It’s a little harder to hate on A.I. than it was a week ago . . .
Randy Travis’s first song in over a decade came out on Friday. It’s called “Where That Came From“, and people had been speculating it “came from” A.I. Now it’s been confirmed that’s the case, and it’s pretty amazing.
“CBS Sunday Morning” sat down with him yesterday and did a big segment on how A.I. is letting him continue his career in music.
Randy’s had trouble talking and singing ever since his near-fatal stroke in 2013. So with his blessing, his longtime producer helped train an A.I. to copy his voice using stripped-down vocals from 42 old tracks.
That’s really just half of it though. Any new lyrics also need to be sung first. So they also enlisted James Dupré. (doo-PRAY)
James was on “The Voice” in 2015 and has his own music career. But he grew up listening to Randy, and he’s been touring with him as a guest vocalist. He sings the songs while Randy interacts with fans.
James sang the new song. Then it got filtered through the A.I. to make it sound even more like Randy’s voice. And it REALLY does.
Randy’s wife was there the first time they heard it, and she got pretty emotional. She said she forgot how much she missed it until she heard it again. Cole Swindell is a big fan, and he teared up too.
The best part is this isn’t just a one-off. Randy and James are already working on more music.
(You can hear a clip from their second song at 7:12 in the interview here.)
Randy put out a statement on Friday. Quote, “11 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.”
He added, “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.” (CBS News / Billboard)