No one knows the Dan + Shay sound better than they know themselves, so whether it’s a heartfelt ballad like “From the Ground Up,” their first No. 1 “Nothin’ Like You” or their latest offering, off their forthcoming 2018 release, “Tequila,” their career has largely been built on the two of them in the studio working all night on one song after another.
“We were recording some vocals at one point,” recalled Dan, “and we had the studio rented out and we always ask, ‘How long do we have the studio?’ It probably took us about two hours to do what we needed to do, but we just stayed there the entire night. We were, and continue to be, just fixated in that environment – cranking up music – just jamming. That’s when you know you’re obsessed with it.”
Shay has been bound and determined to make his mark as a songwriter in Nashville ever since his father brought him to town when he was eight and again when he was 12-years-old, but it wasn’t until meeting Dan that he found someone who he naturally felt comfortable with when it came to songwriting, singing harmonies, recording and eventually performing live.
Whether it’s another late night with their acoustics jamming for close friends or on stage for thousands of fans on tour, Dan + Shay enjoy what they’ve been able to create together. Their layered voices – Shay brings a gospel and R&B flavor, while Dan is influenced by the harmonies of Fleetwood Mac and The Eagles – give each of their songs, especially a song like “Obsessed,” a dynamic feel that stretches the boundaries and creates its own unique place the soundscape that is contemporary country music.
“Whenever Dan I got together there was just a magic in the room,” Shay said, “This is what we’ve been trying to do—is capture that energy. Everything on our iPods that we had listened to for years had come together in that moment. This is Dan + Shay.”
