As Dan + Shay continue to share more about their forthcoming album, the duo is also opening up about their new perspective on life, music, and the things that matter most to them.

The duo recently joined Audacy’s Rob + Holly for the Friday Night Takeover and shared their excitement surrounding their new music, plus the motivation behind it.

“Dan and I are in a better place than we have ever been with each other, with our wives, with our families. We’ve just really been in the pursuit of what it means to have success,” Shay Mooney shared. “We’ve changed our definition of success and just the things that we’re chasing after and I think this comes out so much in this new project and writing this album… There’s songs on there about exactly where we’re at in our lives. There’s love, there’s loss… there’s fun.”

The duo credits the album for being their best to date and say much of that is thanks to them focusing on the joy and privilege of the music making process. “I feel like we are always chasing after these things and we assume so much. We assume this album is going to make it out, we assume tomorrow is going to come, we just assume all these things and I think that when you find joy in the process, you don’t put weight on the future,” Shay shared. “You have to live right now because we don’t know what tomorrow is going to bring.”

He continued, “No matter what the music does, it’s successful because I got to get into the studio with my best friend and make music and not just music that we had to throw together. We made it because it came from our hearts and we put it together and it meant something. That was the success, and what it does after that is the cherry on top.”

After hearing the duo rave about what’s to come, fan anticipation is at an all-time high, but they’ll have to wait just a little while longer. Duo member and album producer, Dan Smyers says he still needs some time to work his perfectionist magic on the project.

“I’m still obsessing over mixes,” Smyers admitted. “I need to turn it in like, ASAP. Like, today. It’s tough to turn in an album and say that it’s done. It’s just when I surrender it, or I’m forced to surrender it,” he laughed.

Hear more about the album creation, what’s to come from the guys this year and updates on their personal lives by checking out their full conversation with Rob + Holly above.

Words by Monica Rivera Interview by Rob + Holly