Randy Travis delivered his first studio recording in more than a decade in a groundbreaking way, and his wife, Mary, shared heartfelt remarks about hearing her husband’s singing voice again.
Travis, 64, and others recently met with CBS Mornings correspondent Lee Cowan to share a behind-the-scenes glimpse of how the team brought his new single, “Where That Came From,” to life. The beloved country star, who stopped by The Bobby Bones Show with Mary and his longtime producer, suffered a stroke in 2013. It left him with a 2% chance of survival and lasting damage to the part of his brain that controls speech and language. Cris Lacy, Co-Chair and Co-President of Warner Music Nashville said in the CBS Mornings story that although there’s “so much chatter about all the negative sides of AI [Artificial Intelligence]. We started with this concept of ‘What would AI … look like for us?’ And the first thing that came to mind … was we would give Randy Travis his voice back.”
The result garnered emotional responses as other country artists and Travis’ family listened to it for the first time.
“Music is what he’s made of. Music is his heart. It’s his soul,” Mary said during the CBS Mornings interview, which aired on Sunday (May 5). She added later, after Cowan noted her tearful reaction to hearing the song for the first time, that “you forget how much you missed it [Travis’ voice] until you hear it again. …It’s a life inspiration. Speak kindly, love fully, live completely, and leave the rest to God.”
“It’s been a while since my last new recording, but I’m excited to share that this Friday, May 3, I will be releasing my first brand new studio recording in more than a decade, ‘Where That Came From,’ Travis shared in his announcement last week. “You’ll hear much more about the special team of folks who came together to help make this magical moment in my career possible in the coming week. In the meantime, just know that when it comes to me singing songs for you, there’s always more where that came from. Thank you for singing along all these years.
“Eleven years ago I never thought I would be able to have a hand in music production of any kind, but by God’s grace and the support of family, friends, fellow artists, and fans, I’m able to create the music I so dearly love,” Travis added when his ballad debuted on Friday (May 3). He said working with his team “has been so special and nostalgic… Many thanks to my wonderful team and the best fans in the world for putting me back in the saddle again! I’ve enjoyed every moment of it.”