The Chris Cuomo Project - Derek Hough

Episode Date: June 6, 2023

Derek Hough (Emmy Award-winning choreographer, “Dancing With The Stars” judge, and professional dancer, “Derek Hough Symphony Of Dance”) joins Chris to discuss how American culture has grown to appreciate the art and sport of dance, why professional athletes on “DTWS” have helped shatter stereotypes, the death and legacy of ballroom dancing pioneer Len Goodman, whether there will be a first dance at his wedding to dancer Hayley Erbert, and much more. Follow and subscribe to The Chris Cuomo Project on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube for new episodes every Tuesday and Thursday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I found you could dance and still look tough anyway. Billy Joel, talking about something that matters so much. And I'll tell you, if you want to get into what it is to really be macho or just be happy, you're going to love this guest. Hey, everybody, I'm Chris Cuomo. Thank you so much for being on the Chris Cuomo Project podcast. Derek Hough. We all love to watch his handsome self on Dancing with the Stars, but he's done so much more than just entertain with what he can do.

He's let us know what's possible for us to do. I don't know about you, but I grew up where it was like, oh, we don't want to dance and guys don't dance. We watch the girls dance. Ugh, terrible thinking. So much about insecurity. And that show and this young man have done so much to make us realize you got to dance. You got to feel good.

And the idea that it's not athletic, that it's not hard, ask Emmett Smith. Ask any of those NFL guys or other athletes who go on there and just get destroyed by how difficult it is. guys or other athletes who go on there and just get destroyed by how difficult it is. So I wanted to have Derek Hough come in here and talk about, first of all, just how hard it has been in terms of the commitment, the physical grind, the mental grind, the emotional grind for so many years of his life, what it took for him to be the Derek Hough that we know. I wanted to talk to him about the loss of Len Goodman and what that means and what will be missed and about his new tour and this nonsense about in his impending nuptials he's saying may not have a first dance crazy talk Derek Hough Look, no shame in my game.

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a healthcare provider, and they will determine if appropriate. Restrictions apply. You see the website, you'll get details and important safety information. You're going to need a subscription. It's required. Plus, price is going to vary based on product and subscription plan. It is always tough here on the Chris Cuomo Project for me to have to have another male on who's obviously better looking and superior to me in every measurable way. But that's where we find ourselves with Derek Hough. I want to say thank you for being here. Thank you for the entertainment, for the enjoyment, and for the aspiration that maybe, just maybe, a white guy can have style. Oh, man.

Thank you so much for having me. Yeah, I hope to be that guy. You got two generations now that have really come up rooting for you, watching you, being inspired by you, wanting to do what you can do. What has that meant for you in your life? It's been amazing to see this sort of transformation of, at least as far as dance goes, because me growing up originally, dance certainly wasn't cool, you know, where I came from, you know, as far as for a guy, you know, for a guy to dance, you know, I was bullied severely at school, you know, beaten up and called all sorts of different types of things, hogtied, left in a field, hung up in a tree by my feet for hours, really cruel, terrible things because I danced. amazing to see that just in this past 15 years or so um just the understanding the appreciation

of this sort of artistic you know athletic art form that is uh that is dance you know it's funny you know going to like a sporting event you know 15 years ago i go to a football game and then you know i say pasta doble and they're like what is that you just swear at me you know and and now it's like go to a basketball game, like, yo, Derek, that Cuban break, that New Yorker section, I love that cha-cha. It was amazing, you know? And they're holding the beer and the thing.

And I'm like, it just warmed my heart because to see that just understanding and love and appreciation of dance evolve so much, it's not become such a small niche thing. It's become so much more, you know, broad. It's, it's meant a lot to me and more than people even probably even know because of certain things I've experienced in my life. It just, it just, and now, now there's sort of avenue and this sort of lane now for, you know, dance, you know, male dancers or any dancer who wants to go in this as a career,

it makes me so happy, man. It really does. So then and now, why did you keep doing it when you were getting smacked around and it wasn't cool and it was actually a problem for you? What kept you going? I think what kept me going was having good mentors. I think that was crucial. It was so important. You know, I had this really great teacher. His name was Rick Robinson.

And he just, he made dancing cool, you know. And he didn't just teach us dance. He was also very much about, like, life, you know. It was always about, like, what kind of man you want to be, what kind of person you need to be, and how you treat others. And it introduced us to the competitive world. So competing in dance, you got that bug for competition, and you got that bug for, ooh, I want to get better,

or I want to be better, I want to strive for this. And just having that sort of clarity of a destination, that clarity of progress, and you get addicted to this. And just having that sort of clarity of a destination, that clarity of progress, and you get addicted to that. And I think I got addicted to progress and the idea of improvement. And because they were so frequent, it was every week and there was a competition. They were like short goals, short-term goals that eventually turned into long-term goals. And so even though I was getting, you know, performance, you know, in like a public school, I would go to my sort of my refuge, you know, a dance studio, and I would just have this amazing experience.

And so for me, I just kind of chased that feeling until eventually I had the opportunity to move to London when I was 12 years old by myself to move in with my coaches and was fortunate enough to go to a school where you were celebrated for the arts. They're like, hey, this is awesome. I'm like, you think this is cool that I'm doing this? They're like, yeah. I'm like, that's so different than what I'm used to. This is great. I think that you've also gotten a huge boost. Look, this is only in the world of the male stereotype

because obviously we've appreciated dance as a form for so long, certainly on the female side, but on the male side, the show, including athletes and males that were kind of prized for their persona at a minimum for being macho and their respect for it, you know, whether it was Jerry Rice or Emmett Smith or whoever it was, but a guy who you weren't going to look at and say, you know, oh, he's not manly and them saying how hard it was and how taxing it was and how much they wanted to be good at it. Do you think that helped kind of change the typical ignorant male view on it?

Without a doubt. Honestly, I think that, um, having those athletes, you know, on the show affirmed the athleticism that it is to be a dancer. I think that, um, you know, it's interesting. They, they did this, uh, you know, they had that sports science show back when. They did that with dancers, and they literally showed like a ballet dancer has more vertical than any basketball player. The torque in their turns, like all these – the athleticism is so beyond certain types of athletes, you know, it was this sort of like understanding, like, wait, hold on. This isn't just like an art form. These are athletes and having those, you know, sports athletes that we all admire and love for, you know,

football or basketball or baseball or whatever it might be to have them say like, guys, this is doing a rumba is hard. This is exhausting. This is so difficult. I just won a Super Bowl championship, and this cha-cha is kicking my butt physically. That was incredibly, incredibly helpful in sort of the stereotype around certain people.

And that's not a blanket statement for everybody because everybody has some things. But certainly for the ones who felt like dance was a certain thing um that definitely opened their eyes to dance being so much more um than what they might have thought it was so there was athletically and culturally okay so for me there'll be somewhat of a relatable set of circumstances for a lot of the audience for the project because i'm older than you brother a lot you're still young you don't even get called old you get called young glenn allen sims is a legendary big shot for the alvin ailey theater i do the workout that they do every year 40 minute

warm-up they do before they start which is you know of course familiar to you first of all i meet this guy he looks like an nfl safety The Alvin Ailey dancers, black theater. Obviously, it's oriented around the male figure, which is a total anathema to dance traditionally. But big, strong, athletic guys. The workout killed me, working on all the muscle attachments because that's why you don't get injured. And dance is so dynamic that you get injured so easy.

And I was blown away by the athleticism. But more impressive to me, because I get that things can be hard, like gymnastics, guys will look at them and they'll say, oh, gymnastics, it's not like football. Yeah, they're twice as strong pound for pound. They're way more durable and they're doing things that are way crazier

than even football. But for me, it was Saturday Night Fever. they're way more durable and they're doing things that are way crazier um than even football but for me it was saturday night fever the derrick huff for me was john travolta now i was a little too young but i watched a generation of ethnic males in queens where i grew up including my brother who would go on to be a three-term governor almost. I watched him overnight, Derek, overnight, go from a guy who believed that if you didn't have your hand balled into a fist in a fight, that you weren't like a guy, macho Italian. They were getting the outfits, the shoes, and disco was all about, hey, this idea that, oh, I don't dance. I'm a man. That was a cowboy mentality for us. And of course, line dancing and step dancing took that out. But

for us, it was, oh, no, you got to dance. You don't stand on the side, no, I'm a man, let the girls go dance. You dance. So I grew up dancing. I will fight to the end of the day that I can dance and every woman in my life. And most of the men will say, no, he cannot dance. I'm telling you, I think I can dance and I will dance at any time in any way that I can. I battle all my kids. I believe I've won every competition and I dance all the time and it doesn't matter how they ask me to get off. But it was because I grew up seeing the stereotype flip and it was not effeminate to dance. It was weak to not dance. Oh, you're just nervous.

You're just scared because you suck at it. And it was one more thing to be good at. And I wonder if you feel an appreciation for your giving that to culture, you know, outside of an ethnic pocket, because you really have. Nobody looks at you and says, oh, I don't want to be like him because, well, because what? He's too good looking? He's too talented? What, you know, have you felt that change? Well, you know what, for me, it's also interesting too, because I think that when people say like, oh, I don't dance. I'm like, well, when did you decide that?

Because we all dance. We all did. You know, you look at a baby before they walk or crawl, you put music on, they're bobbing their heads, they're moving. Like nobody taught them how to do that. Nobody showed them that. That's in us. That's in our, that's a primal. And if you look at like cultures way, way back when, like there's two things that brought

cultures together was food and dance, literally. Those were the two things that really bonded cultures back in the day. And so it's in us. There was just a moment when we stopped, right? Because you look at kids, they're running around, they're shaking their butts and moving around. And then something happened where we're like, don't do that. We're either told not to do that or we get embarrassed or something. And then we shut that part of ourselves off.

And one thing that I love to do is to sort of ignite that part of us that has been forgotten. You know, when I'm working with somebody on Dancing with the Stars or if I'm just even a fan, it was like, oh, I don't dance. I'm like, well, let's see if that's true or not.

You know, and to see that moment click or that reconnection to that part of themselves they've forgotten about or that part that they haven't really felt before, that moment is so exciting to see and to witness. That's also the thing, the fuel that fuels me as well is to see that moment where they go, wait, I didn't realize this was possible. I use a story with Amy Purdy, you know, she's a Paralympian. She had two prosthetic legs and I, you know, was working with her and we had to get these, you know, certain feet for her, um, that like pointed there was, they were for swimming. Um, and she's balancing on his feet and we're doing this Argentine tango and she's hitting my shins with these carbon fiber prosthetics, which doesn't feel good. But we're having this dance and she sits on a stool and she just starts to cry.

And I'm like, whoa, did I say something wrong? What's going on? And she said, no, this is the first time I felt feminine since I lost my legs. And the first time I felt connected to this part of me that I haven't felt in a long time. And it's those moments that I'm able to be a part of that for me mean more to me than any accolade, any Emmy award or anything like that. It's the moments like that where I'm able to help

somebody discover a part of themselves or reconnect with something. That's for me is what it's all about. I love it. Three-time Emmy winner, by the way. Six-time champ on the show. But it is those moments when you are harnessing the power of one of our last and most impressive

non-verbal forms of communication. That's so great. And I believe we need it right now. We need things that just transcend tribalism and disagreeing for disagreement's sake and where we can just all enjoy it. And that's why I loved hearing and coordinating you coming on

with the announcement that you're going on tour. And I love this. I love the timing of it. I know the entertainment industry, although the writer's strike will probably help you because people will be looking to promote things that they don't have to worry about writing. So tell me why you decided to do this because it's not like your life wasn't busy enough.

What do you want to achieve with it and what's the sell on the tour? Well, yeah, this is a long time coming. I haven't been on tour in four years and it seems like a lifetime. So I'm so excited because I love touring. I love going to people's cities, seeing them face to face and really interacting with them. But also, you know, I'm calling the tour Symphony of Dance and people are like,

well, is there gonna be a symphony? And part of that is because part of the messaging of this whole tour, the whole idea of this is, you know, we all play our instruments individually, right, in life. We all have our gifts. We all have our talents. We're all, you know, beautiful individuals. But when we come together, you know, as a symphony, basically, I mean, we collaborate and we unite, it's we create

these masterpieces. And that's what this is all about, you know, and that's what the show is about too, is bringing choreographers and different types of music, every genre of music you could think of, you know, from big band to Latin to ballroom to, you know, to tangos to salsas, every different type of music, rock and roll, and having that live band, the live dancers. But that collaboration, that symphony of dance, essentially, is what I want to create. And it's just incredibly exciting. You know, it's one of those elements for me and what I do is it's not just about performing. It's really about connecting with people.

It really truly is. And that relationship between an audience and the performer on stage, that instant like interaction is unlike anything I've ever felt, you know, and most performers have felt. But it's also those meet and greets, you know, when I meet people, you know, and before the show, I go above and beyond, you know, most, to be honest with you, because I just genuinely

love those experiences of connecting with people and talking with them in the Q&As. And for me, that's what it's all about. But the fuel that drives me, you know, when people say you're doing 56 cities and you're doing Dancing with the Stars at the same time, how are you going to do that? How are you going to have the energy? Like, are you crazy? And for me, the unlimited fuel comes from my intention of service, my intention of how am I going to serve this audience tonight? How am I going to serve this person here tonight? How am I going to serve? Because, you know, if I go out for myself, that's, it's, it's a very sort of short lived fuel, but if I'm going out there to serve these people in this, this amazing audience, um, that's endless. Um, and so I'm, I'm incredibly excited about it. My beautiful fiance is going to be on tour with me as well. And so, so that the hard part about tour is being away from your loved ones. But if your loved ones with you, it's like, all right, we just, we took the hard part out. So we're, that's a blessing. That is a real blessing because it's the being away. It's disrupting on two sides. You're avoiding two problems. One is going away. The second one is

coming back because when you come back, you know, not that you're a veteran, but when you come back to a dynamic that's been in place in your absence, it usually is not going to meet energetically or just practically what you're used to. You don't fit into it, and it doesn't really fit into you. And it's adjustment every time. People in my business, I've been doing this a long time. That is a very big thing. You're doing this very smart, but you're also fortunate in that she's with you in it.

And that makes for a great partner. So good for you. Now, I also want to give you a chance to express the hard news. I know Len Goodman was not just a colleague and not just a prominent figure in the dance world that you knew. I want to help the audience understand what did we lose with the loss of Len Goodman for all of us and then personally to you because I know how much he meant to you well I I feel like I mean it's it's still it's still a shock honestly it's it's even I haven't fully fully processed it to the extent that I I know I'm going to feel even more and more each day.

But, you know, we lost just an absolute icon. He really truly is. He's an absolute legend, at least the TV world and also in the ballroom world. Before Dancing with the Stars, I knew Len when I was 12 years old, you know, when I lived in London. I remember seeing him, you know, emceeing this, this little dance event that we did. And he always just had that humor. He had that gift of the gab, if you will. And he was just so charming and so supportive always. Even I remember that when I was 12 years old and then to have the opportunity and the gift to work alongside him for almost 16 years on a TV show.

Um, I just feel so fortunate. And then even just last season, which was his last season. And he, you know, said he was stepping away. Um, you know, I'm recalling those little intimate moments, those private moments we shared together and, you know, just talking and just catching up or, you know, the last day I walked into my trailer and there was this giant picture frame with Len's face on it. And he goes, he goes, I don't know, this was in my dressing room and I wanted to give it to you, Derek. And he wrote this beautiful handwritten message on there. Also an inappropriate and funny, hilarious joke,

which is also who he is. And I'm just so thankful that I was able to work so closely alongside him. And especially last season, where I really had this feeling like this might be one of the last times I might even see him. And I don't know what that was coming from. I knew he was unwell. None of us knew what the extent was. But I really do remember last season being very conscious about really being present with him every time I was with him and really savoring each moment with him and being grateful in that moment and I'm just so thankful that there was that um that sort of send off or that goodbye and it doesn't honestly it doesn't even still feel real to be honest with you. It, it,

when you think about it, you're like, wait a minute, like he's still here, you know? Um, um, but he's irreplaceable. He's just, uh, yeah, it's really, it's really a sad thing to think about. It really is. And, and, um, just a lot of tears have been shed with friends and colleagues because he was just so kind. Even when I go on tours and I see people, the first thing they ask is,

is Len really like that? How is Len? Len is everybody's absolute favorite because he's such a beautiful man. Again, I just count myself very, very lucky to be, to call him my friend and to work so closely alongside him. And yeah, we lost a legend without a doubt.

We don't fake the funk here. And here's the real talk. Over 40 years of age, 52% of us experience some kind of ED between the ages of 40 and 70. I know it's taboo, it's embarrassing, but it shouldn't be. Thankfully, we now have HIMS, and it's changing the vibe by providing affordable access to ED treatment, and it's all online. HIMS is changing men's health care. Why? Because it's giving you access to affordable and discreet sexual health treatments.

And you do it right from your couch. HIMS provides access to clinically proven generic alternatives to Viagra or Cialis or whatever. And it's up to like 95% cheaper. And there are options as low as two bucks a dose. HIMS has hundreds of thousands of trusted subscribers. So if ED is getting you down, it's time to pick it up. Start your free online visit today at HIMS.com slash CCP. H-I-M-S dot com slash CCP.

And you will get personalized ED treatment options hymns.com slash ccp prescriptions you need an online consultation with a health care provider and they will determine if appropriate restrictions apply you see the website you'll get details and important safety information you're going to need a subscription it's, the price is going to vary based on product and subscription plan. The Chris Cuomo Project is supported by Cozy Earth. Why? Because I like their sheets. That's why. A lot of people don't get a good night's sleep for a lot of reasons. One of the ones that you can control is bedding. One out of three of us report being sleep deprived. Okay, well, what is it? Well, it stresses all kinds of things, but the wrong sheets can make you hot, can make you cold. I'm telling you,

I don't even believe it either, but Cozy Earth sheets breathe. And here's what I love about them. Cozy Earth's best-selling sheet is a bamboo set, okay? Temperature regulating. Gets softer with every wash. I'm not kidding you. All right. Now, so if you go to cozy earth.com and you enter the code, enter the code Chris, and you can get up to 35% off your first order. Cozy earth.com. And the code is Chris. One of the things you learn or life forces you to learn, you lose more people as you go on, not less, right? That's just the nature of things. And one of the best ways to cope, especially when they matter, like you don't have to search for like their significance. There'll

be some people you'll lose in your life where you'll be like, you know, let me think for a second about why I care about this. Len's not one of them for you. And one of the coping devices that I've learned is having, you know, lost so many people at this point, that what do you want to keep alive from him? What was he about or what did you see him do or know about him that you want to now make part of who you are and how you are for yourself and or for others well i think that you know his sense of humor and his his uh his joy of um his really his joy of, um, his really his joy of life, but also his, his love of dance as well. You know, his love of dance and his, his love of, of not just, um, not just a dance, but also the, the classic, you know, form of dance as well. You know what I mean? Sort of the, the, uh,

not the old school, but just the traditional elements. Yeah. Classical. And so for me, just the traditional elements. The classical. Yeah, classical. And so for me, as much as I love to push the needle and explore and, you know, try new things, but I always loved paying

sort of a tribute to the legends, to the Gene Kellys, the Fred Astaire's, the Nicholas Brothers. Like, you know, keeping that alive, keeping the history of dance alive, you know, moving forward in the future is important

to me. And even more so now in Len's honor, you know, wanting to keep the history and the legacy of dance moving forward into the future as it evolves and as it changes, but never forgetting that. And so, yeah, so for me, you know, he's given us so much. And he was always somebody who we always, like, seeked approval from, you know, everybody, even a fan. You know, they're like, how was it, Len? Like, was it good? Like, he just had that sort of presence and that sort of respect from all of us. And just, man, what a great guy.

from all of us. And, um, and just, just, man, what a great guy. Maybe you can find a way on the new tour to, uh, remember him or have something for him when you're doing it. I'm sure that would matter a lot. I think with that, I did out, I think not only for myself and for everyone on stage, but I think, I think also for the audience, you know, who have watched him for years. That's one thing I love about Dancing with the Stars as well is that, you know, when we meet people, um, they, I hear stories all the time where they say like, you know what, I wasn't even that close with my mom, but the one thing we bond over is watching the show. And our favorite is Len Goodman and we just, we talk about him all the time. And so it's a beautiful thing that people connect with as families. And I think that to honor him during the show feels not only right but appropriate.

And I'm looking forward to that. I think it'll be good of you to do and good for you to do also. An easy one. What is this nonsense I hear that when you get married, there's going to be no first dance? This is what you both do. What do you mean there's going to be? first dance. This is what you both do. What do you mean there's going to be? Everybody does a first dance.

Why don't you have to do it? So I think the idea of us doing a first performance, right? I think that's the thing. I want to make sure it's a first dance where we're dancing, but we're present. We're connected. It's about us. But we're not going to perform. You know what're present. We're connected. It's about us. But we're not going to perform.

You know what I mean? We're not going to do like a full dance. That's what I'm trying to say. There might be later on, later on in the night, we might have some sort of, you know, moment. But I think for that first moment, I really just wanted to just savor that, be present with her and just enjoy that moment. Yeah, but that's all you have to do.

That's what, just pretend you're the rest of us for a second and not these people on YouTube where they're coming out 10 strong and doing these choreographed things so that, you know, that they can sell some ad. Um, but the rest of us, you just grab onto her the way you will for the rest of your life. Um, because you know, you'll be shocked at how much you need another person to make it through what comes your way good and bad and you just kind of start talking to each other about that it actually happened and pretending that not everybody else is watching you because that's kind of weird whether you're a performer or not and that's it and you'll get through it that's all

you got to do nobody expects anything else you just waddle back and forth like the rest of those fat guys. That's honestly what I wanted to do. I do have the producer being a part of me. I have some ideas about how that might play out, like how it might be just us in this space alone. And then people sort of trickle in as we're doing it. I don't some ideas well if you need any i can give you know i'm known as a master when it comes to hand dancing you know some of the ones that really i started i mean you'll hear them by other names but you know the lawnmower the sprinkler you know a lot of those things you

know that was me really uh back in the day those are all the classics and those never go out of style by the way and you you talk to the originals the ogs as i call them you know yeah that was me really, uh, back in the day. Those are all the classics and those never go out of style. And you, you talk to the originals, the OGs as I call them, you know, and they'll know, they'll be like, Oh, that was Cuomo. Yeah. The, the, you know, so if you need any advice, um, now here's what I want to talk to you about. Yes. You look at Derek, he's in good shape. Obviously you can't do what he does, not care about your body, your fitness, your wellness. Okay. We get that. But how you got to where you are, I don't think people understand with dance, although they should, the way they do with sport, how hard it is to get to where you are and what it required. Your sister and you,

and it was helpful, I'm sure, to have a sibling around, but she's a few years younger than you, left home, moved overseas. That alone would be more than most of us could deal with. Had older siblings, had parents, left it. I want you to discuss with people the struggle of how much went into this at so young an age to be what now looks so natural and easy. Well, you know, I always say like, you know, dancers are really unique in the sense that for the amount of work and literal sweat and blood and broken bones and bruises and all the things that go into it for the reward, which financially is zero. Like, really, it's a very hard career. It's changed a lot. It's changed a lot.

I will get granted in the past couple decades, but you really get into it because you love it, right? Because you're passionate about it because you become obsessed with it almost. But just to give an idea of sort of what a typical week looked like for me growing up at 13 years old, it took an hour to get to school by train every single day. I have school from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., get an hour back by train back home, have a quick bite, and then I go practice dance for three hours from about 8 o'clock to 11 o'clock at night and intensely. you're doing rap like we're practicing on technique the form all the different nuance of the you know dance but also the stamina which is we do rounds where we just do rounds just for stamina and you're you know you're tasting blood like you know you're you're you're seeing spots you know it's you're really pushing the limits um then you get i go drive home wake up at 7 a.m the next day same all over again, school, practice, school practice.

And then Saturday, the day off is actually the day where we actually train the hardest, where we actually go, we have lessons from like 10 a.m. to like 5 p.m. We have private lessons with different coaches and teaching again, going over the repetition. The repetition is the mother of all skill. We're doing these same routines over and over and over and over again. The fundamentals, just like in sports, right? And you're practicing that just constantly, constantly to where it just becomes automatic and it's in your muscle memory, it's in your body. And then Sundays, we would have competitions.

Then we have to put all that work to test. And we basically have to throw it out there and say, well, we'll see if this worked out. And, and for me, the physical part of it was actually, it was difficult, but then for me, it was the mental part. I wasn't a mental, mentally strong automatically. You know, I, I, the nerves got the better of me. My, I, when I competed, I was, I was terrible. I love practicing. I was, I was great at practicing, but when I, when it came to actually show up for the day of competitions, I would fall apart.

You know, I would forget everything. I, I, my nerves, like my legs were shaking. So I really had to do a lot of work and figuring out ways to build my mental strength to be a good competitor. And that took many, many years of just trying different tricks and little life hacks and how to manage my nerves and figure it out. But, uh, but that would, that, that, that routine weekly would go on repeat for months and months and months until there was like the, the Grand Prix or the, I'm trying to do the equivalence, the U S open, right. But of dance, it's like the big, the grand slams and the ramp ups to those competitions were so intense, you know, people from all over the world, from Italy, Russia, Germany,

America, Australia, they all come in one place. And it's so intense, it can be overwhelming. And then you have to really focus in on your training, your preparation. And that's when you really understand the importance of preparation. Because of the practice and of the patience of all those things. Did you get to dance with the same person all the time? Was it your sister or did you, so it was always you and her or was it with somebody else?

No, it was with somebody else. It's funnily enough, actually, when we were younger, my parents were like, you should dance with your sister. And I was like, absolutely not. You're defeating the whole purpose of why I started dancing in the first place, but so I could dance with girls. You know, and so I absolutely refuse that. Um, so yes, to answer your question,

I would, we danced with the same partner and you became like this team, you know what I mean? You became a team. And, um, and I think I had about three or four partners, you know, I switched, you know, every, you know, every couple of years, but, uh, but it was intense. It was intense work, very difficult. Um, not just physically, but, uh, but mentally. Well, it's the only performance, you know, you said it's like sports, but you're not giving yourself the benefit of a huge and key distinction as an aging athlete. And certainly as a fighter, you know, people will say, Oh, I'll see a fighter. I'll be like, Oh, I like the way he or she, I like the way they're moving. They look good when they do that, you know, like a Tyson or something like that. And in football, sometimes we'll say, oh, look at the grace, you know, the rigor of the performance. It's okay to sweat and be messed up in any sporting event. And in fact, we respect it.

To be exhausted, for it to be an ugly win is not an oxymoron. But with what you do, which is what is, you know, again, I love the dance, but holy cow, I do not feel good for people dancing with me if I've had a, you know, a couple of drinks and more than 15 minutes have gone by on the dance floor because I am now more of a mop than a man. And you have to look like you are not up against it, even more than gymnastics, you know, ballet, the ice skating, you know, that, yeah, they do it too, but we can see that they're breathing hard. You can't even breathe hard. Yeah. It's, it's funny you say that because the stamina part of it for me was so difficult. And, and I think that those were deciding factors in competition where, you know, in the final, um, you know, you have to go dance all these dances back to back to back to back. So it really becomes about the stamina. It almost like the technique and almost about all that element, it almost goes out the window a little bit that last round because you're so exhausted.

It's really like who can just get through this and look like they're not going to die. You know what I'm saying? And so I love that you brought that up actually because it's so important because yes, you are, again, you're tasting blood, like you're breathing heavily. You're, you're, you're kind of going in and out of like consciousness. Almost it feels like in some cases, because you've been dancing since 9am in the morning and now it's 1am. Right. And now it's 1am for the finale.

And, and you're, you're exhausted, for the finale, and you're exhausted. You're done, but you're pushing through. But you have to have a smile on your face, and you have to make it look easy. And that is so difficult. It was such a challenge. So, yeah, that in and of itself was probably, like you said, a deciding factor of a champion and somebody who – a potential champion. In practice, you're like guy these guys are amazing but on the day if they don't have that energy

if they don't have that stamina they don't have that and they don't do it with grace then um you know it all kind of goes out the window so i'm glad you brought that up actually because that is a that is a very distinct difference between certain sports and the sport of dance. You can say, well, that's not, it's not fair, whatever. That's why we love it. Yeah. We love it. And one of the reasons for the success of the show is that all but the least sophisticated emotionally or experientially know that's hard. Not only would I have a hard time memorizing it,

not only did I not know that whether I could get my body to do those things, but I don't know that it would look good and I would be exhausted. And, you know, look, it all comes together and that's why you are who you are. And I just wanted people to have an appreciation for that. Especially when, you know, doing the research that I could, you don't really have an off season. I mean, you can create one for yourself but i'm saying technically it kind of always goes right there's no dance season you know i think that um well that's the thing too as well just just there's dance with the stars which is the show right and the competitions that i've been tired of talking about now are but before the show the actual competitive world of

ball arm and line dancing, which is completely different. But yeah, you can't really have an off-season. For instance, if we look at other athletes and sports athletes, this wasn't their season. Next season. You need to continue to build. However, I will say there was one

where I remember I got dumped by my partner. She dumped me. She was like, I'm going with this better guy. I was um, I remember I got dumped by my partner, right? She, she dumped me. She was like, I'm going with this better guy. And I was devastated. I was like, oh my gosh. And I ended up dancing with this other girl and she got dumped by her partner. So we're basically the rejects, you know? Um, and we called ourselves that we're like, we're the rejects, but we're going to go compete against this now star couple. And, that competition we were dancing and i got kind of a little bit of this the sports mentality where the the sort of the ethics of ballroom

competition kind of went out the window where i would like dance up next to them you know and i got a little bit like we were like kind of dancing like around them on the floor and and um but what happened i ended up biting my tongue in half. Um, I got elbowed in the face cause you know, they're spinning fast and their elbows are flying, just breezing crosses your, cross your nose and your face is constantly. But this time I just leaned it a little bit. The elbow swiped across my mouth. I bit my tongue in half. It's dangling off my tongue, literally like danglingling but i keep dancing and the tongues bleed a lot by the way yes they do my mouth is filling up with blood as i'm breathing heavily so i'm

trying to catch a breath but every time i open my mouth it just comes out the side of my mouth down my rhinestone outfit and and that's the semi-final so when it comes to the final i'm like what am i gonna do you know i'm trying to ice my mouth and stuff and and we get back out on the floor and you know it's still bleeding so after every dance i have to go off the floor and then spit out this pool of blood but man i tell you what i've never danced better i I'll never forget that competition because I was in so much pain, but I loved it. I was like, I really felt like I was like out there fighting for something. And, you know, and you're dancing a samba. You know what I mean?

But there was still that like that, that, that sort of that drive in me that was that kind of loved it in a way. And we ended up winning, which is kind of great. I don't know if they were just feeling bad. I was like, man, he's just bleeding everywhere. Just give him the trophy. But I did feel like it was a really special moment. And actually, funnily enough, if I look back at all the moments that I won the world championships, when I was 19 years old at the Czech Republic, and I was supposed to be fifth.

That was kind of where I was ranked. Like, oh, he's going to be fifth. And I tweaked my neck. I could not turn my neck to the left for the life of me. And, but I was like, but I think because I had that, I kind of was like, hey, you know, whatever. I'm gonna do my best. And I think I took that pressure off me

and I ended up dancing so much better and I ended up winning. We ended up winning the whole thing. And I actually look back even more even on Dancing with the Stars or on other competitions you know any competition shows or any kind of competition if there's an injury if there's a little tweak I'm like this is good luck this is great because whenever there's something going on I'm like usually it's a good sign for what's to come and I think part of that is I almost takes the pressure off a little bit. But yeah, anyways, went up on tangent there.

But yeah, lots of, when we say blood, sweat, and tears, I literally mean blood, blood, sweat, and tears. Literally and figuratively, you've done it. Well, listen, I have to say, you've accomplished so much in a young life. You got a following that you deserve. You make people happy. You give us a reason to take a break from everything that's driving us crazy these days. And I love it. And my family loves it. And I'm happy for your success. You got a long way to go. I can't wait to see what comes next. And I can't wait for someone to leak the video of you with your first dance at your wedding and say, I knew he was going to do something fancy because

at some point something will happen. But Derek Hough, it is a true pleasure as a performer, an athlete, an artist, and a doer. I respect the grind and I respect your success. And you got a big fan of me. Thank you, Chris. I appreciate you so much, man. Thank you for having me. Really interesting guy. And what interesting insights into what goes into what he does and why he does it. Thank you for subscribing and following here

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