Dan + Shay’s Dan Smyers Reveals His Surprising Favorite Male Singer

Dan + Shay, the hot duo made up of Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney, have spent the last five years performing and recording music together. But although they hear each other sing almost daily, Smyers says Mooney’s voice is still the one he loves the most.

“This guy right here is my favorite singer, ever,” Smyers reveals, pointing to Mooney, on the Ty, Kelly and Chuck Show. “It’s ridiculous. I say it every night on stage. I seriously do. I would put him toe-to-toe against any other singer, and there’s good singers in the world, especially in Nashville. Record labels, even people on Broadway just singing in bars – there’s just amazing singers here. But this guy, every night. I’m blown away listening to him.”

Smyers co-produced their recently-released self-titled third studio album, along with label executive Scott Hendricks. The record includes a duet with Kelly Clarkson, “Keeping Score.”

“She is so talented,” boasts Mooney. “When we were thinking about females to be on this record, she is so unbelievably talented. So to be on a song with her, we’re honored that she said yes. I don’t think she knew what she was getting into. When she actually gets to hang out with me for the first time, she’ll be like, ‘This is a mistake, and I don’t think that I should have done this.’”

“Tequila” is the debut single from Dan + Shay, and currently in the Top 5. The video was shot in Colorado, where it was both scenic and cold.

“It was beautiful out there, if you can get past the frozen hands part,” Mooney said. “Dan and I found out there had been a heater on the side, that the crew had been using. We had no idea until about halfway through shooting. I say we did like 80 takes, but Dan said we did three.”

Dan + Shay will return to Colorado over Labor Day weekend to perform as part of Dierks Bentley‘s inaugural Seven Peaks Music Festival, where they will sing “Tequila.” The song says, in part, “But when I taste tequila, baby I still see ya / Cutting up the floor in a sorority t-shirt / The same one you wore when we were /Sky high in Colorado, your lips pressed against the bottle,” making it the perfect song for the three-day event.

“Being in Colorado – it’s one of the coolest places in the world. It’s amazing,” says Smyers. “We wrote about it in ‘Tequila,’ intentionally, so that we would have more excuses to go there. I think that’s probably why Dierks asked us. It made us a more valuable asset on the show. And it’s a great lineup too. Dierks is a good guy. We’ve had good times at his bar, Whiskey Row.”

Dan +Shay be joined by artists like Miranda Lambert, Brothers Osborne, LANCO and more for the Seven Peaks Festival. Dan + Shay are spending their summer on the road, serving as the opening act on Rascal Flatts’ Back to Us Tour. Find a list of all of their upcoming shows at DanandShay.com.

Photo Credit: Getty images/Jason Davis