Dan + Shay made their debut as the first coaching pair on Monday’s season premiere of The Voice on NBC and performed with a contestant who covered one of their hit songs.
Ryan Argast, 30, from Plainfield, Illinois, left the coaches without words when he came out and sang Dan + Shay’s own song Speechless.
‘Singing a Dan + Shay song is a massive risk but I think anytime that I sing a song, I try to give my twist to it,’ Ryan said. ‘I may not be doing all the runs but I hope they hear the emotion, and believe the story.’
Dan + Shay, the country pop music duo composed of vocalists and songwriters Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney, both smiled when they heard their song.
‘I like him,’ Shay, 32, said before they turned around.
Dan + Shay made their debut as a coaching pair on Monday’s season premiere of The Voice on NBC and performed with a contestant who covered one of their hit songs
‘Great song choice,’ Dan, 36, said.
‘You are going to have a great time with these two,’ Reba McEntire, 68, said as Ryan joined their team after none of the other judges turned around.
‘That was risky but it paid off,’ Shay said.
Dan + Shay then took the stage and sang the song with Ryan.
‘Sing it y’all,’ John Legend, 45, said.
‘Dan + Shay jumped up and did Speechless with them, which I kind of thought was overkill,’ Chance The Rapper, 30, said to the camera. ‘You already got him on your team. But a great moment.’
Dan + Shay along with John, Reba, and Chance later pulled out all their tricks to try and convince female pop trio OK3 from Oklahoma to join their team
Reba pulled out her Grammy award, John unleashed a giant inflatable tube man balloon that read ‘pick me’ and Dan + Shay offered them all the cash in their wallets.
Ryan Argast, 30, from Plainfield, Illinois, sang Dan + Shay’s own song Speechless and they joined him for an impromptu performance
‘You are going to have a great time with these two,’ Reba McEntire, 68, said as Ryan joined their team after none of the other judges turned around
Ryan sang along with the duo to their song Speechless
Dan + Shay along with John, Reba, and Chance later pulled out all their tricks to try and convince female pop trio OK3 from Oklahoma to join their team
‘My heart is racing right now because I want you guys so bad,’ Shay said. ‘That was my favorite performance that we’ve seen so far.’
‘Your voices are phenomenal,’ Shay added.
The trio group made up of Kenna, 22, Sierra, 23 and Courtney, 25, from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, were the last acts to take the stage. Reba, Dan + Shay and John turned around the moment they heard their harmonies singing Made You Look by Meghan Trainor. Chance also hit his buzzer.
‘Four chairs!’ John said.
John told them there was a lot of space for a pop girl group and that he would love to be their coach.
‘They don’t even know how to arrange for three, they just arrange for two,’ John said of Dan + Shay. ‘They’ll be so confused.’
John then pushed a button and a giant blue inflatable balloon popped up that said ‘pick me.’ Chance told them that he had experience working with a trio. Reba told them she loved their harmonies and then pulled one of her Grammys to show them. Shay said he would give them all the cash in his wallet if they would pick him.
Dan + Shay then had the audience hold up signs that said ‘Dan’ and ‘Shay.’ The coach who swayed OK3 the most will not be revealed until Tuesday as the show ended with a ‘To Be Continued’ message for viewers.
John Legend told them there was a lot of space for a pop girl group and that he would love to be their coach
Reba told them she loved their harmonies and then pulled one of her Grammys to show them
The coach who swayed OK3 the most will not be revealed until Tuesday as the show ended with a ‘To Be Continued’ message for viewers
The blind auditions opened with Dani Stacy, 31, from Hanford, California, singing her version of Gloria Gaynor’s I Will Survive and receiving a four chair turn. Reba was not happy to learn that she was blocked when she spun around.
‘I noticed it when I turned around and I am so disappointed in my fellow coaches,’ Reba said.
‘It wasn’t me,’ John said.
‘You know exactly who you are and I can tell that,’ Shay said. ‘You can hear all of the different influences.’
Dani ultimately decided to go with Chance the Rapper.
‘Oh my god I didn’t see that coming,’ Chance said.
Dani said she picked Chance because he said he felt connected to her performance. Later, Chance admitted that he was the one who blocked Reba.
The blind auditions opened with Dani Stacy, 31, from Hanford, California, singing her version of Gloria Gaynor’s I Will Survive and receiving a four chair turn
Reba was not happy to learn that she was blocked when she spun around
‘I’m sorry,’ Chance said.
‘No you’re not,’ Reba said.
Before she took the stage, Dani shared that she was touring the country living in a RV with her boyfriend, dog and cats playing gigs.
Twins brothers Justin & Jeremy Garcia, 17, from Millbrae, California, impressed the coaches with their harmonies singing One Direction’s hit Story of My Life.
They said the song had real meaning for them because they were first generation Americans and music meant so much to them. John pushed his button as soon as they started singing. Reba was next followed by Dan + Shay.
‘That was a fantastic performance,’ Shay said. ‘There are some clear reasons why you should choose us.’
Reba told them she turned around because she grew up in a singing family. She said she loved their enthusiasm and would love to have them on her team. Reba hit on a cowbell to stop the other coaches from talking.
Ultimately the twins picked Dan + Shay as their coaches. The pop-duo gave them customized team jerseys that they made for them backstage.
Twins brothers Justin & Jeremy Garcia, 17, from Millbrae, California, impressed the coaches with their harmonies singing One Direction’s hit Story of My Life
Ultimately the twins picked Dan + Shay as their coaches
Country singer Tae Lewis, 31, from Goldsboro, North Carolina, played his guitar while performing his version of Keith Urban’s song Somebody Like You. Before he took the stage, Tae shared that he had faced some challenges being a Black country singer and had been denied from playing some gigs.
‘I couldn’t give up on myself,’ Tae said. ‘For a long time, I felt l didn’t have a certain place in country music because of what I look like or where I came from. A chair turn would be so validating for me.’
John and Reba both turned around. Dan + Shay asked him if he was a big Keith Urban fan but he said he was actually a big fan of them.
‘Your voice is so electric,’ John said. ‘You just look like you belong on the stage where you are singing.’
Reba told him she had been in the business for a long time and would love for him to be on her team. Reba pulled out a bullhorn and told John they should ask Tae to make his choice.
‘I’m going to go with Reba,’ Tae said.
Reba went to the stage and gave Tae her chicken tenders.
He said he was later asked to be part of Black Opry and now has a music video on CMT.
Country singer Tae Lewis, 31, from Goldsboro, North Carolina, played his guitar while performing his version of Keith Urban’s song Somebody Like You
Ash Haynes, 36, from Washington, DC, didn’t have the same luck. Ash said she got a chance to go to Eurovision and later formed a group with her other backup dancers. She took the stage and sang The Best by Tina Turner. None of the coaches turned around for her, but John told her to rehearse and come back again.
Nadege, 26, from Wellington, Florida, had John ‘pulling out the big guns’ trying to battle for her against Chance after they heard her mellow version of Daniel Caesar’s Get You. She told John that the first time she sang in person she sang his song Ordinary People. John then took the stage to sing his song with her.
‘He’s pulling out the big guns,’ Shay said.
‘I feel like I lost her already,’ Chance said.
‘How are you supposed to choose anyone else but John after that moment,’ Shay said.
‘I would be hurt,’ John said.
Chance said he would also sing Ordinary People with her and walked to the stage.
‘What is happening?’ John asked as Chance broke into song.
‘I thought there was no hope but now Chance might have a chance,’ Shay said.
Nadege decided to pick Chance. Chance ran around on the stage excited.
‘I just sang that John Legend song and she picked me!’ Chance said. ‘I feel like I just won The Voice.’
Josh Sanders, 35, from Kannapolis, North Carolina, gave an impressive performance of Nate Smith’s song Whiskey On You and Reba was determined to get him on her team. Before he took the stage, Josh, a father of four, told the heart wrenching story of losing his son shortly after he was born.
Nadege, 26, from Wellington, Florida, had John ‘pulling out the big guns’ trying to battle for her against Chance after they heard her mellow version of Daniel Caesar’s Get You
John then took the stage to sing his song with her
Chance said he would also sing Ordinary People with her and walked to the stage to perform with her
Josh Sanders, 35, from Kannapolis, North Carolina, gave an impressive performance of Nate Smith’s song Whiskey On You and Reba was determined to get him on her team
Reba and Dan + Shay turned around in the final moments of the song. Reba told Josh that she loved his vocals and would love to have him on her team. Shay told him that the power of his voice was fantastic.
‘Guys I love you all but I can’t turn down the queen of country, so it’s Reba,’ Josh said.
Reba walked to the stage to give him chicken tenders, which are her gift for the season after handing out tater tots last season.
The Voice will return Tuesday on NBC.
