Randy Travis: The Voice of Country Music
Even if you're not into country, you can't help but bathe in the baritone that is Randy Travis. His voice goes down like whisky – always has, ever since his first album, "Storms of Life," in 1986. "I thought if we sold 40,000 copies they might let us make a second record," said producer Kyle Lehning.
They ended up selling four million. "So, I'm a genius!" Lehning laughed.
Randy Travis and that voice helped build Warner Music Nashville into what it is today. "How do you describe the thing that just hits you in the center of your chest and unconsciously makes you feel full, and familiar, and known?" said Cris Lacy, the label's co-chair and co-president. "How do you describe something like that?"
His was a God-given talent … and then, fate took it all away.
In 2013 Travis suffered a massive stroke. He was given just a 2% chance of survival. "I thought we were going to lose him," said Lehning.
Lacy said, "It felt like it could be the end of an era."
Despite the paralysis, the area of his brain that controls speech and language took the hardest blow. Mary, Randy's wife, expressed, "Music is what he's made of. Music is his heart, it's his soul."
Mary has taken on most of the talking now. She mentioned that Randy knows what he wants to say, but the words just won't come out.
When asked if he had made peace with this situation, Randy simply replied, "Yep. Yep."
Three years post-stroke, accompanied by Mary, Travis was honored with an induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame, and brought new depth to "Amazing Grace". There wasn't a dry eye in the room.
During his absence, Travis has been exposed to numerous AI-generated imitations of his voice. A quick Google search reveals websites that claim to transform anyone's voice into a Randy Travis sound-alike. "It doesn't sound good, and it doesn't sound real, because it's not," remarked Lacy.
This led his record label to contemplate. Lacy explained, "We began with the idea of, what would AI for good mean for us? And the first thing that came to mind was, we would restore Randy Travis his voice."
There were skeptics, such as Kyle Lehning. "It sounded like a parlor trick or something," he mentioned.
Lehning, with Randy's blessing, decided to experiment. He and Warner Music retrieved 42 Randy Travis tracks from the vault, such as the original recording of his hit "1982." They then removed the music, leaving only the vocal.
That was one part of the equation. The other part required a donated, or "surrogate," voice. Enter country music singer James DuPre.
The AI program – the "secret sauce" – takes Travis' voice and layers it on top of DuPre's singing. It's not a precise science. "It's not about how it sounds; it's about how it feels," Lehning explained.
And that is not something a computer can figure out. "Not yet!" Lehning chuckled.
He is intimately familiar with Travis' voice, having collaborated for 40 years. This time, the challenge was to infuse a computer-generated voice with Randy's country essence. "Him being here and him being able to be a vital part of the decision-making process makes all the difference to me," Lehning expressed.
In the end, they arrived at something they deemed worthy of a voice that only those closest to him could imitate.
According to Lacy, "It's Randy Travis. Randy's on the other side of the microphone. It's still his vocal. There's no reason he shouldn't be able to make music, and to deprive him of that, if he still wants to do that, that's unconscionable to me."
Two months ago, Warner Music gathered a small circle of fellow musicians into a recording studio. Randy sat with a Cheshire Cat's grin, and then they hit "play."
Listen to Randy Travis' "Where That Came From":
The reaction to his first new song in more than a decade was a mix of joy and wonder.
For his wife, tears. For Randy's country friends, like Grammy-winning superstar Carrie Underwood, there was confusion. ("How? How? How?!?") For Cole Swindell, who just won three ACM Awards, it reminded him of why he became a country singer in the first place. ("For you all to let me hear it, that means a lot. Damn, I'm glad to hear you sing!") And veteran country star Clay Walker was simply over the moon.
Even Randy's own family hadn't heard it until two weeks ago.
It was perfection ... with a caveat. "We don't exactly know how to get here again," said Cris Lacy.
The second song they're working on is proving a harder nut to crack. There's still work to be done, and a lot of questions to answer about what this all means going forward.
After a decade-long absence, Randy Travis has made a comeback on the radio with his post-stroke debut song, "Where That Came From," which was just released this past week.
For Randy, this song is more than just a single; it's a victory. As Mary puts it, "It's a life inspiration. Speak kindly, love fully, live completely, and leave the rest to God."
It seems like there's a story worth telling in those words. Let's hope it turns into a song.
For more info:
- Order "Where That Came From" by Randy Travis
- randytravis.com
Story produced by Reid Orvedahl. Editor: Lauren Barnello.
