Dan + Shay ‘Were Bummed’ About Audio Issues During ACM Awards Performance

Dan + Shay took the stage at The Bluebird Cafe to perform their new single “Glad You Exist” during the ACM Awards on Sunday night, but fans quickly noticed that the audio during the duo’s performance didn’t seem quite right. The sound didn’t match up with what was happening on screen, and duo member Shay Mooney addressed the issue during a virtual pressroom later in the evening, sharing that he and bandmate Dan Smyers “were bummed” about the glitch.

“It’s been a difficult time to put these award shows together during these crazy times and a lot of us had to pre-tape our performances and that’s what we did,” he said. Mooney explained that he and Smyers pre-taped their performance on Saturday and were “super stoked about the performance and it was a technical difficulty that happens.”

“This is a lot to put together for an awards show,” he continued. “This is a lot of craziness. So in order to get everybody in there and make sure we could get everyone performing and make sure they could get it all right. And we had to do that. It’s just one of those things that happens, there’s a lot of things going on. So it happened, we were bummed, but it is what it is. And they did a great job putting together a great show. It was awesome.”

Along with performing, Smyers and Mooney were awarded Duo of the Year for the third consecutive year. “It sounds cliche to say it, but to be nominated is a huge honor,” Smyers shared. “To just be in the country music family… I was just talking about how Shay and I met almost a decade ago, which is so crazy. And to think we used to sneak into these award shows or try to get hit passes as fans, just because at the core of all of this, we’re just fans of country music. So to be invited to the party, to hear our name called in a list of nominees is an honor.”

The musician also praised his and Mooney’s fellow nominees, expressing that “every single artist who is nominated at the awards, they work hard for what they do and everybody deserves to win.” “And especially in our category, they’re all friends of ours and we root for each other, but we’re grateful to win at the end of the day,” he continued. “And we’re grateful for our team, for our fans, for the ACM, for having our backs and for supporting us all these years. I mean, we’re on cloud nine seriously. It feels like the first time every time.”