Dan + Shay Will Be Blake Shelton’s Battle Advisors for Season 20 of ‘The Voice’
When Blake Shelton returns to his coaching role on Season 20 of NBC's The Voice, he'll have some serious star power in his corner: Superstar duo Dan + Shay will be Battle Advisors for Team Blake this season.
On Monday (Feb. 1), Shelton remarked during an interview with Access that bandmates Shay Mooney and Dan Smyers will provide invaluable pointers for his team members, especially when it comes to the finer points of vocal harmony.
"The way [Dan + Shay] come together and vocalize together and make music, I thought that would be a great mentor to have, these two. Because so many times I'm sitting here in a situation with these battle rehearsals and one of the artists will ask me a question about harmony, and I don't know crap about harmony," Shelton says dryly. "I'll be like, 'Oh, you know, I'm gonna check on that for you,' and then I never do, because I don't know anything about harmony."
"Finally, this season, I've got Dan + Shay here, who, you know, they kill it," he adds. "And they're a natural at it, and honesty, it's already come into play a couple of times. It's helpful to have them here."
In addition to being the 20th season of The Voice, it's also the show's 10th year running. Dan + Shay's participation with Team Blake in 2021 adds another big, full-circle moment into the mix, too: The duo's very first major country tour slot was an opening gig for Shelton on a tour seven years ago.
"He took us out on literally our first tour, the Ten Times Crazier Tour, and I don't even think we had a hit on the radio at that point," Smyers recalls. "He took a chance on us and we became super close out there. Blake, as successful as he is, is the most humble, down-to-earth dude out there and just an incredible person, and incredible role model. We learned so much from him."
Season 20 of The Voice kicks off on a Monday, March 1. In addition to Shelton, Kelly Clarkson, John Legend and Nick Jonas will be this year's coaches, and Carson Daly will return as host. Battle Advisors for the other three coaches have also been announced: Glee star Darren Criss will serve as Advisor to Team Nick; Puerto Rican singer-songwriter Luis Fonsi will assist Team Kelly and R&B and pop icon Brandy will mentor Team Legend.
Dan + Shay are no strangers to the stage of The Voice. In fact, during the Season 19 finale in December 2020, they stopped by the show to perform their holiday hit, "Take Me Home for Christmas."
See The Voice Stars, Then + Now: