Dan + Shay Talk Competing with ‘Pro’ Reba McEntire for Country Acts on The Voice: ‘We Get Heated!’

Dan + Shay have spent 10,000 hours preparing for their newest gig.

The country duo is the latest musical talent to join the team of coaches on NBC’s The Voice, which kicks off its 25th season on Monday, and there’s one fellow coach that both Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney are watching out for.

“This year it’s crazy because we have the queen of country music. I mean Reba is on there, and it’s a very intimidating thing because she’s… Reba,” Mooney, 32, tells PEOPLE. “I mean, when you have one name, that’s how you know you really made it!”

“[But] we got a double chair,” quips Smyers, 36. “That’s twice as cool as having one chair.”

The Voice.NBCUniversal

The other coaching spots this season belong to John Legend and Chance the Rapper, but prior to both Dan + Shay and McEntire joining the singing competition series, mainstay Blake Shelton represented the country genre for 23 seasons.

Now, the acts who audition must choose between two possible country teams with both Dan + Shay and McEntire available.

Chance the Rapper, Shay Mooney, Reba McEntire, Dan Smyers and John Legend.Art Streiber/NBC

“We get heated out there on the floor. We’re both country artists. We’re competing for the country acts that come through The Voice,” says Smyers. “Everybody always wants the country acts. I feel like that’s some of the best talent that’s out there.”

The good news is that while the coaches may get competitive on screen, they’re all still friends at heart.

“Hanging out with Reba is amazing. She is honestly one of the sweetest people we’ve ever met in our entire lives. I just can’t say enough good things about her. She’s always been so kind to us,” adds Smyers.

Reba McEntire.Art Streiber/NBC

The duo’s friendship with McEntire pre-dates their time on The Voice. In fact, says Smyers, the “I’m a Survivor” singer was one of the first people to really welcome them into the country music family.

“When we were first getting started, I remember Shay had just had his first kid and we were doing a Christmas show, CMA Country Christmas, and she came into the dressing room and took a picture with Asher,” recalls Smyers. “We just have so many sweet memories with Reba. But she’s a pro. I mean as famous and as successful as Reba is, she shows up five minutes early to every meeting, always has a smile on her face, great attitude. And that’s something that we can really learn from.”

The duo also has also picked up a few pointers from Shelton, who happens to be the winningest coach in the show’s history. Back in season 20, Smyers and Mooney joined his team as advisors.

“We got to watch Blake Shelton. I don’t want to give him too much credit of giving us too much great advice — that’s probably one thing I got from him is bad grammar,” jokes Mooney with a laugh, “But man, it’s crazy that we’re in this position now. Watching Blake do his thing for so long and representing country music so well was just an incredible thing for us as fans and as friends of his. We definitely learned a lot from him.”

Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney.Art Streiber/NBC

Perhaps the biggest lesson they learned was how emerge victorious, as the pair has their eyes set on the big prize this season.

“We’re not there to just get second place. We’re trying to win the show,” says a determined Mooney. “And so I feel like it’s going to be really awesome to be able to watch that come to fruition and watch our contestants be able to compete in that kind of environment.”

The Voice premieres Monday, Feb. 26 at 8 p.m. ET on NBC and will be available to stream on Peacock the following day.