What Happened to Dan + Shay? The Real Reason the First-Ever Coaching Duo Exited ‘The Voice’

While season 26 of The Voice starts tonight, some are still remembering season 25 and the rollercoaster of emotions that came with Asher HaVon winning. Not only mesmerizing the audience, the singer also helped Reba McEntire bring home a win. And besides coaching her team to victory, Reba beat out the competition that consisted of Chance the Rapper, John Legend, and the first duo-chair Dan + Shay. Although loving their time on the show, Dan + Shay will not return for season 26 as they looked to do a little performing themselves.

Over the seasons of The Voice, fans watched as the producers routinely changed up the coaches to keep it fresh. And back before season 25, they wanted to do something entirely new by welcoming the duo of Dan + Shay to the show. Throughout the weeks, fans loved the antics between the coaches and the unique perspective offered by the duo. But recently speaking with ET, the singer admitted they didn’t return for a new season due to The Heartbreak On The Map Tour.

Dan + Shay Talk Favorite Part Of ‘The Voice’ and Possible Return After Touring

Hitting the road over the summer, Dan + Shay got back to their love of performing for their fans. But that didn’t mean they didn’t miss The Voice. Discussing what it was like to be on the show, Shay Mooney told Audacy’s Katie Neal, “My favorite part about doing ‘The Voice’ was just meeting the contestants. We get to do music for a living, which is the greatest job. I mean, all of us, we get to be involved in music and we get to do this, which is pretty incredible, but I feel like you can get jaded.”

Adding his voice to the conversation, Dan Smyers noted, “Getting to help people along like this is such a big moment for them. Hearing people’s stories, that a lot of them are from small towns. It’s like they’ve never played a show before and here they are with the craziest opportunity… Being on national television with thousands of cameras around you, a whole crew, and then these chairs that are facing backwards. That’s tough. If you can overcome that, you can probably make it in the music business.”

Although looking to expand their careers in country music, Dan + Shay hinted at the possibility of a return to The Voice. It appears the only thing holding them back is a future invitation from the producers.

“I think that’s absolutely a possibility. In the future—we’re touring a lot this year which we’re really excited about,” Shay said. “Obviously doesn’t allow us to come back. Yeah, I think that would be a blast. If they would have us, we would definitely love to see what that looks like.”