Derek Hough

Emmy® Award-winning and New York Times bestselling author Derek Hough started dancing in his hometown of Salt Lake City, Utah, at age 11. Just one year later, he moved to London to live and train with the top dance coaches in the world and attend the prestigious Italia Conti performing arts school, where he studied theatre, music, and dance.

As a four-time Emmy® Award winner and 13-time nominee, Hough holds the record for most choreography nominations in Television Academy history. Hough has also appeared in film, television, and stage projects as an actor. He made his feature film debut for director Duane Adler and producer Robert Cort in “Make Your Move,” and had a recurring role on the ABC series “Nashville,” as well as in “High School Musical: The Musical” for Disney+. His stage performances include Radio City Music Hall’s “Spring Spectacular,” co-starring alongside the Tony Award-winning Laura Benanti, and the critically acclaimed production of “Footloose,” in which he starred as the male lead on London’s West End. In December of 2016, Hough starred with Jennifer Hudson, Ariana Grande, Martin Short and Harvey Fierstein in NBC’s “Hairspray Live!”

Heading into Season 34 of the hit ABC series “Dancing with the Stars,” Hough is part of the judging panel alongside Carrie Ann Inaba and Bruno Toniolo for his sixth consecutive year as a head judge. A multi-talented entertainer and the only six-time champion in franchise history, Hough had previously performed on the show as a pro dancer. His celebrity partners included Brooke Burke, Jennie Garth, Ricki Lake, Nicole Scherzinger, Jennifer Grey, Kellie Pickler, Amber Riley, Amy Purdy and Bindi Irwin.

In May of 2017, Hough joined Jennifer Lopez and Ne-Yo at the judges’ table for the NBC series “World of Dance.” The show, of which he was a part for four seasons, launched as the highest-rated summer show in over 10 years. It was an unparalleled dance competition that featured solo artists competing against duos and crews in all genres of dance — including hip hop, tap, ballet, breakdancing, ballroom, and more — for a million-dollar prize.

Hough can also add bestselling author to his list of credits. His memoir “Taking the Lead: Lessons from a Life in Motion” hit stands in August of 2014 and was named to the prestigious New York Times Best Sellers list during two nonconsecutive time periods, a rare feat.

In November of 2024, Hough launched his first-ever holiday tour, “Derek Hough Dance for the Holidays,” which visited 40 cities. The holiday tour followed Hough’s second solo tour, “Derek Hough Symphony of Dance,” which featured stops in 60 cities across the United States and Canada. His first tour, “Derek Hough Live: The Tour,” was in 2019, and prior to that, Hough and his sister Julianne teamed for a live stage dance concert, “MOVE Live on Tour,” performing in 50 cities around the country. In 2015, they toured again, selling out scores of venues on their 47-city outing. In 2017, they again performed a sold-out tour of 48 cities around the United States with their show “Move — Beyond — Live on Tour.”