Hayley Erbert is confident in the ballroom after having brain surgery last year — but her husband, Derek Hough, is still a little nervous.
“I just listen to my body,” Erbert, 30, told Entertainment Tonight on Monday, October 21, when asked whether she has to change routines post-surgery. “Being a dancer, I feel like I’m really in tune with my body.”
As Erbert gears up for her and Hough’s first holiday tour as a couple, she is continuing to prioritize her health and recovery. “I do have a medical team still around me,” she explained.
Hough, 39, chimed in saying, “I’m the one who’s like, ‘What? … we don’t need to do that,’” when it comes to a tricky or strenuous move.
“He’s the one with the nerves,” Erbert revealed to which Hough agreed. “She’s like, ‘Babe, I can do it. I’m fine,’” he said, noting her confidence “puts my mind at ease.”
The couple’s Dance for the Holidays Tour kicks off in Atlantic City on Friday, November 1, less than one year after Erbert suffered a severe brain bleed during the couple’s Washington, D.C. tour stop for Symphony of Dance Tour.
Erbert was diagnosed with a cranial hematoma from a burst blood vessel in December 2023. She underwent an emergency craniectomy to relieve the pressure on her brain and had a second brain surgery to replace a portion of her skull that was removed during the first procedure.
After returning home and celebrating the holidays recovering with Hough by her side, Erbert returned to the studio in March. The following month, she performed for an audience for the first time since her health scare.
“When I think about it, I want to cry because it was just a very emotional and powerful tour,” Hough exclusively told Us Weekly in August of Erbert’s April comeback, calling the onstage reunion “an absolute monumental moment in our lives.”
Earlier this month, Hough and Erbert took the Dancing With the Stars stage, marking their first time back in the ballroom as a couple since the emotional rollercoaster.
“It’s always so special to be back in the ballroom but especially tonight after such a crazy year,” Erbert exclusively told Us on Tuesday, October 15, after their dance. “Being here last year for the finale and it all happening the day after, it feels truly like a full circle moment. It was just beautiful to feel the energy. And a lot of people supported us throughout this entire journey so I’m just grateful always.”
The twosome choreographed an emotional routine to Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things” track.
“The journey that has taken to get to this point, it’s unbelievable,” Hough told Us at the time. “The struggles, the highs, the lows and to see her walk through it with such grace has been remarkable.”
The Dancing With the Stars judge added that he and Erbert no longer take life for granted. “We truly are not promised tomorrow. For me, that was a big moment because I’ve always been kind of like, ‘Oh, we’ll do it another time,’” Hough shared. “It’s like, ‘No, if this is something we’re doing then we’re doing it now because you just never know.’”
The couple are seizing every moment they have together, including venturing out on their latest Dance for the Holidays Tour next month.
“It’s actually really crazy. We’re going to the exact location where it all happened. Almost an entire year later,” Erbert told Entertainment Tonight, referring to their upcoming Washington, D.C. performances. “We’re going to be flooded with emotions.”
While the tour will be emotional for the pair, Hough promised that fans will be treated to fun and upbeat numbers. “They’re songs that you know, and you love but they’re kind of reimagined. Like a Grinch Argentina tango,” he teased.
Dance for the Holidays Tour tickets are on sale now at derekhough.com.
