TV Tapings

 

RAELYNN PLAYS HUCKABEE

Tuesday January 7, 2023 (Taping Date)

@ Huckabee Theater in Hendersonville, TN

(Review by: Jeffrey Kurtis)

3,2,1… showtime!

The audience exuberantly springs to life and begins to clap per direction of the floor manager as legendary announcer Keith Bilbrey drives through the opening of the show, outlining the list of prestigious guests that are about to grace the stage over the next hour, ending with the formal introduction of Governor Mike Huckabee.

But this is only the spot that leads into the Huckabee Show as you see it every weekend on TBN, and not where the initial excitement begins when you’re blessed to be part of the studio audience. For that, you need to travel back about two hours to when you first arrive on the sprawling property where the Huckabee Theater resides.

The property in Hendersonville, TN, just about 20 miles north of Nashville, carries a very rich country music history that could be felt as the slight breeze whisked through an unseasonably warm evening across the acreage that the legendary Conway Twitty once called home; the space that also housed the famed entertainment complex, “Twitty City.”

During his time on the property, in which he lived until his passing in 1993, many of country music’s most iconic names graced the stage inside the very theater that Governor Mike Huckabee now calls home, including Loretta Lynn, Carl Perkins, Mel Tillis, Charley Pride, and many more!

Between Twitty and Huckabee, Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) called this same theatre their home studio and delivered the best of the best in Christian and Gospel music, before it would be rechristened The Huckabee Theater in 2017 and become the place where his highly rated talk show has been filmed ever since.

“Tonight, on Huckabee…” continues Keith Bilbrey, bringing you into the final moments of the show’s introduction as the anticipation builds toward its official start. The crowd cheers through the list of guest names that he drops and then erupts to welcome Governor Mike Huckabee to the stage as Tre Corley & The Music City Connection provide the final rhythmic notes of the familiar opening theme.

With its late-night talk show format, and Governor Huckabee’s background, you’d naturally expect there to be political conversations between him and his guests, which are always both enlightening and intriguing.

Passionately continuing a discussion that began during his opening monologue, Governor Huckabee and his first guest, economy expert Steve Moore, discussed the proposed fair tax. Engaging the crowd, they first talked about how the fair tax would benefit everyone for the better while stabilizing the very shaky economy, before transparently revealing how most of the current administration’s leaders are flat-out refusing to fully understand the magnitude of its benefits.

Staying within the political realm, Huckabee then welcomed John Eastman, an American lawyer who is the founding director of the Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence and served as President Trump’s attorney; specifically, regarding the 2020 election results and the potential fraud within it. Eastman openly discussed the swayed media narrative that followed the 2020 election, the opposition ignoring his gathered evidence that clearly shows fraudulent behaviors, and the mounting claims that are now personally coming against him that could result in him losing his license to practice law simply because of his involvement with this case.

After a very well-received “In Case Ya Missed It” segment that saw Keith Bilbrey and Governor Huckabee hilariously discussing the zany and wacky news stories of the week, “The Queen of Clean” comedian Chonda Pierce took the stage to a rousing ovation, leaving everyone in stiches as she candidly discussed her recent follies within the online dating world.

Pierce would then slide over the couch to sit alongside Emmy-nominated writer, Martha Bolton. Bolton, renowned for her time as Bob Hope’s first female staff writer, certainly shared stories of working with the iconic comedian, but would mainly discuss Confession: The Musical; her stage adaptation of Beverly Lewis’ multi-million selling book series, which is coming to theaters for a one-day run on February 20, 2023 and stars Pierce alongside John Schneider.  

'Cause I'm raising me a country girl,” belted out country superstar RaeLynn as she turned the studio into a wild country dancehall, bopping across the front of the stage as she performed a rousing rendition of the recently released song she penned about her daughter, “Raisin’ Me A Country Girl.”  

Governor Huckabee, as he so often will, sat in on bass with the band during the performance of the ultra-catchy song, while the audience immediately took to it as was evident by the heads nodding along in rhythm with the melody, the shoulders dancing along in every seat, and the deafening ovation she received as the final notes were played.

Before performing “Raisin’ Me A Country Girl” during the show’s final segment, RaeLynn and Governor Huckabee sat down to discuss the extreme importance of the new documentary film from Operation Underground Railroad, It’s Happening Right Here, a film that unveils the truths about child sex trafficking and the hope that can be found through organizations that are trying to stop it, which also features RaeLynn performing the film’s title track.

To catch an exclusive performance of this incredibly powerful new song from RaeLynn, head over to Huckabee.tv and click the “After The Show” tab.

With there always being a healthy balance of honest political discussions, great comedy acts, and stellar music, The Huckabee show is one of the most well-rounded talk shows of its kind.

However, as popular and highly-rated as the show is, the uber friendly staff and characteristics such as always making sure to honor military veterans and first responders and highlighting those in the crowd who are celebrating birthday’s and milestone anniversary’s, are the gestures that wrap around the audience like a warm embrace and make them feel part of the family from the moment they walk through the doors at the ticket line check-in to when they exit the studio at the end of another great night at the Huckabee Theater.

This episode is scheduled to air on Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) on Saturday February 18, 2023, and again on Sunday February 19, 2023. Check your local listings!

For tickets, upcoming schedule of guests, and much more, please visit: https://www.huckabee.tv/

 

 

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