Watch Randy Travis Perform “I Told You So” 5 Years Before Its Release

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Before we knew him as Randy Travis, he played and recorded music using the stage name Randy Ray.

Randy first moved to Nashville in 1982 and was rejected by every record label in Music City. He got a job as a cook at the Nashville Palace to support his dreams of being country music’s next big star.

Not long after he arrived, Randy Ray recorded an independent album, Live at the Nashville Palace, including his self-written love song, “I Told You So.” The song became a local hit, and the album helped secure a recording deal with Warner Brothers Records. When he signed the deal, they made him change his name because they felt “Randy Ray” felt “podunk.”

He re-recorded “I Told You So” for his album, Always & Forever, his second with the new record label.

After being released as a single, the song quickly reached the top of the Billboard country charts.

For the June 11, 1988 chart, “I Told You So” hit number one on Billboard‘s Hot Country Songs chart. Over 20 years later, the song entered the chart again as a duet with Carrie Underwood. Their version topped the chart on May 16, 2009, eventually winning them a Grammy Award for Best Country Collaboration with Vocals.

RELATED: CARRIE UNDERWOOD & RANDY TRAVIS PERFORM “I TOLD YOU SO” ON “AMERICAN IDOL”

Randy Travis Sings “I Told You So” 5 Years Before It Was Released

This rare video of Randy singing his iconic hit “I Told You So” five years before he recorded it is truly a gem. It begins with a video of him working in the kitchen, followed by an incredible performance of the song we know and love so much.

Thank goodness for Randy’s resilience and determination or else we would have never known who he was, and that would be a tragedy.

Watch his incredible performance below.