The Ballas Hough Band was an American

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre with an emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than rock music. Originating in the late 1950s as an alternative to normal rock and roll, earl ...

fronted by

Mark Ballas Mark Alexander Ballas Jr. (born May 24, 1986) is an American dancer, choreographer, singer-songwriter, musician, and actor. Ballas is a professional ballroom dancer on the ABC program ''Dancing with the Stars''. He began competing on the show ...

and

Derek Hough Derek Bruce Hough (; born May 17, 1985) is an American professional Latin and ballroom dancer, choreographer, actor and singer. From 2007 to 2016, Hough was a professional dancer on the ABC dance competition series ''Dancing with the Stars'', wi ...

, both of whom played

lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featur ...

and sang

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of t ...

. The band's other members were Sam Marder (

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

), Harry Sullivan (

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

) and Emily Grace (

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

background vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are used ...

). The name for the band is a combination of the two lead singers' last names. They released their self-titled, debut album, ''BHB'', on March 10, 2009, via

Hollywood Records Hollywood Records is an American record label of the Disney Music Group. The label focuses in pop, rock, alternative, hip hop, and country genres, as well as specializing in mature recordings not suitable for the flagship Walt Disney Records l ...

. The album debuted and peaked at No. 98 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200. On November 3, 2009, the group performed for the first time on ''Dancing with the Stars''. They performed their single, "Move", the lead-off single to their planned untitled second studio album. The band left Hollywood Records in 2010 and, according to a post on their then active MySpace page, switched to Morey Management. While they never officially released a statement on the matter, the band parted ways to focus on their individual careers.

History

Prior to the band's foundation,

and sister

Julianne Julianne is an English language given name ultimately derived from the Latin Iuliana, the feminine form of Iulianus ( Julian), probably via the French Julienne. The name is often thought to be made up from Julia + Anne. Notable people with the ...

performed as professional dancers. They and

competed on the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

television series ''

Dancing with the Stars ''Dancing with the Stars'' is the name of various international television series based on the format of the British TV series '' Strictly Come Dancing'', which is distributed by BBC Studios, the commercial arm of the BBC. Currently the forma ...

''. Before joining the roster of professional dancers of ''Dancing With The Stars,'' Mark and Derek first met when Derek's parents sent him to live in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

with Corky and Shirley Ballas, Mark's parents when he was 12 years old. A few months later, Julianne joined her brother in London and the three of them attended the

Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts The Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts is a performing arts conservatoire based in Woking, England. It was founded in 1911 by Italia Conti, an actress. The first production at Italia Conti Academy was the play ''Where the Rainbow Ends''. For ...

. The three had previously been members of the musical team 2B1G, whose name stood for "Two Boys, One Girl." After Julianne left this team, Mark and Derek formed another band, which they called Almost Amy, and which also included Sam Marder, Harry Sullivan and Emily Grace. This band was renamed Ballas Hough Band a short while after its members relocated to

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. Although they did not disclose it to their fans, in 2010 the Ballas Hough Band broke up and its members focused on their individual pursuits.

Debut album: ''BHB'' (2008-2009)

Ballas Hough Band was signed to

in 2008 and released its debut album, '' BHB'', on March 10, 2009. The album spent one week on the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200, peaking at No. 98 on that chart. But its two singles, "Do It for You" and "Do You Love Me," both failed to chart. On June 21, 2009, the band announced on their MySpace page that they would be signing with Morey Management.

Departure from Hollywood: (2009)

The band appeared on the November 3, 2009 episode of ''Dancing With The Stars'' results show, on which they performed their new single, "Move." The song was intended to be the lead-off single to a second studio album. However, after the single failed to chart, they parted ways with Hollywood Records in March 2010, and the planned new album was never released. No news of any plans for another new album were available as of August 2017.

Current Pursuits: (2010-present)

Derek Hough has won ''Dancing with the Stars'' a record number of six times and received the

Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Choreography This is a list of winners of the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Choreography. With the exception of 2013, the award is given at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards ceremony. Starting in 2019, separate awards are given for scripted programs and ...

twice. Hough starred in the film

Make Your Move (film) ''Make Your Move'' (formerly called ''Cobu 3D'', also known as ''Make Your Move 3D''), is a 2013 independent dance film starring K-pop singer BoA and ballroom dancer Derek Hough. The film was directed by Duane Adler, who wrote the script for ''S ...

and played the role of Corny Collins in

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

's TV-production of

Hairspray Live! ''Hairspray Live!'' is an American television special that aired live on the American television network NBC on December 7, 2016. Produced by Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, and hosted by Darren Criss, it is a performance of a new adaptation of the 2 ...

. Hough is currently a judge on the NBC dance competition

World of Dance (TV series) ''World of Dance'' was an American reality competition television series executive produced by Jennifer Lopez. The first two seasons were hosted by Jenna Dewan. The third season saw a change in hosts, as Scott Evans hosted season three and four ...

as well as ''Dancing with the Stars,'' and he recently signed a deal with ABC. Mark Ballas focused on his solo career following BHB's breakup. Along with winning three times on ''Dancing with the Stars,'' Ballas performed in Broadway shows including

Jersey Boys ''Jersey Boys'' is a jukebox musical with music by Bob Gaudio, lyrics by Bob Crewe, and book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice. It is presented in a documentary-style format that dramatizes the formation, success and eventual break-up of th ...

and

Kinky Boots (musical) ''Kinky Boots'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Cyndi Lauper and book by Harvey Fierstein. Based on the 2005 British film '' Kinky Boots'', written by Geoff Deane and Tim Firth and mostly inspired by true events, the musical tells the st ...

. Ballas released a solo CD in 2011 (titled ''HurtLoveBox'') and in 2015, he became part of a music duo named Alexander Jean. This duo is producing music today and also includes

BC Jean Brittany Jean Carlson (born April 22, 1987), better known by her stage name BC Jean, is an American singer-songwriter and actress, best known for writing and singing the song "If I Were a Boy" with which Beyoncé would later achieve worldwide com ...

, whom Ballas wed in 2016. Emily Grace continued to pursue music, touring as a keyboardist and background singer for various artists, such as

Demi Lovato Demetria Devonne Lovato ( ; born August 20, 1992), known as Demi Lovato, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. After appearing on the children's television series ''Barney & Friends'' (2002–2004), Lovato rose to prominence for pl ...

Christina Perri Christina Judith Perri (born August 19, 1986) is an American singer and songwriter. After her debut single "Jar of Hearts" was featured on the television series ''So You Think You Can Dance'' in 2010, Perri signed with Atlantic Records and releas ...

, and

Brynn Elliott Brynn Elliott (born November 11, 1994) is an American singer-songwriter who is currently signed to Atlantic Records and Big Yellow Dog Music. She has toured with acts like Alanis Morissette, Brandi Carlile, and Grace Potter. In May 2018, she r ...

. Sam Marder began playing bass guitar for the Irish pop folk band, Keywest, after BHB split. After playing with Keywest for several years, Marder ended up leaving the band. Harry Sullivan played drums for the band Westar, and in 2012 he joined Marder to play for Keywest. He still plays with the Dublin-based band today, who has gained fame and recognition throughout Ireland and Europe.

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

References

{{Authority control Rock music groups from California Hollywood Records artists Musical groups established in 2005 Musical groups disestablished in 2010 American pop rock music groups