Cameron and Madden announced their engagement last month, sharing photos from the beach proposal on Florida’s Little Palm Island
Credit: tada_itstate/Instagram
NEED TO KNOW
- Tyler Cameron told PEOPLE he “freaked out” during his proposal to fiancée Tate Madden
- “Everything I wanted to say was gone,” he recalled of the “nerve-wracking” moment
- Cameron is set to compete in season 35 of Dancing with the Stars alongside pro partner Sharna Burgess
Tyler Cameron is opening up about the “nerve-wracking” experience of proposing to his fiancée, Tate Madden.
The Bachelorette alum, 33, and Madden announced their engagement on Instagram on Aug. 15, sharing photos of the romantic beach proposal on Florida’s Little Palm Island.
Chatting with PEOPLE exclusively after the Dancing with the Stars season 35 cast reveal at Good Morning America on Wednesday, Sept. 2, Cameron admitted that he “freaked out” when the moment arrived to ask Madden to marry him.
“The proposal was nerve-wracking because everything I wanted to say was gone,” recalled the Going Home with Tyler Cameron star, who is set to compete on DWTS alongside pro partner Sharna Burgess.
“I freaked out,” he continued. “I wrote [my proposal speech] before so I could share it with [Madden] no matter what, but it all left me. I freaked out.”

Credit: tada_itstate/Instagram
Cameron said he is “usually calm, cool and collected,” but the emotional moment got the best of him.
The home renovation expert also shared that Madden plans to be in the ballroom “every week” to watch him and Burgess, 41, put in their fancy footwork in the hopes of winning DWTS’ iconic Mirrorball Trophy.
“She’s a dancer herself,” he told PEOPLE. “So, she’s pitching herself seeing Sharna and Witney [Carson] and all these other amazing cast members. This was her dream as a little kid, too. So to be here, she’s just eating this up.”
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As for Cameron, he said his response to being asked to do the ABC dance competition show was “the quickest ‘yes’ ever.”
“I mean, to get to be in this room, do this dance, do all these things, have an amazing part like this. It’s an incredible journey that you’re going to look back on forever,” he explained.

Credit: Disney/Andrew Eccles
Cameron and his fiancée first met in 2022 while filming his home renovation show, Going Home with Tyler Cameron (Madden shot photography for various aspects of the show).
He later revealed that he was dating “a great girl,” before hard-launching his relationship with Madden in September 2024 by posting an Instagram video of the pair dancing together.
“Found a cute girl to dance with…. and then she tried to knock me out….,” he wrote in the caption.
Last September, Cameron hinted that an engagement might be in his future. During a joint appearance with Madden on Jason Tartick’s Trading Secrets podcast, he teased that he needed to find a ring designer soon as he shared that things were “going in a great direction” in the couple’s relationship.
“We’re definitely making all those strides, and I definitely see us there,” he said of an engagement.
Just days after he and Madden announced their engagement, Cameron shared a little update on wedding planning.
He told TMZ that he’s “working on” solidifying his best man. “I’ve got two brothers, so maybe a little, I don’t know, coin flip, rock paper scissors, we’ll see what happens,” he said.
As for the guest list, Cameron joked that he still needs to talk with Madden to determine how many people he’s “allowed to invite,” but promised they will get “a good group” together and that the wedding will be “a lot of fun.”
Dancing with the Stars returns with a two-night premiere on Tuesday, Sept. 15, and Wednesday, Sept. 16, on ABC and Disney+. Episodes will stream the following day on Hulu.
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