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Derek Hough Dishes on His Wedding Day Plans & Teases New 'Passion Project'

Congratulations are in order for pro dancer Derek Hough, who announced his engagement to fellow dancer and longtime girlfriend, Hayley Erbert, in June.

Although he’s been keeping busy as a judge on Dancing with the Stars, the groom-to-be is wasting no time when it comes to the planning process. While chatting with PureWow, Hough opened up about the upcoming nuptials, while also discussing his current partnership with Southwest Rapid Rewards Credit Cards from Chase.

With regards to his upcoming wedding, Hough told us, “[The planning process] has been great. We're just trying to find the venue. I think once we find that, I think it's gonna be all guns blazing, you know. It's gonna move really fast. But we're just trying to lock in the location and the venue right now. So that's the main thing.”

He added, “We've already started the guest list and all those things, so it's all good. It's gonna happen pretty quick once we nail that down.”

The couple haven’t confirmed a date just yet—but they’ve already got a solid idea of how they want the ceremony to play out: like one big concert. (And yes, guests can expect to see a special dance routine from the bride and groom.)

Hough said, “We probably will [do a dance routine]. But we're also going to expect performances from some of our guests because they're amazing performers. So we're like, ‘Alright, well, why don't you two sing a song? I need a magic trick from you. And I need a full dance routine.’”

He continued, “We have a talented group of friends and people around us, so I’m like, ‘We’ll need you to step it up, guys. We need to see a full concert here.’”

As it turns out, Hough is juggling his wedding plans and DWTS with multiple new projects, including a series with National Geographic and a surprise “passion project.”

“I won’t get into crazy detail, but there's a show that I'm working on with National Geographic that I'm very excited about,” he told PureWow, referring to Dance the World, which will explore the cultural roots behind the world's most famous dances.

“There’s also a passion project I'm working on right now. I’m working with this new technology, so I'm excited to see that. It's gonna be cool. So there's a few things already bubbling in the works right now. You'll see one of them [soon], it was a fast turnaround.”

We'll be on the lookout for these exciting new projects (and more wedding details, of course.)

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nakeisha campbell bio

Associate Editor, News and Entertainment

Nakeisha has been interviewing celebrities and covering all things entertainment for over 8 years, but she has also written on a wide range of topics, like career...