Randy Travis Receives Personal Invitation to MerleFest

Randy Travis may be in the middle of a difficult divorce, but he isn't letting his personal pain get in the way of performing for his loyal fans. The country music legend has been added to the 2011 line-up of the famous MerleFest, at the specific request of the festival's founder and host, Doc Watson.

Randy joins an eclectic list of stars performing during the four-day event, including Cadillac Sky, the Doobie Brothers, Jim Lauderdale, Lyle Lovett, the Del McCoury Band and Tim O'Brien.

MerleFest was founded in 1988 as a way to honor Doc Watson's son, Eddy Merle Watson, who died in a farming accident. The music extravaganza has played host to some of country's biggest stars. Dolly Parton, Earl Scruggs, Willie Nelson, Ricky Skaggs, Mary Chapin Carpenter and Alison Krauss and the Union Station have all graced the stage, as well as relative newcomer to country music Darius Rucker, who referred to his MerleFest experience as one of the "four greatest musical moments" in his life.

MerleFest will be held April 28 - May 1, 2011 at the Wilkes Community College in Wilkesboro, N.C. Tickets recently went on sale and can be purchased here.

Randy, who has won seven Grammy awards in a career that has spanned more than 25 years -- including one last year for his collaboration with Carrie Underwood on his 1988 hit, 'I Told You So' -- isn't showing any signs of slowing down. He is currently working on an album of duets, inviting fellow superstars like Carrie, Alan Jackson, Tim McGraw and Josh Turner to collaborate with him on the project, which is slated for an early 2011 release.