Travis Meadows has shared his voice writing for artists like Dierks Bently, Kenny Chesney, and Jake Owen. Now, the singer-songwriter is struggling with his own, after suffering a debilitating injury to his neck, tongue and throat following a recent surgery, which left his vocal chords damaged.
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“I would have felt better to die at one point,” says Meadow, speaking through a strained voice during a recent health update on YouTube. “It was awful.”
Initially scheduled to go in for back surgery, Meadows was rushed to the emergency room after suffering a loss of feeling in his arms prompting doctors to replace a disc in his neck, which led to Meadows suffering a hematoma following the procedure. In the video, Meadows says he couldn’t use his tongue, and at one point, doctors believed his vocal chords were irreparably damaged.
A GoFundMe campaign was recently set up to help cover medical costs, and on April 8, artists in Nashville are uniting for a sold out An Evening for Travis Meadows. The concert, hosted by Jeffrey Steele and Casey Lavasseur at 3rd & Lindsley, will feature performances by Steele, Lee Miller, Wendell Mobley, Tim Nichols, Neil Thrasher, Stephen Wilson Jr., Craig Wiseman, Aaron Lewis, Casey Beathard, Bob DiPiero, Luke Dick, Chuck Cannon, and more within the community.
Life has been a struggle for Meadows, who has been open about his battle with alcoholism, even penning his second album, Killing Uncle Buzzy, while in rehab in 2010. At 14, the artist was also diagnosed with bone cancer, which led to the loss of most of his right leg.
Known for writing Kenny Chesney’s “Better Boat,” Dierks Bentley’s “Riser,” Lindsay Ell’s “Worth The Wait,” Eric Church’s “Knives of New Orleans,” and Hank Williams Jr.’s “God and Guns,” among dozens of other singles, Meadows started releasing his own solo material in 2007 with his debut My Life 101, followed by three other releases culminating with First Cigarette in 2017.
Optimistic about his outcome, Meadows says he believes his voice will return over time. “Everything is going to be okay,” he says towards the end of the video.
”They say my voice is gonna come back… I dunno,” he says. “Don’t panic, because that’s only going to make me panic.”
