Two years after announcing he was stepping away from Human Nature’s Las Vegas residency in order to move back home to Australia with his family, Phil Burton has finally settled into suburban life.
“I’m loving it. It’s just a really normal, nice life,” the Dancing With The Stars favourite, 49, tells Woman’s Day as we sit down with him and his family – wife Justine, daughter Willow, 14, and son Xavier, nine – at their home on Sydney’s Upper North Shore.
The former Human Nature star has traded the Vegas stage for the dancefloor.
(Image: Getty)It’s a major change from the glittering lights of Nevada’s infamous strip, where he and his band performed more than 2000 shows at the Venetian Resort for more than a decade, with the crooner now keeping himself busy with “Aussie dad things”, such as taking Xavier to nippers and playing backyard soccer, or helping Willow out at acting classes at the church down the road.
He even admits that Australia’s laid-back nature has already made him forget he’s one of the country’s most recognised faces!
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“A lot of times I’m at the shops and people come up and start chatting, and it takes me a few seconds to be like, ‘Do I know this person or not? I don’t know why they’re talking to me,'” he laughs.
His children also have a small role in that. “We actually kept me going on Dancing With The Stars a secret for a while, and when we finally told Xavier, he said, ‘Oh, what star is Dad dancing with?'”
While his ego may take a battering at home, Phil will effortlessly slip back into the life of a pop idol as he takes the stage for some Human Nature shows next month. “Human Nature will always be a big part of my life. It’s just been exciting exploring other avenues by myself as well,” he says.
“Human Nature will always be a big part of my life.”
(Image: Getty)ONE STEP AT A TIME
With the grand finale upon us this Sunday night, Phil labels the show as being “such a positive experience” for him.
“There’s no trash talking – everyone has been so focused on making a fantastic TV show together. Win or lose, it doesn’t matter. It’s all about getting out of your comfort zone,” he says.
While Phil is no stranger to cutting some serious shapes on stages around the world, the entertainer was still surprised at how much he had to learn.
“I found out very quickly that the experience I had wasn’t really a great advantage,” he laughs. “There’s a major difference between these dances and boy band dancing. I was exhausted!”
Phil was also taken aback by the closeness that was needed with his dance partner Ashley, and credits his “unreal” wife Justine for being so supportive.
“For eight weeks I was thrown into a room with Ashley, like literally chest to chest, and if you didn’t have a partner who was 100 per cent behind that, it would make things really awkward,” he admits.
“The family support has been incredible. I couldn’t have done it without them.”
Burton is currently dancing his way to the 2023 Mirrorball trophy.
(Image: Seven Network)