Country singer-songwriter Randy Travis is thrilled he was able to use artificial intelligence (AI) to create new music more than a decade after he had a stroke.
The 65-year-old recording artist had a major stroke in 2013 and was left with an aphasia diagnosis. Travis could no longer speak or sing.
Now, the Country Music Hall of Fame inductee has released a new song created using AI.
“Eleven years ago I never thought I would be able to have a hand in music production of any kind,” Travis said in a statement to Fox News Digital.
“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. Working with Kyle Lehning and Warner Music Nashville again has been so special and nostalgic, and I’m so excited to share my new song ‘Where That Came From’ with you today. 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.”
The singer’s wife, Mary, often accompanies him to interviews to help him express his feelings despite his limited speech ability.
“Music is what he’s made of. Music is his heart, it’s his soul,” she said, per AP. “We were all over that, so we were so excited,” Mary said of being offered the opportunity for Travis to make music again. “All I ever wanted since the day of [the] stroke was to hear that voice again.”
The singer’s producer, Kyle Lehning, said Travis was very involved in the process of making new music. A proprietary AI program took samples of the singer’s previously recorded vocals and laid them over another singer’s vocals.
“It’s not about how it sounds; it’s about how it feels,” Lehning explained. “Him being here and him being able to be a vital part of the decision-making process makes all the difference to me.”
“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,” Cris Lacy, Warner Music Nashville co-president, said of the process.
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Mary said her husband was thrilled to hear the finished product.
“Randy, I remember watching him when he first heard the song after it was completed. It was beautiful because at first, he was surprised, and then he was very pensive, and he was listening and studying,” she said. “And then he put his head down and his eyes were a little watery. I think he went through every emotion there was in those three minutes of just hearing his voice again.”
“We’re hoping that maybe we can set a standard,” Mary said.