and they're. I can't imagine like knowing the maturity levels that they would like. You know, some of these kids are still having their parents cut the corners of their sandwiches, which is another issue. But, but no, I mean, I just. That's a very mature 12 year old to say I'm ready to leave the home and go to another country and live there. Like, that's just. I don't know many 12 year olds that would do that.
- [04:03]
Derek Hough
Yeah, I think I was, I think I got the competition bug at a young age. I was, I got the. I enjoyed competition. I would go to these competitions and I was, I was, you know, doing okay. But then when I would do well at a competition, I was like, oh, I want to, I want to keep that thing going. And so I think I just got sort of locked into what that feels like and knowing that in order to get better, I need to be around better people. Like you said, it's like, you know, you become who you hang around with, right? You become the people you're with. And so I need to be with people who are at the absolute top of their game. And, you know, Shirley Ballas was. She was great. She even told me she was like, you have potential to be a champion one day. And I believed her. I was like, okay, let me follow you. You show me the way, you know, essentially. And they did. So it was pretty cool.
- [04:50]
Michael Bostic
Why were you being bullied? And why did you get kicked out of school before that?
- [04:54]
Derek Hough
So I would be getting bullied. I was kind of like a young little, you know, scrawny little kid. And as funny as I've gotten older, I've realized that I'm pretty awkward, actually. I'm actually kind of an awkward person. I've done okay for myself, by the way.
- [05:10]
Lauren Bostic
A lot of people in entertainment, right? Like, I feel like some of us could be a little awkward.
- [05:13]
Derek Hough
But I really. And even like, my dad now. Like, I looked at my dad like, he is the most amazing man, and he's just like, can hold a room, and he's, you know, he's. You know, he was the president of this company. But now as he's gotten older, I'm like, oh, man, you're kind of goofy. You're kind of awkward. And that's. I think that's where I get that from. The reason why I say that is because as a young kid, I really found it hard to connect with, you know, kids at school and to hang out. And, like, I didn't have, like, the little clicks. And so I was always on the outside just trying to, like, fit in and get in there. But it was being a dancer didn't help. I think I would get the, you know, the crap eaten out of me at, you know, one school kid, like, punched me in the face, bleeding everywhere. But then I, like, retaliated and started, you know, beating him up. And then I got expelled from school one time, this girl, like, took a. I don't know, she kind of liked me, I guess, when we were kids, we're talking, like, 10 years old, 11 years old. And a few of the guys didn't like that. So they found me in a corner and they beat me up. And so, yeah, it was interesting. And then even my neighborhood, where I lived, in my neighborhood, we had these neighbors who were. Bullying is kind of too nice of a word. They, like, tormented me, where they would hang me up in a tree by my ankles and put a gun to my head and spit on me or hog tie Me in a field. And. And it was. I was scared. I would have night terrors. And very traumatic, man, it was. And I would, like, wet the bed. And, you know, I was a scared kid. I was a terrified kid. Scared of the dark, scared of my shadow. Like, just scared and constantly on edge. And so it was interesting. And I couldn't sleep over at people's homes. I was. I had to be home. If I try, I would try, like, let me sleep over at my friend's house, and I'd go over there, and then I'd call my mom, like, come pick me up, you know, and just scared. So it's kind of ironic the fact that at 12 years old, I moved across, you know, across the world and trained and, you know, competed and did stuff. But it was interesting. Once I was there, I felt I was, like, on track, you know, and I felt safe. I actually felt safe being away. And I felt like I had a goal. I had a vision. I knew what I was doing. I had. You know, each day I was like, this is the plan. You know, there was not sort of like this sense of floating around and being scared. It was like I had clarity. And that clarity is power.
- [07:39]
Michael Bostic
So I also think, and I don't, that dancing gets out so much energy that's sometimes suppressed.
- [07:48]
Derek Hough
Sure.
- [07:49]
Michael Bostic
And this is my own opinion. It just gets out energy. And, like, if you are feel. It's. If I was feeling scared or fearful or upset, a way to get it out is to move your body. So it makes sense to me that you were attracted to dance.
- [08:03]
Derek Hough
Well, and before I danced, I played drums. I was a drummer. I was played in a Beach Boys tribute band, you know, in the Utah county fairs and stuff. Or get up and sing Hound Dog, you know, sing Elvis. And so when I walked into dance, I had this teacher named Rick Robinson, and he was from Chicago, and he was like, yo, Heavy D, you know, why don't you, like, come do this hip hop? And I was like, all right. And then he also did barm and Latin. So that's how I got into that style as well. But the music, the rhythm, you know, being a drummer, understanding, you know, musicality, I took to dance even quicker, I think, because I understood it, you know, the musicality part of it. And then once you have this thing with your body, you have this control. It's like. It's like there's something about that. Right. Where I often say this. It's primal, right? Dancing is primal. Before you can walk or crawl, we all have babies. You put Them on the ground before you put music on. They're kind of like, you know, they're moving around. It's in us. But somewhere along the way, we sort of decide not to dance anymore. So having that freedom, listening to the music, syncing your body up to the rhythm and the beat, it just does something. And then you get yourself in a community and then a competition, and then it was like a perfect storm, you know? And I love music as well.
- [09:22]
Lauren Bostic
Who originally pushed you into dancing as both you and your sister were entertainment? Was it someone in your family? Did your mother, father? Like, how did you guys even get involved in this space?
- [09:31]
Derek Hough
My mom made me go. Yeah, okay. She made me go. She dragged my ass to dance. I did not want to go. It was. I was in the parking lot, My sisters were going to dance class, and she was like, you might as well go inside. And I was like, no, no, no, no. It's for girls. And I'm. You know, And I walked in there, and I was like, oh, yeah, there's. There's a lot of girls in here, actually. And, you know, being a young boy, I was. I was. I was like, oh, this is actually smart. This isn't so bad, you know, because I loved. I remember being. Getting in trouble at school because I would, like. I would, like, want to always kiss the girls or something like that. You know, they're like, you can't do that, Derek. If you want to. If you want to. I remember. This is Fox. She told me. She said. What did she say to me? She goes, derek, you can't. You can't. You can't do that. Like, well, we're just, you know, we're just kissing. And he's like, no, no. If you want to impress a girl, this is what she told me. You have to give her a trophy. And I'll never forget that. I was like, what? Okay, so maybe subconsciously I've been trying to compete and try to win trophies because I was always trying to impress. And, you know, it's kind of funny.
- [10:36]
Michael Bostic
It is true. We do like jewelry.
- [10:38]
Derek Hough
Yeah. You know, maybe she meant that. Maybe I said jewelry. And I said. I heard trophy.
- [10:42]
Michael Bostic
Yeah.
- [10:43]
Lauren Bostic
But it's always so. We have, you know, so many different people and high performers and different walks of life that come on the show. And I'm always interested in the childhood because the more I've talked to people with Lauren over the years is you realize, like, so many of those early years inform the behaviors later on the drive. The need for competition.
- [11:00]
Derek Hough
Yeah.
- [11:01]
Lauren Bostic
Like, and it's really like, now that I have our own children, I think about that a lot because, like, okay, there's this window of time, probably sub 10 years old, where you're really like, molding who the person's going to be for the rest of their life. And of course you change and you evolve as you. As you grow. But a lot of it is like that early development. And when I saw, like we keyed into when we were doing this brief and thinking about you, like 12 years old, like, what's the motivation? What are the parents saying? How did. Like. And you just answered a lot of it. It's really interesting.
- [11:29]
Derek Hough
Well, it's interesting too. Like, you're talking about, like, the formidable years later in life. You know, I had this moment where I was in my apartment here in Los Angeles, and I think I had just won Dancing with Stars for the third time. I think I had won an Emmy by then. And, like, I was looking up and I'd won the world championships. I've won all these awards, you know, trophies. And I was kind of looking up at them and I was really in a dark place in my life. I was really, really depressed and down. And I was just like, I'm confused. I'm supposed to be like, I'm at the top of my. I'm on the number one show in America. We're getting, you know, amazing ratings and all this. All this stuff. And I'm won the show and more than anybody else. And why am I so depressed? Why am I so down and. Because my sort of belief in myself growing up and being judged and criticized and picked apart, I always was wanting to impress and wanting to be better. And my sort of philosophy, my belief that I created within myself was in order to be loved, I had to be successful. In order to be worthy of love, I had to succeed. I had to achieve something. And only then would I be worthy of love and worthy to be accepted. And maybe it was instilled with Mrs. Fox telling me that I gotta give trophies, you know, or something like that. But that is interesting. I had to reprogram myself, essentially being like, maybe I am enough without achieving anything and succeeding and, you know, having to prove anything. I can just be myself and be me. And that was a scary, you know, thing to think about, actually.
- [13:00]
Michael Bostic
Do you like Tony Robbins?
- [13:01]
Derek Hough
I love Tony.
- [13:02]
Michael Bostic
Yeah. So he's like, talks about what you're saying all the time. Like, I feel like he's talking about people like you when he says you have the science of achievement without the art of fulfillment.
- [13:11]
Derek Hough
Correct.
- [13:12]
Michael Bostic
Is that something that you found yourself through being quiet? Or did you have to go to therapy or do psychedelics or do something crazy to figure all that out?
- [13:21]
Derek Hough
Well, it's funny they mentioned Tony Robbins because I actually went to Tony Robbins when I was 15 years old in Cardiff, Wales. I went to a seminar and a three day seminar. We walked on the hot coals, did the whole thing. Cool moss, cool moss. Cool moss, cool moss. And. But the thing that stuck with me at that time, at 15 years old, was state, right? Staying in the language, focus, physiology. That stuck with me. And for me, I actually attribute a lot of that particular tool to winning the world championships, winning competitions, winning, you know, because I was able to sort of like, you know, make your move and channel that state to compete or to do a show or to coach somebody, you know, on Dancing with the Stars. So it's funny you bring him up because he's a dear friend of mine and I love him to death. He's great.
- [14:09]
Michael Bostic
So when you were figuring this out, was it in a moment, was the epiphany the moment looking at the trophies, or did you have to go through and figure it out yourself through other modalities?
- [14:18]
Lauren Bostic
How long did the dark period last for you?
- [14:20]
Derek Hough
Well, let's be honest, the dark period isn't just like one moment, right? There's moments where it comes up, it creeps back in. It's more about like shortening the gap, right? How long that you allow that thought or that feeling to stay there and linger. But no, for me, it was active. I would go to seminars, I would go to, you know, go to events or go to places and learn and absorb. And actually being a teacher on Dancing with the Stars helped me a lot because now I'm not focusing on myself. I'm here to serve. I'm here to, like, how can I, how can I bring the best out in you? How can I like, oh, you're nervous, okay, how do I work on that? How do I help you with that? And I would look up, like, how do you deal with nerves? You know what I mean? Because I wanted to help serve my partners. And by doing that, it helped me a lot as well, because I was learning a lot. But then more so, I liked, I, I started liking the person I was becoming. Because, you know, being a competitor, you got to think about yourself. It's very selfish. It's about me. I gotta be the best. I want to win, I want to beat you, you know, and that's fine. But it's not really sustainable. Once it started getting to a place of like, hey, how do I, I want to help you, I want to serve you. Then it just changed. It changed so much. So as far as, listen, that still creeps in my mind all the time. That feeling like I gotta succeed, I gotta achieve something. It's still there, it's very much there. But it's like certain techniques and certain things that I have to get myself in state to where I gotta, you know, remind myself, you know, and remind all of us that like, we're fine, like everything's fine, we're good just as we are, you know.
- [16:01]
Lauren Bostic
And I think the entertainment industry as an industry in general puts a different kind of pressure on people that, you know, are trying to achieve in this space because you, you build your own thing, doing your own thing, but you're also in a way at the mercy of public opinion.
- [16:18]
Derek Hough
Sure, right.
- [16:19]
Lauren Bostic
And that can be fickle at times, it can sway. And there's always somebody newer, younger coming up the ladder. And I think it's, it's a, it's a hard thing for I think a lot of people in entertainment to manage because the public opinion also has impact on the success of your business.
- [16:37]
Derek Hough
Sure, yeah.
- [16:39]
Lauren Bostic
So you have to maintain and sustain that over long periods of time. And it's, you know, as you, as we all know, like there's a lot of people that come and go very quickly in this space. You've been doing it a long time. That's that your, your story is much less common than most people that even if they have a breakout, like there are a lot of careers are very short lived.
- [16:54]
Derek Hough
I'm so thankful, honestly, I'm so thankful when I think about just even the career being here in England. Because before. Sorry, in America. Because before I came to America after living in England, you know, I was doing, you know, the West End and doing theater and you know, you know, competition and felt very successful in that, you know, previous life, if you will. And then of course being on this massive show that you know, catapulted dance and this very niche dance form, which is, you know, barm in Latin, into this sort of very commercial space. And being a part of that from the beginning and seeing this grow each and every year and now into this new era where it's like literally never been more popular ever is amazing. But for me, I'm definitely in that era of, you know, I'm having a tour coming up and I just had auditions the other day and I literally cried. I got emotional because these Dancers are so good. They are so good. They're so talented, they're so athletic. They can just do things. They're superhuman. But what I told them I was, you know, I said, I cannot wait to share the stage with you. I cannot wait to give you an opportunity to go on tour and give you your first job, you know, because some of them, this is their first job, you know, when the kids I've hired and even tours that I've gone out in the past, now I've seen them, they're on their own world tours with like Bad Bunny now and Lady Gaga and all these. I'm like, wait, I remember when I just got you out of college. You know what I mean? This is so cool. And it's been really cool just to mentor these young kids and to see them grow. And they all have these amazing careers, you know, blossoming. So it's cool. I'm sort of in that era right now.
- [18:33]
Michael Bostic
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- [23:21]
Lauren Bostic
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- [24:57]
Michael Bostic
You seem really in the pocket when you're performing. Obviously, if someone's listening and they want to be on stage in any capacity, whether it's a podcast or putting themselves on social media or dancing. What advice would you give them if they were nervous?
- [25:11]
Derek Hough
Nervous? Well, I'd go back to some of the Tony stuff because, you know, we all know, like, being nervous and excited. I think Joe Dispenza talks about that, right? About, like, being nervous and excited is exactly identically the same chemically in your body. And I actually learned that I. I learned that when I was dancing with Kellie Pickler, one of the seasons of Dancing the Stars, and she just had paralyzing nerves. And she'd be like, derek, I'm just so nervous. And. And I would walk through her. Walk with her, you know, through this. This process of, like, don't say the word nervous. Just say that you're excited. She said, take it. Take out the word nervous. And she's like, well, but I am. No, no, no. Just say that you're excited. I don't care if you don't feel that way, but just say it. And she said, okay, well, I'm excited. And I'm like, well, what are you excited about? And I would just ask her questions, well, I'm excited about this dress. This looks beautiful. What else are you excited about? And, well, I'm excited because I've been working really hard on this dance. What else are you excited about? And what happened was, by changing the language, it changed her focus. And what we focus on is what we feel, and it changed the experience because the words we use to describe our experience become our experience. So if you say you're nervous, and if I say I'm nervous, then you're just feeding into the focus of, like, things are gonna go wrong, I'm say the wrong thing, I'm gonna mess up. I'm gonna be fail. People are gonna laugh at me. But if you just say, I'm excited, then it's like you start. Different answers start to pour in and you start to focus on the right things. So, yeah, that's what I would say. I would say, honestly, like, change the words that you're using. Also the way you hold your body, you know, the physiology part of it, being a dancer. You know, I have this convention called Ovation, and there are thousands and thousands of young dancers that, you know, they come in this convention and we're dancing and they compete. And that's what I talk about them with is, you know, is all these different types of tools, you know, that I've learned along the way that have helped me and. And. But yeah, man, by the way, I still get those butterflies.
- [27:08]
Michael Bostic
You do?
- [27:09]
Derek Hough
Oh, yeah.
- [27:09]
Lauren Bostic
Even after all this time?
- [27:11]
Derek Hough
Oh, yeah, absolutely.
- [27:12]
Michael Bostic
That's cool. I like that.
- [27:13]
Lauren Bostic
I think that somebody's described that if you get the butterflies, it's just like it's because you care.
- [27:17]
Michael Bostic
Do you get the butterflies when you walk in a room and see me?
- [27:20]
Lauren Bostic
100%. Every time. Every time.
- [27:22]
Derek Hough
Every time.
- [27:22]
Michael Bostic
You better get those butterflies until you're rigor mortis buried in the ground. Who was your favorite Dancing with the Stars person? Be honest.
- [27:30]
Derek Hough
My favorite.
- [27:31]
Michael Bostic
Yeah.
- [27:32]
Derek Hough
I think one of them was Bendy Irwin. Oh, she was really special. She was really, really special.
- [27:38]
Michael Bostic
I like that answer.
- [27:39]
Derek Hough
Ten years ago, which is hilarious. That. Hilarious. But so special that Robert, 10 years later has won it. So they both have it. That's what they call them, the Irwins. You know what I mean? I didn't. But she was really special because, one, I was such a huge fan of her father because he was somebody I looked at and was like, I want to live life like that guy. Even at a young age, I would see him on tv, I was like, that's. I want to live with that much enthusiasm, you know what I'm saying? Like, when you look at, like, he's like, look at this bush. Oh, my gosh. I'm like, yeah, that's. Wow. That's how we should live. And so I loved him. I remember being in King's Cross station in London and going on my way to school in the train station and looking up and seeing the headline that he'd passed away. And I remember, like, crying and weeping.
- [28:28]
Lauren Bostic
It was so unexpected.
- [28:29]
Derek Hough
Yeah.
- [28:29]
Lauren Bostic
So out of nowhere.
- [28:30]
Derek Hough
It was so out of nowhere. And so the opportunity to mentor, to guide his daughter, it makes me emotional. Was. Was so unbelievably special. I really, really cherished it and. And it was really sacred to me, honestly. And she was amazing. She was just like. People would ask me, like, is she really like that? Like, come on. Like, you know they're not really like that, right? I'm like, yeah, cameras are off. They're just like. They're just this ball of light, you know? They really are.
- [29:02]
Michael Bostic
Who is the best dancer?
- [29:04]
Derek Hough
The best dancer?
- [29:05]
Michael Bostic
Yeah. Maybe not the best personality. Maybe the best dancer.
- [29:09]
Derek Hough
No, I think. I think Nicole Scherzinger was the best dancer. Pretty. Yeah, she's pretty. She's pretty incredible.
- [29:14]
Michael Bostic
She's a Pussycat doll, though. So I feel like she has to, like.
- [29:17]
Lauren Bostic
Do you feel that you can come in with no dance experience and go through that process? And when do you think you have to have the background in order to listen?
- [29:28]
Derek Hough
Kellie Pickler, she never danced.
- [29:30]
Michael Bostic
I think I could do it. Yeah, I do. I really do.
- [29:33]
Derek Hough
Is this it? Is this your audition right now?
- [29:36]
Michael Bostic
I've always thought I could.
- [29:37]
Derek Hough
The table.
- [29:38]
Michael Bostic
I've always thought I could do it. I actually have in my brain when I watch the show, I think I could do it because I. I think that. I think that if you have an amazing teacher and you already are, like, kind of talented in other areas. I'm a pretty good singer. Don't mean you just gotta move your
- [29:56]
Lauren Bostic
feet a little bit. I've been playing tennis with you lately. A little stuck in the ground.
- [29:59]
Michael Bostic
Yeah. Maybe a little fluid. I think you could teach me.
- [30:02]
Derek Hough
Yeah, yeah.
- [30:03]
Michael Bostic
I'm just saying.
- [30:03]
Derek Hough
I'm not gonna lie. I could let you know in five minutes.
- [30:07]
Lauren Bostic
Really?
- [30:09]
Derek Hough
I could take you to the side and I could just kind of like, do this, do that, do this. And I could be like, okay, so what.
- [30:13]
Lauren Bostic
So in your opinion, what are the elements that someone needs to have to be a good. Like, when you're like, okay, that person will be able to dance, but you
- [30:19]
Michael Bostic
wanna move your hips.
- [30:20]
Derek Hough
I say that. I say that and I say that kind of in jest, but there is truth to it in a little. A little bit. But there's also been times where I've been completely wrong. Where I'm like, wow, I thought we were in big trouble, but actually, wow. Actually, we turned a corner and this is amazing.
- [30:35]
Michael Bostic
Who did you think that with?
- [30:37]
Derek Hough
That's a good question, actually.
- [30:39]
Lauren Bostic
Careful, careful.
- [30:41]
Derek Hough
I think, honestly, Lil Kim. Lil Kim. When I danced with Lil Kim, people forgot about that one.
- [30:45]
Lauren Bostic
She moves. I see her come out.
- [30:46]
Derek Hough
She was fresh out of prison, too, by the way.
- [30:49]
Lauren Bostic
She does, like the.
- [30:50]
Derek Hough
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I was a little bit like, oh, this is gonna Be interesting.
- [30:55]
Lauren Bostic
Okay, but if you're watching, this one's for you.
- [30:58]
Derek Hough
But she. But she got out there and she. She was doing it, and she was. She was great. She really impressed me. So. Yeah. Yeah.
- [31:04]
Michael Bostic
Okay. So in five minutes, you could tell.
- [31:07]
Derek Hough
I could give you an idea of the learning curve, of how it would go. But I will say this. It's not really about having experience, you know, on the show. It's really about, do you want to be there?
- [31:18]
Michael Bostic
That's what I'm saying.
- [31:19]
Derek Hough
Do you want to be there?
- [31:19]
Michael Bostic
If I was gonna do it, I would be like, okay, I'm doing it. And then. Oh, you're saying because I'm. Eat, live, breathe.
- [31:25]
Lauren Bostic
Maybe somebody, like, they're. They get the opportunity, their teams put them there. Like, this would be really good for your career. Jump on. And you're like, I don't want to.
- [31:30]
Michael Bostic
You also can't be difficult. Like, you have to be able to go with the flow.
- [31:34]
Derek Hough
Yes. However, I will say, and you got to give a lot of grace, because I don't think anybody. I know this. Nobody really knows what they're getting themselves into.
- [31:44]
Michael Bostic
It's a lot of work.
- [31:44]
Derek Hough
Nobody does. Even people who are, like, prepped for it, they go, I had no idea it was this much. And then you have people who had no idea. They get on the show and they are like, what? Yeah, what? I thought this was like two hour day. A day thing.
- [31:58]
Lauren Bostic
How many hours is it?
- [32:00]
Derek Hough
I mean, it's. It's like four to six a day. Which, by the way, when we did it was eight, because there was no limit. There's like a limit on rehearsal time, which.
- [32:07]
Lauren Bostic
How many days is.
- [32:09]
Derek Hough
You know,
- [32:11]
Lauren Bostic
how long does it take before.
- [32:13]
Derek Hough
Oh, what do you mean before?
- [32:14]
Lauren Bostic
Like, it's. If it's four to six hour days, like, how many days does that.
- [32:16]
Derek Hough
What you're saying is it like seven days? Seven days a week when you're on that show?
- [32:20]
Michael Bostic
He means how many, how many weeks do you have to practice until you're on stage dancing?
- [32:25]
Derek Hough
Oh, two weeks, I believe. Yeah, it's two weeks.
- [32:27]
Michael Bostic
But here's my thing.
- [32:28]
Lauren Bostic
You can't be doing anything else.
- [32:29]
Michael Bostic
No, but you train yourself. You say, listen, this is two weeks out of your life.
- [32:33]
Derek Hough
Oh, yeah.
- [32:34]
Michael Bostic
To me, I'm like, I'm there eight hours a day. And by the way, on the time off, I'm recovering, I'm sauna ing. You have to put. You have to be like. You have to treat like an athlete.
- [32:42]
Derek Hough
It's a full time. It's a full time. Job.
- [32:44]
Michael Bostic
People don't think it's a full time job.
- [32:46]
Derek Hough
No. A lot of people get.
- [32:47]
Michael Bostic
But I think I might win now. I said I could do it. I now think I would win.
- [32:52]
Derek Hough
But I think, I think now the, the, what do you want to call it? The, the formula has changed a lot this past couple seasons where I think the people that they are looking for are people who are in it to win it and who are going to take advantage of every single moment. They don't want to be completely honest. They don't want the celebrity. Even if you've won an Oscar, I
- [33:14]
Lauren Bostic
don't want someone taking it seriously.
- [33:15]
Derek Hough
I don't care if you won an Oscar and you've won a Grammy and stuff like that. If you're not like in it, like, then that's okay. But we're good. I'd rather have somebody who doesn't have, you know, all those accolades, but they like want to be there because that's going to create something that you want to watch.
- [33:30]
Michael Bostic
Secret Lives and Mormon Wives. The two girls were in it to win it.
- [33:33]
Derek Hough
Yeah, Whitney, man, look at her. I mean, she's on Broadway right now with my brother, Mark Ballas. And like, she had like, you talk about clarity. She was like, okay, this is my goal. And you know, and it's so funny. They got so much hate. I feel like last season.
- [33:49]
Michael Bostic
Why?
- [33:50]
Derek Hough
I, I, I don't know. I think the show, she was like a villain in the show. I guess I didn't, I didn't watch it, so I don't know.
- [33:55]
Michael Bostic
But she was, I mean, a kind
- [33:56]
Derek Hough
of, I guess, I don't know.
- [33:57]
Michael Bostic
That's interesting. I didn't know she got hate on the show.
- [33:59]
Derek Hough
Oh, my gosh. Not on the show, but like, you know, in the social world. But, but you just saw, like, I, I really loved, I think people gave her flack because she was like, I'm on the show because I want to be on Dancing with the Stars. I want to do Broadway. I want to do this. And she said it out loud. And people are like, oh, gross. And I was like, what? I was like, that's awesome. I was like, she had a goal. Somebody who also talks about their goals openly into existence is, I'm like, good on you. That's brave. Because, you know, if you say it out loud and it doesn't happen, people are gonna be like, you know, they're gonna love to say, hey, it didn't happen, and, you know, point at you and put you down. So to put it out there, like, That I was like. I commend her. I commended her a lot.
- [34:40]
Michael Bostic
What are the pros and cons of working with a sibling?
- [34:43]
Derek Hough
You know what's interesting? Working with Julianne, because she also moved to England when she was nine years old.
- [34:49]
Lauren Bostic
Did she follow you?
- [34:51]
Derek Hough
Yes.
- [34:51]
Lauren Bostic
Were you in the same place?
- [34:52]
Michael Bostic
Nine years old.
- [34:53]
Derek Hough
She danced with Mark Ballas. They were dance partners. And.
- [34:56]
Michael Bostic
And you guys moved together?
- [34:58]
Derek Hough
Well, I moved first for, like, three months, and then I was like, hey, this is really great. I actually love it here. This theater school we're going to, it's like, I'm, like, thriving. I'm, like, getting better. I won this thing. Julianne, like, you know, you're gonna be amazing. And then her and Mark danced together.
- [35:12]
Lauren Bostic
That was probably really helpful for you, though, to have your sister there with you, maybe less lonely.
- [35:17]
Derek Hough
No, it wasn't so much that. Because I wasn't lonely. Like, I was so busy. I was thriving.
- [35:22]
Lauren Bostic
I knew Patricia was there. Never mind.
- [35:24]
Derek Hough
Sorry, Julianne. Yeah, no, no, But. But I will say this. It did. But it. But it was good. It was really good because I still have that protectiveness over her, for sure, but.
- [35:34]
Lauren Bostic
And what's the age gap?
- [35:35]
Derek Hough
Three years. Okay, three years. And I think the pros and cons. The pros are we've had such sort of parallel careers from competing with each other to be on the same show, to, like, her being a judge, me being a judge. You know, even doing, like, she did Grease live, I did Harrisbury live. Like, we've done, like, very, like, parallel things. And it's amazing because at least what I love about it so much is that we're able to relate. You know what I mean? And be like, hey, I know you're going through this. I know what that's like. I know that feels like, it's okay. Things can be okay. You know what I mean? Like, there's a lot of, like, understanding there. Funnily enough, her and I, we only really got into, like, arguments on stage. When we did tours together, we would do some things and, like, I would get. We had an argument on stage one time, and I thought was hilarious. And I remember asking the audience, like, do you think I'm like this? And they thought it was, like, a bit, but it was very real. It was like we were, like, actually having a fight on stage.
- [36:36]
Lauren Bostic
We do that, like, pretty much every other show.
- [36:38]
Derek Hough
Yeah. You're like, oh, this is sweet. You're like, that was real. That was really cool.
- [36:41]
Michael Bostic
I relate to what you're saying, though, because it's Nice to do this with my husband, because I can go home at the end of the day and be like, oh, that person was. Not you. Not you. You're great.
- [36:51]
Derek Hough
Yeah.
- [36:52]
Michael Bostic
Or that person was, I need to go scrub all the. Off me. Or I can go home and be like, we crushed that episode.
- [36:57]
Derek Hough
Yeah.
- [36:58]
Michael Bostic
So I totally. In a different font. Get what you're saying.
- [37:01]
Derek Hough
Yeah, yeah. No, and that's. It's interesting, too. What I find funny is when people go, like. Like, because her and I, we've had such a great career together, you know, and we're so fortunate, and we get along. We get along, which is like, you know, people are like, that's so weird. How do you get along with your brother and your sister? That's such a weird thing. Like, it's. It's funny to me that that's. That's weird. You know what I mean? And it makes me sad, actually, that, you know, having a good relationship with your family member is, like, an odd thing, you know? But I'm super proud of her, man. What she's accomplished in her life and what she's done is extraordinary.
- [37:35]
Michael Bostic
I mean, what's in the water that your parents gave you guys?
- [37:38]
Lauren Bostic
I don't know.
- [37:39]
Derek Hough
Some. The Mormon water. You know what I mean?
- [37:41]
Michael Bostic
I mean, jeez.
- [37:42]
Derek Hough
I'm just kidding. No, we were just. Again, I think we were fortunate, I think, moving to England, honing in, like, a craft and also work ethic, because surely Mark's mom, her work ethic is, like, unparalleled. And she drilled, like, this work ethic in us that was, you know, I just. I'm so thankful for. Yeah. And again, it's hard work, but it's also a lot of grace. It's a lot of grace, a lot of luck, a lot of opportunity. And whenever the opportunities would come up, we just would run with it. And. Yeah, so, yeah, a lot of hard work, but a lot of luck as well.
- [38:17]
Lauren Bostic
You've spoken a lot about. Well, not a lot, but you've spoken about loneliness and success and competition. How do you think about that now? Because I imagine it can be very isolating doing what you do and competing the way that you compete and then having the world judge you.
- [38:34]
Derek Hough
You know, it's interesting. I think it's different now, obviously, because I'm, you know, married and. And I have a baby now.
- [38:42]
Michael Bostic
Busy.
- [38:43]
Derek Hough
I'm. Man. Yeah, I'm just. I'm flying right now. But, you know, I think when I talk about the loneliest loneliness part of it, I. I, funnily enough, I felt the most lonely when I lived in la. When I was in England, I didn't feel lonely. I felt like I was like, you know, on a mission. But when I was in la, in my own apartments, and, you know, seemingly everything's amazing and fantastic and at the prime and, you know, it was incredibly lonely, I think. I think part of that was just. It wasn't so much lonely with people. I think I was just wasn't liking who I was becoming, you know, essentially, I think. And so I didn't want, you know, to be around other people. And I was isolating, you know, it was very isolating.
- [39:29]
Michael Bostic
I also think LA can be a lonely city sometimes. I think people don't talk about that enough. It can. It can feel. Feel lonely. And sometimes when you go out here, and this was my experience when I lived here, it can feel transactional, and that is. It can feel hollow and vapid. And I'm not saying always, because, you know, we're here a lot, but we live in Austin now. There is a difference. And I can also see how when you're on the journey, when you're in England and you're dancing and you're progressing and you're, you know, moving up the mountain and then you get to the top of the sort of mountain that you thought you wanted to get up, the loneliness mixed with the LA energy, like, I could see why that happened.
- [40:11]
Lauren Bostic
Well, it's a very strange city, if you think about it. It's one of the only places in the world where people come to try to become famous or known. And I think that creates a strange. Like, you don't move to New York. Maybe you do, actually. That's a bad example. You don't move to Miami or Texas or London to do that. You like. This is a place where you come to break into entertainment.
- [40:30]
Derek Hough
Yeah.
- [40:30]
Lauren Bostic
And I think that creates a strange dynamic in the city.
- [40:33]
Derek Hough
There was a lot of acquaintances, essentially. Like, there wasn't a lot of friends. It was a lot of acquaintances. But with that said, you know, I like Mark Ballas. He's like my best friend. He's my brother, basically.
- [40:42]
Michael Bostic
Do you know Mark Ballas is married to someone that we went to high school with?
- [40:46]
Derek Hough
B.C.
- [40:47]
Michael Bostic
yeah.
- [40:47]
Derek Hough
Really?
- [40:48]
Michael Bostic
Oh, yes.
- [40:49]
Lauren Bostic
Brittany.
- [40:50]
Michael Bostic
Yeah, we went. We went.
- [40:51]
Derek Hough
Brittany.
- [40:52]
Michael Bostic
We went to high school.
- [40:53]
Lauren Bostic
I don't want to say that anymore.
- [40:53]
Derek Hough
I don't know.
- [40:54]
Lauren Bostic
That's how I know.
- [40:55]
Michael Bostic
We went to high school at Torrey Pines with Brittany.
- [40:58]
Derek Hough
No way.
- [40:58]
Michael Bostic
She was in our grade.
- [40:59]
Derek Hough
That's crazy.
- [41:00]
Michael Bostic
Did you know that?
- [41:01]
Lauren Bostic
I did not I don't know.
- [41:02]
Derek Hough
That's crazy. By the way, she's great. Her voice is bananas.
- [41:05]
Michael Bostic
It's always been like that.
- [41:05]
Derek Hough
Oh, my God.
- [41:06]
Michael Bostic
She was a little girl. I remember her singing at one of my friend's house and it was always
- [41:09]
Lauren Bostic
like songwriter too, right?
- [41:10]
Michael Bostic
And she almost like she has that like. Britney Spears younger. Like, when she was younger, she had that like. Like sparkle. I'm sure she still has it now.
- [41:19]
Derek Hough
Oh, no, she's.
- [41:19]
Michael Bostic
She's.
- [41:20]
Derek Hough
Yeah, she's like. She's so. She's like rock. She's like Janis Joplin, like rock and roll. Just like. Yeah, man. Yeah. And just can sing like insane. Yeah, they're incredible. That's amazing. Wow. Yeah.
- [41:32]
Michael Bostic
She was in Weston's grade. Our best friend in Weston's class. I mean, Weston's classic.
- [41:37]
Derek Hough
Yeah.
- [41:38]
Michael Bostic
Where did you meet your wife?
- [41:41]
Derek Hough
I met my wife on tour, actually. So it was Julianne and I's first tour that we did together and she was one of our dancers. And I remember just seeing her. And it's funny story actually was. Was in audition, I guess. I guess I couldn't take my eyes off of her because she actually went back and said, hey, Mom, I think I got. I think I got it because Derek kept. He just kept staring at me. I don't recall that. But you just should say yes. Yes.
- [42:12]
Michael Bostic
You should be like, I was staring.
- [42:13]
Derek Hough
No, listen. It was evident that I found her very attractive, obviously, but. But it wasn't for like a couple years after that, though, that, you know, we ended up, you know, dating. But it's interesting, our relationship was kind of unique because to be honest with you, it wasn't like love at first sight. Wasn't like, oh, this is like, this is it. In fact, it was actually the opposite. We both were like, oh, this is definitely not. We're definitely not right for each other. Like. But, you know, let's hang out. Like, let's have, you know, let's have some fun and just date a little bit. But this is definitely not the right relationship. And we both kind of mutually felt that way. But then we just kept, I don't know, evolving and things kept happening in our lives and then we kept getting closer and closer. But we've gone through a lot of different challenges, like, a lot of different challenges. And I think that's why I think her and I's relationship is. I really find it really special because we went through a lot, you know, before we got married. You know, we were together for eight years.
- [43:13]
Michael Bostic
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Lauren Bostic
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- [47:29]
Michael Bostic
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- [49:22]
Lauren Bostic
There's something special about becoming friends. Best friends first. That's like, that's what.
- [49:26]
Derek Hough
We weren't even best friends, though. Like, we were like, no, it was crazy. Like, we were like, we. Like, it was so funny. We did not get along. Like, not that we didn't get along. We just were like, yeah, this isn't right. But it was. It was interesting how our relationship would be. Like, we would, like blow up, you know, like a couple. A couple times. It was like.
- [49:44]
Lauren Bostic
And Break up.
- [49:44]
Derek Hough
There was one time, like, it was like, done, over, dead, finished. And we meant it, and it was. It was completely over. And when we got back together, when we kind of came. Came together, I should say, we still thought that we were like, oh, that relationship is done. Like, that relationship, you know, it's like we almost had, like, several versions of our relationship that we look back on. I'm like, oh, my gosh, I can't believe that that was us, you know, and. Or that version was us or that version. We. And each one of those versions essentially died, you know, and was over. And that was actually quite cathartic. Who was. It was. Who's that? Who's that therapist. Who's phenomenal? Relationship therapist.
- [50:31]
Michael Bostic
Esther Perel.
- [50:32]
Derek Hough
Esther Perel. I love her. And one of the things she says, I think, in one of her TED talks, is that, you know, we're going to have multiple relationships in this lifetime. The question is, is it going to be with multiple people or is it me with the same person? And I love that so much because it made me realize, like, oh, I can have multiple versions of our relationship with the same person. And that's how our relationship has been. We've been. We've had 12 different relationships within our relationship, and it's been amazing. It's been really great to grow as we go, you know, it's been amazing.
- [51:07]
Michael Bostic
What made you guys decide to get married?
- [51:09]
Derek Hough
It just was that time, I think we were at a concert, actually, an Andy Grammer concert, and he said something during COVID I think, and it was like we were in cars and he said something about having a ring. I don't know, we talking about something like that. And I just was. I looked over and I went, you want to look at a ring? And that was it, basically. And it was like, yeah, do you
- [51:29]
Michael Bostic
want to look at a ring? Yes. Every girl, let's go look at a ring. Yes.
- [51:33]
Derek Hough
But honestly, as well, it goes back to the idea of just being committed and committing to something and to someone and putting two feet in, you know, not having this sort of think of thing of like, well, let me just do one foot in, one foot out. Because, you know, my parents got divorced. I've been around, honestly, three different types of divorces, like, within, intimately. So in my experience, I was like, ah, I don't want to, like, you know, do the whole marriage thing. And then you're like, no, I think that's. That's exactly what I want. I think that's exactly what I need. And what we need and it's been great. It's the best thing ever.
- [52:11]
Michael Bostic
What are some challenges you've mentioned that you guys have gone through? If you're open to sharing anything with
- [52:16]
Derek Hough
the audience, I think just like anybody else has, you know, certain things and challenges. But before I could talk about challenges, at least after, I mean, we got married, this is not sort of like a relationship challenge, but we just got married in August, and three months later, she had a brain bleed on stage.
- [52:34]
Lauren Bostic
Oh, read about this.
- [52:36]
Derek Hough
Crazy. Yeah. We hit heads while we were dancing, and she immediately just, you know, started bleeding, essentially in her brain. But she didn't know, nobody knew, until the end of the show. And then she started having this, like, you know, thing happening. And I thought she hurt her neck because this is kind of like a, you know, I tweaked my neck kind of thing. But she started having seizures on the side of the stage. Oh, my God. And ironically, it was during a part when I was doing a tribute to Len Goodman and talking about how precious life is and. And how it's fleeting and she's literally dying on the side of the stage in the curtains. And I had no idea. And the show finished. We finished the last number. It was like, right towards the end, came over there, and she was in agony and just talking gibberish. And her pupil, one was dilated, one was pinpoint. The EMTs were just like, we think it's a stroke. They didn't know what happened. You know, we don't know what's going on.
- [53:40]
Lauren Bostic
We just.
- [53:40]
Derek Hough
Something's wrong. And, like, they think it might be a stroke. So we have an option to go to a hospital that's 10 minutes down the road because we're in Washington, D.C. or we can go to the one that's 45 minutes away. And they're asking me, like, what would you like to do? And I was like, well, which one? Where should we go? And they're like, well, this one is like, can be treat if it's a stroke, but if it's anything brain related, we should go to this one. And so in that moment, I was like, let's go to the furthest one. So we have all the facilities. We went there, which later I found out, the head of the hospital came up to me. He said, I just want to let you know, like, I'm glad you guys chose that, because if she would have went there, she wouldn't be here anymore.
- [54:18]
Michael Bostic
Oh, my.
- [54:18]
Derek Hough
Like, it would have been. It would have been lights out, essentially.
- [54:22]
Lauren Bostic
They couldn't have. They couldn't have, like, serviced early.
- [54:24]
Derek Hough
They wouldn't. Because it was an emergency craniectomy where they had to remove 40% of her skull. Holy. Basically removed the whole thing. The brain was bleeding, you know, and they couldn't even put the skull back on because the brain had swelled up so much.
- [54:38]
Michael Bostic
Oh, my God.
- [54:39]
Derek Hough
So it had, like, protruded through the bone.
- [54:42]
Lauren Bostic
Wow.
- [54:42]
Derek Hough
And then he told me. He's like. He's like, listen, like, it's. It doesn't look good. It's really bad. This, the. The midline shift, that middle part in your brain. The pressure was so intense. It had shifted, you know, certain degrees. And that is an indication of brain damage, speech impediment, paralysis, you know, all the things.
- [55:01]
Lauren Bostic
But remind me, what caused this level of injury? Just, we.
- [55:05]
Derek Hough
We think. We don't know for sure, for sure, but we're at this point, we're relatively sure now, certain that we. It was when we hit heads at the beginning of the show. But we've hit heads like that before. We were always hitting heads and elbows.
- [55:19]
Lauren Bostic
And you know, when you think, was it. Was it that hard of a hit or was it just the right angle? The right.
- [55:24]
Derek Hough
It. It must have been. It must have been because it was on that side. We just. We just hit heads.
- [55:29]
Lauren Bostic
Did you feel it?
- [55:30]
Derek Hough
Oh, yeah, yeah. Oh, no. When it happened, I remember, like, looking at her be like, you good? And she's like, yeah, I'm fine. But we both got our bells rung for sure. But, yeah, basically, he told me I basically lost her that night. You know, he. He was like, even if she survived, she's not gonna be the same person, you know, and she's still her. She's still in her dress, the rhinestones and the makeup and the hair and. Because we literally got off stage, went right to the hospital, and by the way, people were in the hospital be like, hey, can you take a picture? I was like, oh, my gosh, don't even tell me that. I was like, no.
- [56:06]
Michael Bostic
And then they want to take it to Reddit and be like, oh, my God, fuck him.
- [56:11]
Derek Hough
Oh, no, no. I was. By the way, Even in that moment, I was still like, no, not right now. I'm so sorry. I was trying to be polite, but. But then I would. I eventually just went into a corner of a room and just, like, wept on the floor and cried and just was a mess.
- [56:23]
Michael Bostic
But maybe we should, like, make a law that. By the way, like, teenagers in a
- [56:27]
Lauren Bostic
hospital, public service announcement, they see someone in a hospital running around like, it's not the right time to ask for a service. It's the wrong time, no matter who it is.
- [56:32]
Derek Hough
Yeah, but. But that was. That was a big, big moment that. Where, you know, she woke up, and it was like that. The moment whether or not she was gonna be okay or not, you know, she is she, Hayley. And luckily, she was her. You know, she woke up, and she said her name. She said she was in New York. I was like, that's close enough. But she had such an amazing outlook. You know, she never really cried about, like, oh, no, me. Why does this happen? The only reason why she. The only time she cried was I told her. I said, honey, like, there's so much love and so many prayers and people praying for you. And she goes. And she starts crying. She said, you don't even have to tell me that. She goes, honey, I can feel it. I can feel it. And I told her that. I said, your head got shaved. And she was like, oh, man, I just got my hair cut last week. 60 staples in her head, and her skull is concaving. I mean, it's wild to think what she experienced, what she went through, how to walk again, had to learn, hold our arms. And, you know, I'm sleeping on the floor. And I'll tell you what. You know, you talk about, like, loneliness or, like, this feeling of, like, isolation or this feeling of just like a hole was being on the biggest high of our lives. We just got married. We're on our honeymoon. We're on. I'm on Dancing the Stars. It's the final. It literally is the finale. We're on. Well, of course. We're on tour together. We're in front of thousands of people living our dream. This is what we're meant to do. Dancing together in this beautiful show we've created together. And it's just like. Like, it's the finale of Dancing the Stars. Boom. The confetti. And then we get on a jet, you know, fly out, we do the show, and then that all happens. There's adrenaline. I'm running around. I'm like, oh, my gosh. I'm terrified. And where do I put the dog? Or, you know, Luna, go with her while I go to the hospital. And then I'm calling my dad, please pray for Haley. And then we're in the hospital. He's telling me that she's gone. And. And then he goes, you got to go home and sleep. You got a long road ahead of you.
- [58:35]
Michael Bostic
And.
- [58:35]
Derek Hough
And then I'm like, how do I even sleep? And I'M exhausted and all these things. And I go into a hotel room, I open it, I close the door, and it's just boom. It's just like silence. That hum that you feel. And that was. That moment was like the worst moment of my life. Like the biggest high and adrenaline. Just going for two days straight, essentially, and then just.
- [59:01]
Lauren Bostic
And you're probably already exhausted from everything you were doing.
- [59:03]
Derek Hough
Oh, my. It was. It was like the next level of just despair. But then going in there and seeing her face, even hooked up the wires and the tubes, and her just looking and kind of smiling and being like, hey, honey. And I was like, she was amazing. She was incredible. She gave us so much strength.
- [59:20]
Michael Bostic
How long ago was that?
- [59:23]
Derek Hough
Three years ago now. Three years ago.
- [59:25]
Michael Bostic
So it's even more special that you now have this three month old.
- [59:29]
Derek Hough
Yes.
- [59:29]
Michael Bostic
It makes it like so. I mean, all of this is like, wow.
- [59:34]
Derek Hough
And that was one of the first things she asked, actually. She said, can I still have kids? When she woke up, because the pressure from her brain, obviously, like her sneezing or her even moving and then the idea of having a child is like. But that was what she said, can I still have kids? And they're like, yes, of course. Not only does she have kids, Haley, we had a home birth. And my girl, like, I don't know what. I don't know why. This was her all her choice, but she did it completely natural, you know, and at home in our. In our bedroom.
- [60:05]
Lauren Bostic
Well, I imagine it was crazy.
- [60:07]
Derek Hough
It was like, you are.
- [60:08]
Michael Bostic
I was gnarly.
- [60:08]
Derek Hough
She's gnarly.
- [60:09]
Lauren Bostic
Imagine when you've had your head literally taken off and then put back on, like, not to diminish childbirth. It's hard, but I mean, like, it just feels like that's like you've already kind of experienced.
- [60:17]
Derek Hough
Well, no, that's actually. She's asleep. She doesn't know what's going on with all that. She's very awake for this.
- [60:23]
Michael Bostic
And has she made a full recovery?
- [60:25]
Derek Hough
Yes, yes, full recovery. There's still some things, like lingering things that we need to take care of, but we can't do that yet until, you know, because she's breastfeeding and certain things like that, but crazy. But yeah, but she was back on the stage within four months. It was insane. And we're actually going back out on the road this summer with the same tour because it really is like that. It's such a special show. And it's interesting because I'm calling it Symphony Dance Encore because it's an Encore performance of the same show. We're changing some things, but in an encore performance, there's. You know, they do roses, right? They fight for encore, and they throw roses up, or at least they did back in the day. And. But she's also like, she is the rose. She is the rose of the show. Where what I think about what a rose represents, it's like, you know, the sweetness of the bloom, but, like, the thorns, you know, tell the story. And when I look at her, I really. I see that, you know, she's this beautiful woman, just beautiful light. But, man, she's gone through so much, and. And I just can't wait to share the stage with her again. It's gonna be amazing if you don't
- [61:34]
Michael Bostic
get interviewed and talk about me the way he's talking about his wife. Don't even speak.
- [61:37]
Lauren Bostic
Sometimes these guys come on talking this way.
- [61:39]
Michael Bostic
I'm like, no, it's a way.
- [61:40]
Derek Hough
It's a way you're talking about.
- [61:42]
Michael Bostic
You should. You should flip it and send it to her for Valentine's Day.
- [61:46]
Lauren Bostic
For you. Personally, I imagine that had a profound effect on just the way you view life in general. Like, when you think about yourself before and after that experience or their thought process or things you think about different, you know?
- [61:59]
Derek Hough
Yeah, I think, pan again. I'm such an overachiever, and. And, you know, I'm always wanting to do things and, you know, do the most. And then there's moments where you just stop and you kind of reflect a little bit on those moments, and you're like, man, I would have. You know, it's interesting, actually, during that time of me in the hospital, I often say that it was like, the worst time of our life, but also one of some of the best times of our lives, because the amount of triumphs that we experienced, the amount of successes that we experienced in that time, because it went from being like, okay, measuring success, became like, okay, I gotta win an Emmy Award, and then I can be happy and successful and, oh, I gotta win Dance with Stars, and then I can feel good. And like, yeah, I achieved that. This was like, oh, she's walking to the bathroom. And we were like, oh, my gosh. Like, there's no award that I've ever won in my life that has. You know, compared to her walking to the bathroom for the first time, that was like. I was like, it was amazing.
- [63:04]
Lauren Bostic
That's a perspective shift.
- [63:05]
Derek Hough
Oh, my gosh. And then her walking over tissue boxes that. I'll never forget it. Her walking upstairs for the first time, I Was like, this is the best thing ever. It was like scoring a touchdown, you know, in the super bowl, like, every time she did that. And so it was interesting because it was difficult, but at the same time, it was like these awesome milestones, amazing moments of, like, victories, you know. It was really cool.
- [63:27]
Michael Bostic
That's amazing, too, that she can dance on stage again with you.
- [63:30]
Derek Hough
Yeah.
- [63:31]
Michael Bostic
How cool is that?
- [63:32]
Derek Hough
We actually. We actually filmed a documentary about that, about the whole process, about her recovery. Recovery and her getting back out on stage. And it was a dear friend of ours, Jason Berg, who he just shot a documentary for, like, Jennifer Lopez and for. You know, he's like an emmy winner for 30. For 30. And. And I told him, I. He's like, dude, how are you doing? And I'm good. And he's like, how's she doing? I was like, man, dude, we're actually gonna go back in the dance studio soon. He goes, what? I was like, he's like, can I come film that? I'm like, yeah, yeah, come film it. And so he just started filming one day, and then they turned into a whole, you know, whole documentary. And what was amazing about it was that she was, again, she was stronger than I was. Like, I was in breck. I was dancing with her, like, being nervous. Like, I don't.
- [64:20]
Michael Bostic
I was going to ask you, are you nervous?
- [64:22]
Derek Hough
I was very nervous. And I was like, this is too soon. And, oh, my gosh, I don't know. And then she kind of pulled me aside, was like, honey, like, you have to trust me. You got to trust me. I know what I'm doing. I. I'll listen to my body. Trust me. And also, you can't be scared or timid, because if you do, that's actually more dangerous.
- [64:39]
Michael Bostic
Right.
- [64:39]
Derek Hough
You got to be very confident. And I'm like, you're right. And, yeah, it's pretty cool. It's pretty amazing. And I'm excited for people to see that because it was a beautiful and difficult process, but the outcome was just really special.
- [64:59]
Michael Bostic
Well, it seems like you are hitting your box of science of achievement and art of fulfillment just fine right now.
- [65:05]
Derek Hough
Yeah, working on it.
- [65:06]
Michael Bostic
Congratulations on your new baby.
- [65:08]
Derek Hough
Thank you so much.
- [65:09]
Michael Bostic
Enjoy every second of all of this.
- [65:12]
Derek Hough
Thank you.
- [65:12]
Michael Bostic
Beautiful story. Where can everyone find you? Support what you're doing? Come on your tour and watch you guys dance. Tell us all the things working.
- [65:21]
Lauren Bostic
Lauren audition for the show.
- [65:22]
Derek Hough
Yeah. Yep. By the way, would you want to be on Dance with the Stars? Is that, like, something, like, for real? She's like, yes, I Don't like. Come on, speak it out into existence. Say it.
- [65:33]
Michael Bostic
I don't know that. They do like entrepreneurs, though.
- [65:36]
Derek Hough
Yeah, they do.
- [65:37]
Michael Bostic
They do.
- [65:37]
Derek Hough
They do. Everybody. They do. All sorts. They do.
- [65:40]
Michael Bostic
Who's an entrepreneur? That they've done. I can't think of anyone.
- [65:43]
Derek Hough
Mm. I. I.
- [65:45]
Michael Bostic
Listen, see, I know this is. I haven't seen anyone.
- [65:48]
Derek Hough
I'm telling you. I'm telling you, there's.
- [65:51]
Lauren Bostic
You can check a few other boxes.
- [65:53]
Derek Hough
You gotta throw. Throw the name in the box. You never know because again, like I said before, it's amazing to see. She's like, by the way, watch it. Watch it happen.
- [66:03]
Michael Bostic
I'm telling you, I might win.
- [66:07]
Lauren Bostic
Somebody over there will win.
- [66:07]
Derek Hough
I will win.
- [66:08]
Michael Bostic
I will.
- [66:09]
Derek Hough
I love that.
- [66:10]
Michael Bostic
I only want Derek as a partner.
- [66:12]
Derek Hough
You know, it's funny, I was saying that. I was like, there's a few people who could give me back from the judge's desk being on a pro. And my wife was like, if Celine Dion ever did the show, I would command you to return.
- [66:24]
Michael Bostic
If I can't get you, who are you recommending for me?
- [66:28]
Derek Hough
Val's a good buddy of mine. He's great. He's very experienced. He's very capable. Who else?
- [66:36]
Lauren Bostic
Who's the ugliest one?
- [66:38]
Derek Hough
The ugliest one is you're going to do it.
- [66:43]
Lauren Bostic
Who's the guy that looks like you just crawled out from under a bridge?
- [66:45]
Derek Hough
No, you don't want that. You don't want that. Actually, I don't think there is that.
- [66:48]
Lauren Bostic
Honestly, on that show. I'm kidding. I'm confident. Let's go.
- [66:52]
Derek Hough
Really?
- [66:53]
Michael Bostic
You're going to be in the audience? Yeah.
- [66:54]
Lauren Bostic
I'm not sure. You're on.
- [66:55]
Michael Bostic
You real. Okay?
- [66:57]
Lauren Bostic
Of course.
- [66:57]
Derek Hough
Yeah, man. Yeah.
- [66:58]
Michael Bostic
Dancing with the Stars.
- [67:00]
Derek Hough
Call me.
- [67:00]
Michael Bostic
I'm a winner.
- [67:03]
Derek Hough
I love it. But you guys, to answer your first question. Yes. Come see the tour. It's this summer. We're gonna be going to 40 different cities across the country. It's called Symphony of Dance Encore. And it's a really, really beautiful show. It's a fun show. We got a live band, amazing cast of dancers. Like, truly incredible cast dancers.
- [67:20]
Michael Bostic
Are you coming to Austin?
- [67:21]
Derek Hough
I don't think we're in Austin. Austin, you guys, this tour stop, you'll
- [67:25]
Lauren Bostic
be somewhere in Texas, probably.
- [67:26]
Derek Hough
Oh, we're in, like, four different places in Texas.
- [67:28]
Michael Bostic
Well, you guys got to tell us where you are in Texas so we can come support.
- [67:32]
Derek Hough
Thank you. Please come and come on stage. We'll dance.
- [67:35]
Michael Bostic
Okay. Ask me twice. Derek, thank you so much for coming on the show. What a great episode. You guys go support all the things. Derek, thank you.
- [67:47]
Derek Hough
Thank you, man. Appreciate you guys. Thanks so much.