Randy Travis Stops in for Oliver Anthony’s Ryman Debut [Picture]

Oliver Anthony's 2024 Out of the Woods Tour brought him all the way into the big city — Nashville, Tenn., that is — on Wednesday night (Feb. 21).

The singer gave his debut performance at the city's Ryman Auditorium, marking the first of two back-to-back shows he'll play at the hallowed venue.

In the middle of his set on the legendary stage, an equally legendary country performer met Anthony there: Randy Travis was on hand to surprise Anthony for his Ryman appearance. The country great appeared side-stage, and Anthony stopped for a hug and a quick chat in between songs.

Travis — a well-known country traditionalist himself — has long championed Anthony's gravelly neo-traditionalism and grassroots approach to his music career. The older singer shared several clips of the Ryman performance to his Instagram Stories, including the one of him surprising Anthony — and the audience — by coming out onstage.

He also shared a snapshot of their meeting backstage, and applauded Anthony's performance.

"Lord it's good to know there's still a few ole country boys around ..." Travis writes in the caption of his post. "Such a pleasure witnessing [Oliver Anthony] debut at the Mother Church [The Ryman Auditorium] last night."

Anthony also documented his meeting with Travis backstage at the Ryman, sharing a photo of himself kneeling down by Travis' wheelchair and joking that he was "never washing my hand again" after shaking hands with the country great.

Anthony will return to the Ryman stage on Thursday night (Feb. 22) for the second of his two shows booked in Nashville. Next up, he's headed south for a few Out of the Woods Tour dates in Florida.