They stir the hearts of American masseurs overseas (6)
I believe the answer is:
risers
'they' is the definition.
Both the definition and answer are plural nouns.
Perhaps you can see an association between them that I can't see?
I cannot understand how the remainder of the clue works.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for risers that I've seen before include "Vertical parts of a stair" , "Vertical parts of stairs" .)