Dan + Shay made waves as the first-ever double-chair occupants on season 25 of The Voice. Although getting off to a rocky start with some fans, many viewers had warmed to the “Speechless” pair by season’s end. Unfortunately, their highly successful Heartbreak on the Map Tour prevented a season 26 return for Dan + Shay. However, the tandem coaches returned to their old stomping grounds for Tuesday’s (Dec. 10) finale. Instead of sitting in their big red chairs, they headed to the stage to perform two festive new singles.
Dan + Shay Are Back — Sort Of
After Asher HaVon brought the season 25 crown to coach Reba McEntire, the “I Can’t” legend returned to The Voice to defend her title. Veteran coach Gwen Stefani also returned from a season-long hiatus, with newcomers Michael Bublé and Snoop Dogg rounding out the roster.
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Pulling out all the stops, The Voice gathered a star-studded lineup of performers for its two-part finale. Among others, Season 25 coaches Dan + Shay was on hand to get the crowd in the holiday spirit. The three-time Grammy Award winners performed “Officially Christmas” from their It’s Officially Christmas: The Double Album.
‘It’s Officially Christmas’ Has Been a Long Time Coming
Although this is their first official Christmas album, Dan + Shay have released holiday tunes off and on since 2014. Therefore, they had more than enough material for a full-length record—which is why It Officially Christmas clocked in at a whopping 21 songs upon its Oct. 18 release.
“You know, our fans have been begging for this for the last 10 years. And I feel like every year we let them down,” Shay Mooney said in a recent interview. “We’d tease a little bit of, ‘Maybe this will be the year,’ but we didn’t have it done.
In fact, fans first heard the track “Pick Out a Christmas Tree” in 2022. Dan Smyers says he and Mooney drew inspiration from their families’ own Yuletide traditions.
“We wanted to be able to have a soundtrack for whenever they go pick out a Christmas tree, whether it’s at a store down the street, whether it’s at a Christmas tree farm or whether it’s in their backyard,” Smyers said. “This is the song that they need to crank up.”
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