Ep 1168 | Jase, Missy & HGTV’s Ben & Erin Napier: Refusing to Downplay Faith in Hollywood

Summary

Podcast Summary: Unashamed Ep 1168

Title: Jase, Missy & HGTV’s Ben & Erin Napier: Refusing to Downplay Faith in Hollywood
Date: September 18, 2025
Guests: Ben & Erin Napier of HGTV's “Hometown”
Hosts: The Robertson Family (Phil, Al, Jase, Missy, Zach—mainly Jase, Missy, Al in this episode)

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Overview

This episode brings together the Robertson family and HGTV’s Ben and Erin Napier for a candid, funny, and heartfelt conversation about real faith, fame, family, and authenticity in the world of reality television. Both families open up about their experiences as “unlikely TV stars” and the challenge—and necessity—of refusing to compromise their Christian faith under pressure from Hollywood and network producers.

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Key Discussion Points & Topics

1. The Journey to Reality TV & South as a Stage

• Early Days:
  The Robertsons reminisce about Duck Dynasty's humble beginnings (hunting videos, “Benelli Presents Duck Commander”, not expecting TV fame). Missy reflects on how “God prepared us for it, but none of us saw the rise coming” ([06:11]).
• Influence on TV Landscape:
  Missy notes how Duck Dynasty became a touchstone for other reality shows, heard often: "It's like Duck Dynasty, but with welding/interiors/etc." ([06:11]).
  “Most people don’t live in high rises in New York. They live in small towns,” Missy observes, discussing why authentic, small-town reality TV resonates ([08:45]).

2. Authenticity, Faith, and Fame

• Authenticity Sells:
  Jase and Missy argue that viewers hunger for the real: “What people want is something that’s real. The problem with most reality TV is it’s not.” ([09:27])
  Al says the best compliment “was from the crew telling other people: ‘The Robertsons are authentic. They’re just like they are off camera as well.’” ([09:56])
• Faith on Screen:
  Missy and Erin connect over refusing to “downplay faith in Hollywood.” Erin recalls seeking encouragement from Missy during a tough moment:

  “You were struggling…how much to fight…about your faith. Had we ever experienced that? And I thought, how much time do you have and how can I encourage you? So I hope all that worked well for you—standing up for what you believe, being authentic and transparent in your faith.” – Missy ([17:10])
  Ben adds:
  “Having any sort of faith in this industry is sort of frowned upon if it’s not ‘faith in the industry.’ ... We live in Laurel, Mississippi, and we love the Lord and we’re not worried about what…if this doesn’t happen, I’ll go drive a truck for my brother if I have to.” ([17:59])
  Erin:
  “She (a Jewish producer) felt jealous of her friends who had faith.” ([20:38])

3. Family Dynamics and Protecting Privacy

• The Children:
  Missy admits to early anxiety about exposing the kids on TV; the Napiers have kept their girls largely offscreen by choice ([31:27]).
  Erin confides:

  "If I'm out with the girls and someone says, 'Can we take a picture?' ... I have this recurring nightmare that ... I take my eyes off them ... then they’re gone. I never find them again." ([34:10])

• Community Support:
  Ben and Erin share that their Laurel neighbors “protect” them and respect their privacy, but fame has made it “tricky to go out with the girls” ([33:39]). Missy confirms similar experiences, with family and neighbors watching out for them.

4. Navigating Southern Stereotypes on TV

• Production Perceptions:
  Both families recall initial skepticism—assumptions from out-of-town producers that the show would be a “sappy country bumpkin” send-up.
  The Robertsons discuss how Duck Dynasty’s crew intended to poke fun at “southern culture”, but ended up “laughing with us, not at us”—especially once they met Uncle Si ([21:55]).
• Ben’s Story:
  One of their directors confessed he expected to make a “sappy country bumpkin” show, but became emotionally attached to Laurel and the Napiers, eventually sobbing at departure ([27:37]).
• Representation:
  Erin is grateful:

  “I want to say…I’m very thankful for the way HGTV really does only ever give Laurel and Mississippi the best and most positive portrayal possible.” ([38:02])

• Protecting Special Places:
  The Napiers sometimes refuse to film in favorite local spots “because then I can’t go there again” ([39:15]).

5. Family Stories, Upbringings, & Humor

• Origin Tales:
  The Robertsons and Napiers swap stories about their siblings, birth order quirks, growing up with little money.

  “We were poor white trash, but we were kind of proud of it. We live off the land, we roam, we’re free people.” – Jase ([52:44])

• Funny Moments:
  • Recalling shooting at a snake on-set—Si fired six shots and missed, shocking the crew ([29:35]).
  • Ben once dressed as Willie for Halloween; “Ben actually made Willie look skinny. When I saw the picture, I thought, you look like a skinny version!” – Jase ([44:01])
  • Erin’s story about Laurel “characters”: a doctor in a neck brace with black cowboy boots, a golf club, and poodle mix dog—“Sounds like the making of a new reality show” ([25:58]).
• Parallels in Family Life:
  Both families have “surprise siblings” or large age gaps, affirming how common and relatable their “complicated” southern family stories are ([46:12]).

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Integrity & Faith Under Pressure:

  “Having any sort of faith in this industry is sort of frowned upon if it’s not ‘faith in the industry.’ … We love the Lord and we’re not worried about what … if this doesn’t happen, I’ll go drive a truck for my brother.” – Ben Napier ([17:59])

• On Authentic TV:

  “You know, we had an argument because we’re real people…The Robertsons are authentic. They’re just like they are…off camera as well.” – Al Robertson ([09:56])

• On Family & Security:

  “Just Jase in his beard, knowing that we have guns in every corner of our home…That’s the way our kids were raised. To me, that’s just normal. But to Hollywood, that is huge.” – Missy Robertson ([31:18])

• On Regional Unity:

  “I am going to be inclined to trust a Southerner who’s in this really weird position before I would trust someone outside of the South. Don’t know why, but that’s the truth.” – Erin Napier ([16:51])

• On Community:

  “Locally, for the most part, everybody’s proud, and they look after us and take care of us.” – Ben Napier ([33:39])

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Important Timestamps

| Timestamp | Segment / Topic | |-----------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 06:11 | Missy on God preparing their family for TV/“Duck Dynasty” accepts faith front-and-center | | 09:27 | Discussion on “real” reality TV, authenticity, why their shows worked | | 17:10 | Missy and Erin discuss challenges of “standing up for your faith” on reality TV | | 17:59 | Ben details the difficulty of openly being a believer in Hollywood | | 21:55 | The Robertsons on being “laughed at” vs. “laughed with” by production crews | | 25:18 | Erin and Ben’s story about quirky Laurel neighbors/characters | | 31:18 | Missy on anxiety regarding her children’s safety and appearance on TV | | 33:39 | Ben on how the Laurel community protects their privacy and supports them | | 38:02 | Erin praises HGTV’s positive portrayal of Laurel and Mississippi | | 39:15 | Ben & Erin protecting favorite local restaurants from overexposure | | 44:01 | Ben dressing as Willie, Jase jokes “Ben actually made Willie look skinny” | | 52:44 | Sharing stories of poverty and “free people” mentality growing up in the South |

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Tone & Style

• Warm, down-home, sincere, casual, and humor-laced.
• Emphasis on faith, family, and integrity but often delivered with self-effacing wit and storytelling.

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Closing & Promotion

The conversation closes with invitations for both families to meet in person and reminders of the Napiers’ businesses (LaurelMercantile.com and ScentLibrary.com) ([56:58]). The episode ends on the note that authenticity, community, and faith are keys to not just surviving, but thriving, in the “weird” world of fame and reality TV.

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Suitable for: Anyone interested in faith, family, reality TV behind-the-scenes, and authentic southern culture—especially those looking for encouragement about holding to Christian values in mainstream culture.

Transcript

[A]

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[C]

I am unashamed.

[D]

What about you?

[A]

Welcome back to Unashamed. Missy is in the house again. Welcome back, Missy.

[C]

I've noticed that every time you show up, you bring a friend.

[E]

I. Every time I show up, it seems like lately I kick Zach off so I can get my friend on.

[C]

Yeah, I think that's.

[A]

Well, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. We're not saddened by that at times because sometimes, you know, Zach needs to go work on his ph vocabulary and come up with some new big words and things like that.

[C]

So, yeah, he's. He's. Zach's interesting. I think he brings a lot to the table, but every once in a while, I feel like it's my relationship with Willie. It's like, you know, I need a break. Is that bad, babe?

[E]

No, not at all.

[C]

It even happens in marriage.

[E]

Yes, it does.

[A]

It happened when we were about to go on air. Missy was correcting Jason, so. Which is, by the way, Missy, one of the. My favorite things about having you on is that you're the only one. When you're married to somebody, you're used to just telling them straight up what you think, whereas other people are being a little more, you know, soft, you know, gloved hands.

[E]

Well, I'm trying to, like, help you. Yeah, I really am. I'm trying to help you be all you can be.

[C]

Thank you, bae. Usually when you say that I'm really in deep trouble. There's fixed. Something's fixed to come out when you have the Help me help you help you help me. It's not. It's not you. It's me helping.

[A]

Okay, well, we found out. We found out from the last podcast that Missy is trying to help Jase do his best. And that's my new favorite line. Do your best, Jace.

[C]

You know what's funny is after we did that podcast, we went home living our lives, you know, in marital bliss, and something came up. Yeah. She confronted me about something.

[E]

I did.

[C]

Yep. And look, I started talking, and then I said, look, I'm just doing my best. I actually didn't say it because we had just did a whole thing about it.

[E]

I remember that. Oh, you want to talk about this right now? Is this. If this is where it has to happen, this is where it has to happen.

[C]

I don't even remember the subject. I just remember I said, I'm doing my best.

[E]

Oh, yeah. Well, it was something about, like, I told him, take such and such out of the podcast because. And you gave me the reason. And I said, no, that's not the. That shouldn't be the reason, because that's not true. And I gave you the actual reason, and you said, I'm not going to argue with you about this. Which, in other words, means stop talking.

[C]

No. But then you left out one friend, so I did. I said, I'm not going to argue about this. I'm doing my best.

[E]

No, you did not say that. You said, I'm not going to argue with you about this. You did not say that.

[C]

Well, maybe the whole point of me telling that story was that's. Well, this is why.

[E]

I think. This is why I'm here to correct you. Because you didn't say that. You might have wished you would have said that, but you didn't.

[A]

Jay says, selective memory. Miss, if you haven't noticed, I see.

[C]

That I have a different recollection.

[E]

I'm sure you do.

[C]

In this moment, having a much greater appreciation for when I was. When we first started going to church as a kid, the guy would pray, but he did it every time. And he would pray for the preacher to have a ready recollection.

[A]

Yeah. Of the things that he had prepared.

[E]

I'm going to start praying about that for you.

[C]

What does that mean? Because as a kid, I was like, have a ready recollection.

[F]

Yeah.

[E]

So remember the truth.

[C]

Yeah. And it was like.

[A]

It was like having. It was like being able to be. To guide, guard, and direct us to an appointed time and place. If I was. Another famous line.

[C]

We heard these phrase ologies that I just never heard.

[E]

The Christian ease is what we've recently learned.

[A]

Exactly.

[E]

Is that language?

[C]

Yeah.

[E]

I'm just here to Help, babe. Just here to help.

[C]

And you're. You're doing a great job, baby. You complete me.

[A]

So, Missy, we. We. We had you on one is because we love you, and we love you correcting J's, you know, it's one of my favorite things. But, yeah, also we're gonna have some guests on a little bit later, and you are the only one that kind of has a connection and a relationship to them, such as it is. And. And, you know, it reminds us about kind of how this all began, because it's really interesting that none of us really had the idea that we would be on television in a reality show because, you know, nobody could have even imagined that being possible. I mean, we were. We did duck hunting videos, you guys, the wives were not a part of that. It was just hunting, mostly dad and Jace and then a few little stray characters. And then every once in a while, a brother would show up. And then we became this entity of. Of a reality TV show. And so I find it fascinating that, you know, the whole landscape of reality shows are just made up of people that I would guess mostly never had any idea one day they would be on television. And yet we all did.

[E]

I think in some weird way, now that we're, you know, this is 13 years out from the very first episode airing of Duck Dynasty, and we did have a show on the outdoor channel called Benelli Presents Duck Commander, and that was on for three years, and that kind of set the stage. And I think this was all in just the way God works and getting everyone prepared for that. But it's so strange because, like you said, none of us saw the rise of it happen so quickly coming our way. But a few couple of seasons into it, I remember one of the cameramen who we've known for a really long time because he grew up at our church, actually, he. He would go off and do other shows because he was doing really well with. With the Duck Dynasty. And he would come back and he would say, well, so and so is trying this show in this state, and so and so is trying this show in this state. And every single one of them say, it's like Duck Dynasty, but with welding. It's like Duck Dynasty, but with home interiors. It's like Duck Dynasty. And so it was very strange to hear because we're not in Hollywood and we're not in New York, were living in West Monroe, Louisiana, how the impact of true reality and authenticity and being able to make fun of yourself and love each other and look past flaws and mistakes and all of the things that a family should be. Of course, we had a lot of things we didn't show as well, but that wasn't on us. That was basically on the editors. But, you know, it was inspiring, I think, to other people that we might have something here. And the audience started watching it, saying, our family is a lot like that. We're just not in Hollywood, and we're not in New York on these big stages doing crazy, extreme things. We're just living our life. And now we're kind of validated in doing so, especially if we're looking to the Lord to guide our way. So I think that's what Ben and Erin have done, because that's who's getting to come on. I just spoiled that. The Napiers from the HGTV show Hometown, but they're our guests today, and I think that we're going to find out that they've done a lot of that as well, and they've been rewarded for it.

[A]

And I think you're right, miss. And they look to us as sort of pioneers to be, you know, Southern town, sort of normal folks, as normal, I guess, as we are, and yet being able to be ourselves and yet also have something interesting for people to watch as well.

[E]

It's appealing to Americans. It's appealing to, you know, most people don't live in the big city. Most people live in the flyover states and in small towns. And this is the way that we live our life. And so I'm glad it's appealing. I'm glad it's like, you know, your. Your goal in life is not to be in a high rise in New York City running the rat race. Enjoy your family, Build a family, build a life that you can pass down to your children. And it's actually become very popular again, the show. And so a next generation of children are watching it. So it still appeals to. Still appeals to the middle America.

[C]

Well, my theory is, I mean, when you think about what you just said, we take the word reality for granted. I think why people. What people want is something that's real. And the problem with most reality TV is it's.

[E]

I hated it.

[C]

It's not. So I think that's why it worked because it's man, just like us. We had an argument because we're real people, you know, But I think in.

[A]

Jason, probably the best compliment we ever received is from crew telling other people the Robertsons are authentic. You know, they're just like they are, you know, being filmed off camera as well.

[C]

So exactly how many but how many arguments did we have when it first started with the crew? But then how many of the crew, when the show ended were bawling, hugging my neck, saying, I'm going to miss you, man. So it's like, what just happened here, you know? So I think that's the key. And that's why podcasts do well. I mean, because it's real people talking. I mean, just think fake news. I mean, Trump brought that out and all of a sudden people like, oh, man, that was a great idea. Well, it was fake. A lot of it, you know, so people are craving for things that are real y authentic without hidden agendas.

[A]

I think that's right. Well, look, we're going to take a break. We come back from our break, we're going to introduce our guest. And Missy, I'll let you tell about these fine folks from Mississippi. So, Jason, one of the, I guess difficult things about having pets is you have to go to the vet sometimes, right? Yeah, it's always something. Could be skin allergies, joint pain, it could be digestive problems, ear infections. You walk in, you come out with a bag full of medication. You're hoping that's the answer, but the truth is this. Most canine health problems share one common root cause, a weakened immune system, often from years of eating dead processed food. That's why our good friend Dr. Dennis Black has created rough greens. It breaks the vet visit cycle with live nutrients your dog needs to thrive from the inside out. That's the reason why this is America's number one dog supplement. Thousands of pet owners are getting off the vet visit, visit merry, go round and seeing the difference. And you can too. Jace. When your dogs was time for ref greens, what do they do?

[C]

They like it. They start shaking that booty. And here we go. Which is, you know, it's fun.

[A]

They're saying, we love this. We have the same thing. My dogs line up. I tell you about it all the time. And now we've got a new dog in the compound because Oscar Meyer Mancuso, a new weenie dog, is brand new. And so we're getting ready as soon as he's ready to get him on some ruff greens. So right now you can try it for yourself with a free Jumpstart trial bag. Just cover the shipping because the best doctor visit is the one you never have to make. Go to roughgreens.com use the promo code unashamed to break the cycle today. Ruffgreens.com promo code unashamed. We are super excited to invite our Guest in. They are fellow reality tv. I hate to say stars, I guess, because we're not really stars. We're just people.

[C]

Right.

[A]

They're from Mississippi.

[E]

That would be you calling yourself a star.

[A]

That's right. It just doesn't sound right. We're. We're just. We're just people that happen to wind up on reality tv. Ben and Aaron Napier are with us, of course. Hometown Takeover is their show. Is it htv? Is that right, guys?

[D]

Yeah, hgtv.

[A]

Htv. So welcome to Unashamed Podcast.

[F]

Thanks for having us.

[A]

So we found out because Zach is not with us today because he has. He has to be a big shot and take off and do whatever he does when he's not doing podcasts with us, but he is the one that actually connected with you, Ben, on social media somehow, and. And he's the reason you guys are on the podcast today. How'd that happen?

[D]

So, yeah, my brother, he said, you know, those of us who are out working, we're not watching morning shows. We're listening to podcasts all day long. And I was like, you know, well, which ones do you listen to? And he's like, I don't know. I listen to all of them.

[E]

Okay, so I think there's 4 million podcasts.

[C]

Yeah, there's 4 million podcasts, Ben. That's the latest number.

[D]

Insane. And he. I posted, you know, hey, which one should we go on? And 75 of the people thought that I was launching a podcast. And every interview we did after that was, so what's your podcast going to be about? I'm not doing a podcast. I wanted to go on podcasts, but. Yeah, so then Zach reached out, or he. Someone commented and tagged. Several people tagged unashamed. And then he commented.

[F]

My brother is a big fan, so he's listening right now. This is a very big deal for my brother, who's listening. And he wanted, like, we were supposed to be there today, but then it's going to be terrible weather, so we didn't get to come. So we're doing it from Laurel. And my brother and his family wanted to meet y' all so bad. This is what happens.

[E]

This is a big deal for me, too, because I'm. I'm a fan of y', all. So I'm glad to hear.

[F]

Instagram friends for a few years.

[E]

Yes.

[F]

We're going to hug each other's necks.

[E]

One day at some point. Yes.

[C]

Well, good call not coming because the storm has arrived. I mean, you could do a slip and slide right now just anywhere you don't need anything to add to.

[D]

Have to set it up.

[C]

So how do you become. I'm not a social media guy. I mean, I have all the pages and all. But Missy, since we're one like you, you know, one plus one is one God's man, she kind of. She kind of handles that for me.

[E]

I. I can't really remember who contacted who. It's been goodness years ago when y' all first started out, but I followed you for a long time on Instagram, and so you can message each. You can message people that follow back. If you follow each other, you can.

[C]

Message, which is a big deal, because the last time I looked at something, you were like, you followed, like, 13 people.

[E]

I know I don't follow very many, so. Because I just don't like all of that. I don't like it all.

[C]

You don't like the drama?

[E]

I don't like the drama, and I don't like it just messing with my head. But I do like what's going to improve. And at that time, I think we had just possibly bought Logtown and 1847, one of the first homes, if not the first house being built in Monroe, Louisiana. And so I was refurbishing what had been renovated in the past and trying to keep the originality of the home. And so which is what y' all do on your show. And I love it. Absolutely love it.

[D]

That is the. That was the connection, because I remember, you know, we were really excited that. But someone from your family had reached out. And I remember it being about an old house that y' all had bought. So that's.

[F]

That was a long time ago.

[C]

Well, I think real. What we have in common is we're just real people. And y' all know, you know, when Hollywood comes calling, they're not as familiar with our culture and who we are.

[F]

There aren't many people that you can reach out to who know what it's like to be in this really weird position. And I am going to be inclined to trust a Southerner who's in this really weird position. Before, I would trust someone outside of the South. I don't know why, but that's the truth.

[E]

Yes. I think you texted me one time. It was in a very busy stage of my life, and I was in the airport, and it was a very long, heartfelt text. And you were struggling at the time with how much to fight, battle, engage with members of production about your faith. And had we ever experienced that before? And I thought, how much time do you have and how Can I encourage you? So I hope that all of that worked well for you, standing up for what you believe and being authentic and transparent and your faith in God, he's going to take care of you. So I'm sure that you did that and you're seeing the results and the fruits of that.

[C]

Yeah, tell us about that.

[D]

I mean, y' all know it's a very being. Having any sort of faith in this industry is sort of frowned upon if it's not faith in the industry, and especially right now, like it is. There are so many people that we know who, you know, TV right now in general is very volatile. They don't really know. That's what we. We hear constantly. Like, you know, it's. It's shifting day to day, and so it's a. It's a very scary place for a lot of people. But we're okay with it because, you know, we live in Laurel, Mississippi, and we love the Lord and we're not worried about what, like, you know, oh, well, if this doesn't happen, I'll go drive a truck for my brother if I have to. But, I don't know. It's. I feel like having any sort of faith, it's. It's. It's like they. They want to respect it and they're.

[F]

But they're not really sure how.

[D]

They're not really sure how. And they're. And it's also. They're also sort of mesmerized by it. Like, how. How can you live your life this way? And. Which is always interesting because I got. Aaron and I both grew up. I don't know about y', all, but, you know, we grew up. Church every Sunday. Your life, it is a part of the way you grow up and built in there.

[F]

So I don't understand not having it.

[D]

Yeah. How you don't have faith. And we actually. One of the producers who found us in the beginning, she's of a Jewish background. And we've. We've had some pretty heavy conversations with her because she did not. She was not following her faith. And her. She told, you know, we had some conversations where her father had passed away. And for her, based on the way she was living her life, that's it. That's. It's over. Like, he's gone and that's over. And then. But then she was seeing people who both were friends of hers who were Christian and. Or Jewish, I mean, and that they had really strong faiths and they were okay. Like she said, like, she could not move on because there was no hope. And she was seeing them, and she.

[F]

Felt jealous of her friends who had faith.

[D]

Yeah. And so she started exploring that again. And I don't know where it went.

[F]

From there, but she's one of the best people. I hope that she's found that for herself. Yeah.

[C]

Well, for us, I think, looking back on it, because the conflict was there, especially in the first couple seasons, and because I think it was kind of an idea, because our show is different. I mean, y' all are. Your grid, I think, would be a little easier to manage just because at the end of the day, you're remodeling houses, which is very interesting to a lot of people. But they wanted us. This was going to be about us and our personalities. So we kind of figured out pretty quick that they kind of came here to make fun of us and just kind of the southern culture. And we were like, well, why don't you just laugh with us? You know, we don't want to go out there and do silly human tricks just for a laugh. And I think what brought them around is when they met uncle Si, because they realize he just really is crazy. You know, you don't have to, like, try to get him to go do something funny.

[F]

He's in Laurel right now.

[D]

Yeah.

[F]

Is he really Breeze, who is keeping our kids right now? Her uncle is who hosts SAI every time he comes to Laura.

[D]

Yeah. Homes of Hope.

[C]

Is there someone there supervising that right now? Yes.

[A]

Okay.

[E]

That's why it's a half day of school.

[D]

Yeah. Because he's here. So to that point, though, what you were just saying about Uncle Sally, you know, they realize, like, oh, no, he's crazy. And. Yeah. So this. Produce. These producers in New York had a similar. Because originally they. They wanted to do a show similar to that about us. But this producer, she worked for the company that owned hgtv, and so she was looking at maybe doing it for, like, a GAC or some other network. And we were like, we don't know about that. You know, that's not. Our lives are not that interesting. And she was like, well, no, it is, because it's fascinating to me that, you know, all the crazy people that you talk about in Laurel, they. They exist here in New York. We just ignore them and pretend like they don't exist. But you make them the. You put them in the Christmas parade.

[C]

Every year and, like.

[D]

Well, yeah, because, you know, every small town, especially in the south, has, you know, the uncle Si. They have.

[C]

They have a crazy uncle. It just comes with the package.

[A]

You Know, one of the things when you're on the road, you don't have your mattress and you don't have your sheets. That's one of the things I miss. What about you?

[C]

It's very disappointing, Al.

[A]

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[C]

Yeah, I actually took my pajamas on my last trip because it was three days, because I didn't know what circumstances I was going to get in. And I thought, ooh, I got to be comfortable at some point. But don't tell anybody.

[A]

Zach, you got a blanket? Tell us about the blanket you got.

[G]

I got the bubble cuddle. It's really comfortable, though. So I'm. I'm willing to admit I have a bubble cuddle blanket.

[A]

And I love to hear you admit it, Zach. So here's what you do. Head over to cozyearth.com use the code unashamed to get 40% off. And if you get a post purchase survey, make sure to let them know that you heard about Cozy Earth right here. That's cozyearth.com code unashamed for 40% off. Because your bed should be more than a place to sleep. It should be your happy place. Cozy Earth makes that possible.

[F]

In our neighborhood, there was a retired doctor. He's the one I think of every time. He looked a little like Rick Moranis from Honey I Shrunk the Kids.

[D]

I believe that he was.

[F]

And he. He had gray hair.

[D]

He was forced into retirement.

[F]

He was wearing a neck brace. Every day he would walk the neighborhood, like for exercise, wearing a neck brace.

[D]

Black cowboy boots and black cowboy boots.

[F]

And he would have a golf club for his walking stick. And he had this little dog that walked with him.

[D]

It was like, you know, like a. Like a poodle mix, like very small dog.

[F]

He would use the golf club to hit pine cones on his walk, and he'd make the dog. He would hit him as hard as he could and the dog would go get him and bring it back to him. He'd scream at that dog.

[D]

He'd cuss at it and yell at it.

[F]

But what happened to that guy?

[A]

I don't know.

[F]

Years ago.

[C]

Sounds like a bacon of a new reality show.

[E]

Whoa.

[D]

Listen. We loved him.

[F]

He existed at the time when HGTV found us and, like, tell us about your town. And we told him about him.

[D]

And there was the lady in the hat who walks her dog without a leash. We have very strict leash. Very strict leash laws in Laurel.

[F]

You know, she has no leash, and she never wears shoes.

[D]

Never wear shoes. She wears a big straw hat and walks her dog, and then she's barefoot all over town. And. And then we had.

[F]

But surely these things happen outside of the South.

[C]

Oh, yeah. These are the people we send to the HOA meetings, you know?

[D]

Yes.

[A]

They're like, boy, could you get them.

[D]

And let them have a voice? And. And the people in New York are like, no, they live in the building, but we don't interact with them and talk about them. And. Yeah, so it's. It's interesting that. So to your point that you. You felt like they were coming here to make fun. We. Our first director, who we absolutely love, he just directed the last season of Hometown takeover. Jim McPherson. We love this man. And he kind of taught us how to be in front of a camera. And he comes. He told us, like, he was coming here from la, took the job. Kind of like, he was excited about the job because it was a new experience. But he also. He said, like, I had in my mind what this was going to be. This was going to be this sappy country bumpkin, country bumpkin show about this town that they grew up in and how much they care about us.

[F]

And it might actually be that.

[D]

I think it is.

[E]

Sounds pretty accurate. I'm loving it.

[D]

He got here, and when he. And he was not, like, in his mind, he was going to be a one and done. Like, he's going to direct season one, and then he would leave and never be back in Mississippi. He had never been to Mississippi. And so it was this experience for him. And when he was leaving, he had had such a good time and made so many friends that he was just sobbing, leaving. Because, you know, from season to season, especially early on, we didn't know if it would happen or anything for a season two. And he directed two more seasons with us and then only left because he had an opportunity to go work in his actual hometown where his parents still live. And so, yeah.

[F]

But he was like, I got it. All wrong. It was a romantic comedy. That's what this show was supposed to be.

[E]

That's awesome. Yeah.

[C]

It's so crazy hearing y' all talk, because we had all those similar experiences. Like, they always wanted to go out in the woods, but it was more for them than us because they were like, wow. And we shooting guns. You know, back then, you could. We were shooting live rounds. And. Which was crazy. Now that I look back, with all the things that have happened. I mean, Cassai. I mean, I remember one night at a camp out while we were filming, a snake popped its head out of a little hole in a log. Well, Psy saw it. Well, he had his pistol on him because we were around a campfire. Well, he went and shot, like, six times into the hole, you know, and nobody believed it was a real snake because, Si. You only believe about half of what he says. And they didn't believe it was live rounds. Cause they thought, well, it was a set. Yeah, it was a set, but it wasn't. Yeah. And what's crazy is it was live rounds. And look, as soon as we wrapped, the snake came out of the hole.

[E]

He missed it. Six rounds. And he missed.

[C]

Yeah, he missed it six times. I said, number one, look at this log. I was showing all the camera crew. I was like, here's where the rounds hit. I said, number two, he's a terrible shot because he missed it six times at about a foot. And the look on their faces when that snake. Course, then they all took off running, screaming. But I was like, yeah, this is. Welcome to our world.

[E]

One thing that I wanted to ask you about, because we went through it, was a little bit of the anxiety when it first started, when you first started having your babies. And our youngest was five when we started filming Benelli Presents Duck Commander. And that was on the Outdoor Channel. And they did an episode where it showed the name of our school, our private Christian school, where they were doing an episode at the school and all that. And I just got real nervous about it. And I went up to the main producer, the director, the showrunner, and said, I just. I'm having a hard time with this. I don't know that we should run that. And I said, I'm just, you know, worried about the safety of my children at the school. And he. He said, look at that over there. And Jace was talking to a couple of guys across the yard, and he said, would you mess with that? And just Jace in his beard, knowing that we have guns in every corner of our home, Our children know how to respect them. They know not to touch them. We don't lock them up in safes. They're literally hanging beside every door frame in our house. And that's the way that our kids were raised. And to me, that's just normal. But to Hollywood, that is huge.

[C]

I was a scary man. To people in Hollyw.

[E]

Did you have those moments where you thought, I don't know if I should do this for the safety of my children?

[F]

We've just basically completely left them out of it.

[D]

Like, they're. They're in the show. They're always in the opening. They exist. But we were trying.

[F]

They don't want to be on tv.

[D]

Yeah, Helen does.

[F]

I don't ask them to. The only times you've ever seen them on tv, it was because we had absolutely no other child care option in that moment. In that moment.

[C]

Well, ours didn't want to be on TV either. And then I said, well, that's. They'll pay you. And, boy, they lined up.

[F]

They were interested, though.

[C]

Yeah.

[D]

Well, Helen's not old enough to understand. She's just now, like, we're. You know, she's in the last.

[F]

She's earning her own money lately.

[D]

She's been earning her own money. And our other friends, their kids, one of Jim and Mallory's daughter is on the show, and they. They. They pay her for her appearances, and it's going into her college fund and all this. But Helen's just, like.

[F]

She doesn't even want people to know that hometown exists, I think. Yeah, it embarrasses her for people to bring it up.

[C]

Well, y' all bound to be noticed in every corner inch of your town. I mean, I was going to ask you about that. How's that been? Like, how has the support or lack.

[D]

Of been so locally? The support is huge.

[F]

And no one. We're just. I've lived here my whole life, so no one treats us differently.

[D]

Yeah, the people who are from here, like, I'm. I'm more famous for being married to Phil Raspberry's daughter than I am for being on TV locally. But the. And they also, they. They. They look out for us. Like, I mean, there are some people that, you know, will tell people where our house is. Our house is very easy to find. And there are some people who will. God, give you the address. Like, oh, it's right here. And. But for the most part, people protect people, protect us. And, you know, it's. My barber drives by my house every day, and people come into the barber shop, and we'll ask him, you know, where Ben lives? And he's like, I honestly don't know. It's somewhere in Laurel, but I don't know. So it's. Locally, we're just, you know, we are just regular people and. But there is a.

[F]

It's tricky to go out, go to town with the girls because I'm funny about anyone. I'm funny about them thinking that we're special or something, but the girls thinking. The girls thinking that there's something different about us because someone might ask to take a picture. So I feel very rude and like I've got to find the right words for this. But if I'm out with the girls and someone says, can. Can we take a picture? And I say, I don't actually do that when I'm out with my girls. And they said, well, they don't have to be in the picture. And that's not really.

[D]

That's not the point.

[F]

That's not what I'm saying. Yeah, it makes them feel weird and make. I take my eyes off of them, and I have this recurring nightmare that I do that I take my eyes off of them, I take a picture and I smile, and then they're gone. And I never find them again. I don't know why I have so much ransom. That's literally what happens.

[D]

Y' all remember that Mel Gibson movie?

[E]

Yes.

[D]

Holy smokes. Don't watch it.

[C]

You.

[D]

Well, your kids are older now, but they are.

[E]

Well, that's where the Dateline episodes come in handy. Do not go jogging in a park by yourself. Thank you.

[D]

Yes.

[C]

Yeah.

[G]

Did you guys know that all chips and fries used to be cooked in something that we call beef tallow up until the 1990s when the big corporations switched to the cheap processed seed oils?

[A]

I did not know that, Zach, but that makes a lot of sense.

[G]

Well, I actually use beef tallow. One, I love it because it tastes better, and two, it's actually more healthy for you. So I try to fry and beef tallow if I'm going to fry. But most chips today are made with cheap seed oils, which are linked to inflammation and a lot of health issues. But Masa created a delicious tortilla chip with just three ingredients. I love the simplicity of this. No seed oils, just organic nixtamalized corn, sea salt, and 100% grass fed beef tallow.

[C]

You ready for it? Listen.

[G]

He gave the thumbs up if you're not looking. My family devours these things. They're absolutely incredible. They are very crispy. They are the best tortilla chip, in my opinion, that you're ever gonna put in your mouth. I'm telling you, they're not gonna break apart when you dip them into your guacamole either. These chips don't just avoid all the bad stuff, they taste incredible too. Masa is crunchier, tastier, it's sturdier than any other chip on the market. Snacking on Masa chips is nothing like eating regular chips. You feel satisfied, light, energetic, without the gross sluggish feeling afterwards. No post snack crash, no bloating. And the beef tallow makes these chips much more satiating. You won't binge and feel hungry afterwards. Masa chips is beloved by tens of thousands of customers and has been endorsed by industry leading health and nutrition experts. Ready to give Masa a try? Go to masachhips.comrobertson and use code robertson for 25 off your first order. That's masachips.comrobertson and code robertson for 25% off your first order.

[A]

It's like when you're going to Europe, don't watch taken. So I was going to ask you this in association what you were just talking about because you know, our hometown is our hometown. And as you described, people already knew you there. And it was really interesting for our show because again, I think Jason's right, a little bit different genre and how we were going about it, but also is sort of what's going on in your realm of television when you come out with it. Because in our case, Jersey Shore was very popular at the time. We're talking about 15 years ago for us when this kind of process started. So a lot of times people were kind of embarrassed by the people that came on television to represent their area. And I remember back in these days for us, the paper was still a big deal. Now I don't think we even have a paper, you know, because everything's online. But back then the paper came out, they had an editorial in our local newstar world about our show about to premiere. And it was so funny because they were like, well, you know, the Robertsons have been here. They've been an established business in our community and a part of, you know, our lives. And. But we hope that, we hope that they respect our value. It was like, it was like they were excited but at the same time a little bit nervous. Is it going to be Honey Boo Boo with beards? You know, so it was really interesting to watch that. But so your people are proud of you. Is that, is that safe to say in terms of what you've accomplished?

[D]

I think most of them are proud.

[C]

There's.

[D]

There. I mean, there are some that.

[F]

And I want to say how I'm very thankful for the way HGTV really does only ever give Laurel and Mississippi the best and most positive portrayal possible.

[D]

Yeah, that was actually our. The director I was talking about, He. He came to work one day and he was like, I got it.

[F]

We're gonna play a game, everybody.

[D]

Name every. He said, name any show or movie or from pop culture that has ever. That has described Mississippi in a 100% positive light. And it doesn't exist except for our show. And, you know, in every. In everything, there is that moment where it's like, you know, remember. Remember when they did that? And it's like, geez, yes, that happened, and we're sorry it did, but it's local. Yeah. Like we said locally, for the most part, everybody's proud, and they look after us and they take care of us. And then on the flip of that, like, there are. There are places that. That we won't film because we don't want to lose that place. Which is sad because, like, our special.

[F]

Family spot where we eat and where we.

[D]

Yeah.

[F]

And there's so many cool ones. And our producers would be like, wouldn't it be fun to film a scene there? And we're like, you just can't. Yeah, I'm sorry. That's like my other house where I go to eat supper like, three times a week.

[E]

I can't.

[D]

And there was this. There was a place that this girl was strung out, and she'd crash her car into the. Into the gas line of our favorite cafe and then walked gas station, grocery store. I mean, y' all have these places. We know this one was, like, the best food. It was a great restaurant. They did their own. There was a butcher shop. They did their own. And it's way out in the middle of the county and out in the country, and it burned up. Like, the. It burned nearly the whole building. And they were going to rebuild. And everybody locally started tagging us and all the local groups on social media saying, Aaron and Ben have to. They. They need to redo on the show. This would be a great story. And people were coming up to us in stores and saying, like, hey, you think that HGTV would be interesting? Like, I know they would be interested, but then I can't go there again. And. Or not as much.

[F]

And you just have to be careful about the things that you share on a TV show, because then it absolutely. To everyone, I think that's wonderful that.

[E]

You'Re protecting the ones around you too. And you're protecting your own life for the future of your children as well.

[C]

I wish we had done it.

[E]

We weren't that smart.

[F]

Well, you could know. You were really pioneers in all this.

[C]

Well, I think, you know, in an effort to be ourselves, we just went that route, you know. And now what I was going to say earlier, I forgot what I was going to say. We had such a conflict in the beginning, but I'm actually thankful for it because I think it made our show better because we would have these huge arguments like in what we're going to do or whatever and we would always go to authenticity. We're like, we are who we are. This is what we're going to do. And it just didn't go well. But then when the cameras were rolling, we just did that and we were trying to win the argument. I really believe people want to just see how we really are. And so that's kind of why I think we had less protection. Because that was our mantra. We're just going to be ourselves. And it actually galvanized our family. And so that was just kind of the way we did it. Because I thought if this works and we have to do more episodes and more seasons, I can be myself, but I can't be something I'm not. And you keep asking me to do that. And let me put this in Spanish for you. No, the only Spanish word I know.

[D]

Tim, our camera guy worked on one of y' all see seasons and he, he said that who they are on camera, who you see on the show, that is them. And which is for us, people are always, you know, people ask us what it's like making a TV show. And for us it's year round. I mean it is, you know, because we're renovating houses and so you, it takes time and you drags out. And so it's a full time job year round for us. And so our crew is. They're very much like just our friends. Like it's who we work together.

[F]

Most of them we've been together with for many years.

[C]

Yeah, that's good.

[F]

So you become too comfortable.

[E]

Yeah, you can. Yes, you can be.

[C]

So the way your show works, you basically, y', all, y' all go look for a house. I mean, it's been on my TV many times, but I have attention deficit.

[F]

It's okay. We never get to watch TV at all. I think people who make TV don't get to actually watch it.

[C]

Well, thank you for Saying that, babe. See, I'm not a weirdo, but. But Missy will have it on. But she shares a similar passion with you, Aaron, that she loves. I mean, I think by looking at the husbands here, we see that y' all are project driven. Let me try to make this work, I really think. Which I'm thankful for, Ben, because, look, somebody sent a picture where you dressed up like my brother.

[F]

Everyone thought that Ben and Willie were the same person in the year 2013. Everywhere we went, they'd be like, you know who you look like?

[D]

That was my Halloween costume.

[C]

Yeah, well, I was offended at first because I thought, why did he pick Willie instead of me? But then I thought, well, based on body type, I was gonna say I'm a little thicker. But look, you did something. I'm gonna give you a compliment. You did something that I thought was impossible. A guy of your stature actually made Willie look skinny. When I saw the picture, I thought, you look like a skinny version.

[E]

He has some height on his side, I think.

[C]

Yeah, I think that saved the day.

[D]

How tall are y'? All?

[C]

I'm about six' one. I have the body type of my dad, and. But like all my brothers, Al included, they mom. If you've ever seen my mom and dad in person, my dad, I guess, before all his difficulties, was this towering man. 6, 4, 2, 10, 220. And my mom might be five one.

[E]

Maybe she's more like five.

[C]

She's about five foot tall, just real small. And now she's kind of big. But if you're five foot tall, you know.

[D]

Yeah, it's hard not to fit.

[C]

Yeah, it's hard not to be.

[E]

And really top heavy.

[C]

So Jeff, Al, and Willie have more kind of the body type of my mom, but they're like, what are you, Al, five, ten?

[A]

Yeah, we're all about five, nine, five, ten.

[D]

What's the order? The age order?

[C]

Al's the oldest. He's five years older than me. And then I'm actually older than Willie by like, a year and a half.

[E]

No, like, almost three years difference. Yes.

[A]

69 to 72. Jason, do the math.

[E]

Yeah, that's me and you there a year and a half, two years apart.

[C]

Well, he's my bigger brother, but I have younger. Yeah, but he's younger. But everybody thinks Willie is older because he, you know, runs Duck Command. And he was actually my boss, which was really weird for years. And then J, who is the surprise?

[E]

So he's what, he's 10 years younger than you?

[D]

He's four.

[A]

Yeah, 14 years.

[F]

It's just like Ben's brother.

[D]

So my older brother is four years older than me, and then my younger brother is two years younger than me. And then 10 years later, we had a surprise. Jesse.

[A]

Oh, y' all are just like us.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Did you have a surprise sister show up?

[C]

Well, hey, you never know. So, yeah, we had a surprise sister that. That came on the scene, what, three years ago?

[A]

It's been five years, six years.

[C]

Yeah. It was actually a crazy story because she was birthed, I guess, the year my dad came to the Lord. Well, he came to the Lord like in November. Well, you know, he. Once he became a new man, he. He moved on and so. And he never knew that he had a daughter till 2020.

[D]

She was.

[A]

She was 44 when she found us. Yeah.

[C]

Yeah. And she basically just kind of looked it up on the ancestry thing and then went to our mom, went to her mom, and her mom said, it's a secret I've kept until now. And then that's. That' how we met her. Yeah. So my dad never knew. And she was actually named after my dad, you know.

[A]

Yeah. Phyllis is her name.

[C]

Phyllis is her name.

[A]

And so only sister we had was Jeff. He was our. Well, that is true.

[C]

We. He's softy. He has a real soft heart, you know.

[D]

So.

[G]

Hey, guys, are any of you ready to buy your own home? Like, I bought a lot of homes over the years. In fact, Jill and I, it's been one of our primary tools of. Of accumulating our. Our retirement savings is through the homes that we bought. I think we've up to maybe 15 now, which is absolutely insane. But if you're feeling ready to buy, and I'm telling you, the time to act is right now. For the first time in years, buyers finally have the upper hand because there's an excess of inventory on the market, which means that you have more the negotiating power and less competition. But opportunities like this, they won't last long. As soon as the Fed cuts the rates, what's going to happen? Well, buyer demand is likely to spike, and you know what that means. Prices will go up and sellers will have the advantage. But for now, peak home buying season is in full swing, and now is the moment to lock in the right home for yourself. But you can do it on your terms before the market shifts. So reach out today and get approved for mortgage financing with my friends Andrew and [e-mail] or call 8 8/81172. I really love these guys. Andrew and Todd are good friends. They love Jesus, which is a great thing. They're honorable people and they've been in the business a long time and that's important to me. Do business with people that think like me and share my same values. These are the guys I trust with 40 years of experience. They really are the experts and they make it look easy because they keep everything in house. All you got to do is call Triple 8, Triple 8, 1172 or go to andrew and todd.com again. That's andrew and todd.com.

[A]

Is your. Is your younger brother like that being. Is he kind of the butt of the joke? How is it working?

[D]

Loves the. The like because it's, you know, same parent.

[F]

People should studies how the four of them have a lot of commonalities, but they're so extremely different. And you're made from the exact same DNA.

[E]

Yeah.

[F]

Raised by the same people.

[C]

Oh, it's crazy.

[D]

And Jesse, the baby, you cannot ruffle his feather. Like, you can't.

[F]

You can't hurt his feelings.

[E]

He's just easy going.

[D]

Whatever, whatever, whatever.

[F]

Like, they will. They will pick on him to the point where I'm like, y' all stop. And he doesn't care at all.

[D]

And then I wonder if Willie and Tom. Because my brother Tom, he's the one who told me to do the podcast. He's a truck driver.

[A]

Yeah.

[D]

And he loves to pick and play and make fun of. And he is the biggest of all of us. He is an actual giant. He's 6, 7, 6, 8.

[C]

And does he have like, diva like qualities?

[D]

He.

[F]

Diva like quality.

[C]

Yeah. Well, that's my. I mean, my brother will he.

[E]

Well, he's the only one holding something back.

[C]

When he walks into the room, he's like, hey, I just want to let you know I'm here now. That's kind of what I mean by that.

[A]

He wanted to call our show as the of Duck Dynasty. His name for it was Bayou Big Time. So that tells you all you need to know about Willie.

[D]

Bayou Big Time.

[A]

Bayou Big Time.

[C]

Because he's. I mean, he's big time. He's doing the show, you know. Yeah.

[D]

He's big time. Tom is actually big time. He's. He's a giant and like the size.

[F]

Of a door frame.

[D]

He's very. Which he and I both like growing up, we were. Because I'm six, six. And we were very. And we're big. Like, we're not just tall, we're big. And there we were always afraid of this stereotype that big people stink. And so we're Very. Like he and I have showered.

[E]

I've never heard that.

[C]

I hadn't either.

[D]

Oh, boy.

[C]

Well, it may be a Mississippi thing.

[D]

Maybe. Maybe we just thought it.

[C]

Yeah.

[D]

And so we were always like taking multiple showers.

[F]

Well, you're always the ones that play the sports. You're always sweaty and working and working hard and.

[C]

6. I mean, how many times have you hit your head every day? I mean, if you're working in Jace.

[F]

I'm curious if you and Ben are the same in the lineup.

[E]

Right.

[F]

Do you feel like you've always had a desire for everyone to just have a good time and for people to be happy and to be the fixer of things?

[C]

Well, I was like that for a while, and then I went through a stage of, will y' all just leave me alone? And now I'm back to the kind of, let's everybody have a good timing and. Yeah, he's a middle.

[F]

Your middle child.

[D]

Did the TV make you. Make you like.

[C]

So it got crazy, you know, it.

[F]

Just very much in his leave me.

[D]

Alone era, which, I mean, it's not extreme, but it's.

[E]

That's about right, though. That's when you were. When. When our kids were Their kids age.

[C]

Well, it's just such a. It was such a roller coaster because I never. I think our biggest argument when we were first married was she was like, I mean, do you have any ambition to make a little more money? There just wasn't a lot of money in the duck all bit. But I was just like. I'm like, God will take care of us if he wants us to be rich. But I was thinking, we're never going to. We're never going to have the things that you're inferring. So.

[D]

But, well, and you and y' all grew up. I mean, I've. I've read a little bit. Like there were. I mean, there were times where your parents didn't have anything.

[E]

Oh, we paid their. We paid their bills and we didn't have anything either. I didn't come from any money either.

[C]

Man. We were. We were poor, white trash. The only thing we were kind of proud of it. You know, we live off the land, we roam. We're free people.

[D]

You know, we were. They were growing up. Like, I witnessed my dad on. On two occasions lose everything. Like financially lose everything. And the first time was it was taken from him. And then the second time was when he became a pastor and he let it go. It was like he was a truck driver. And for the first time since he had lost Everything he had finally amassed. Like, he had multiple trailers so he could haul multiple things. He was working for himself. He was his own man.

[F]

Owned a house and land.

[D]

Owned a house and land and a very modest. A station wagon and a Suburban and a pickup truck, and they all three ran. And, boy, we were, like. We were doing it and then walked away from it and became a preacher. And I mean, like, we. We. I remember overhearing a conversation about his salary from the church. And my grandfather was, you know, on the. The sprc, the. Or the finance committee or something at the church. And they were. He. He and my dad. This was not the same church, but he was asking my dad, like, hey, how do y' all do it at your church? And my dad said, well, it's real simple. They give me, you know, one chart. He had two churches. And he said, one gives me a thousand a month. The other one gives me a thousand a month. And it's one check each month from each church. And. And I did the math. I was like, oh, okay, so, Daddy, it's 24,000 a year. And I'm thinking, like, oh, big time.

[C]

A lot of money. Yeah, big time. Well, our biggest shopping day. Our biggest shopping day was every time the river went up. And most of the amenities we got. We got it from floating down the river.

[D]

Yeah.

[C]

There was no law for that. If it broke loose and it comes down by your lot, you can go out there and get it.

[D]

So the.

[C]

The.

[D]

The same week in, like, social studies, we were studying the poverty line, and I remember it said for a family of four in America, the poverty line was 25,000 a year at that time. And I was like, wait a second. There's. We're a family of six, and we're only making 24,000 a year. And so it's. So we had similar upbringings.

[C]

Yeah. Oh, I.

[A]

We. We're out of time, but, you guys, we're out of time. That's what happens when you have. That's. That's the beauty of podcasts you were talking about a bit. The beauty of podcast is a great conversation that goes by really quick.

[E]

But y'. All. Y' all need to come and visit us and let us show you our Logtown estate, because I would love to show that off and get more.

[F]

I can see both of us on the map behind you. We all fit onto that map right there.

[C]

Oh, yeah, yeah.

[F]

But it's very hard to get there for some reason, or the weather.

[C]

It is twice.

[D]

Twice now the weather has kept us.

[C]

From coming, but we have a lot in common. I mean, that's where I was going with that earlier. Y' all both designed. The only thing is you build stuff, and I only tear it up. That's the only thing I'm good at.

[D]

Calls.

[C]

Well, I guess, but that's nowhere near a house, you know? Well, tell us what's next for y' all and where. How we can help promote what y' all are doing.

[F]

Well, right now, it's just the rest of Hometown season and. Is this nine? Is that what we're calling it? You know, we have a different number internally than the one that people.

[D]

Yeah, they messed it up somewhere with streaming, and so now the number that we're told is a different number. It's very tv.

[E]

But anyway, seasons are just marketing anyway.

[D]

Yeah, yeah, exactly.

[F]

New seasons will keep airing for a few more weeks, and then we'll have a new.

[D]

I don't know if y' all know this mini series. We're sitting in the offices of our. Our factory. Our factory is on the other side of the wall behind you, where we build butcher block countertops and cutting boards and. And rolling pins and all sorts. And candles. We didn't make all our candles here, but we ship them all over the world and.

[E]

Yeah, that's awesome. So where do we find that stuff?

[F]

You can find it all@l LaurelMercantile.com or Scent Library. Like Sent Library.com.

[E]

What was that?

[C]

That was a lightning strike from someone screaming outside. Yeah. Wow.

[E]

Okay.

[C]

Lightning. We had a lot. I've been waiting for 1100 podcasts to have a lightning strike moment. Interesting. We just had it. The lightning just struck this building. And how we still have power is fascinating.

[A]

Good thing y' all didn't come today. Yes, but. But we. We appreciate it.

[D]

So we will want to.

[F]

I really want to be.

[D]

We'll do this again, but we'll do it in person this time.

[E]

Absolutely.

[A]

Absolutely. You guys are. Are always welcome. Hometown Takeover. Ben and Aaron Napier, thank you for coming on Unashamed. Thanks for listening to the Unashamed podcast. Help us out by leaving a rating and review on Apple podcast. And don't miss an episode by subscribing on YouTube. And be sure to click the little bell and choose all notifications to watch every episode.