Duck Commander CEO Willie Robertson was at the New Orleans Saints win vs the Pittsburgh Steelers last Sunday and Sean Kelley caught up with him for an interview for Tuesday's Black and Blue Report podcast (interview begins at the 9:30 mark). Below are some highlights from the interview.
Can you believe it's been seven seasons for "Duck Dynasty"? Have you had time to reflect at all about it?
"Right at the end (of last season) they said it was the 80th episode. It kind of hit us like 'Wow, it's been 80 episodes.' It seems like we have been doing it forever. People think it's been years and years but it has only been a few years. It went fast and slow. The pace of everything right now is certainly fast. There are so many opportunities. The years go by faster but it's an accomplishment. Nowadays in television, not many shows last too long so it's a pretty big honor to have so many episodes."
On Duck Commander sponsoring the Independence Bowl
"We are excited about the Duck Commander Independence Bowl. Being from Monroe, we have always watched that game. It's exciting to be a part of it. It's starting to shape up with the teams. Hopefully we get some good teams. I would love to have some teams from the South that I know love our show. We are going to do some cool things with our family being a part of it. We love college football."
On his daughter Sadie's runner-up finish on this season's "Dancing with the Stars"
"I was a nervous wreck. At first, I didn't know how she would do. We had no idea whether or not she could dance. After that first week I was like 'Wow, she's actually pretty good and might win this.' It was fun watching the fans rally to support her and watch her grow as a person. At 17 to have that opportunity and experience is incredible. Everybody was pulling for her. I swear it was like the whole state. Everybody I saw. Everything became about Sadie which was neat. It was fun watching the torch being passed down to my kids. They're so talented. She did great. I thought she represented herself well and was authentic to who she was. She was able to be a bright light to a lot of people and especially to a lot of kids who needed somebody to look up to and share a good faith and message. That's what we were most excited about."
On how proud he was of her performance
"She just blew us away. The hardest part was sitting there and not crying during the show. They would pan over and catch me. As a dad, you are just proud to see your kids do well at anything. To watch her take it and really own it. .. it was something she had never really done; it was neat as a dad to watch that."
On what he does when he is on the road and wants to watch the Saints
"It was funny. I had to be in New York because we are working on our musical that's going to start during the Spring in Vegas. I would watch "Dancing with the Stars" from my hotel room because I didn't know where to go watch it. I would be in the hotel room by myself and get excited, scream and throw things at the television kind of like when I watch the Saints (laughter). I get into it. When you look like this it's hard to be out and about and travel because so many people want to talk you. It's also hard watching the Saints when you are around non-Saints fans. I am experiencing that now in Pittsburgh. It's fun to be back in New Orleans when everybody is on the same page and we all get excited. Even though it's been a tough year for New Orleans I think we are way better than our record shows. We are seeing that today. Coming out here and playing with some confidence. We are still on top of the division and I would hate to have to play these guys as the game gets bigger."
On the Duck Commander musical coming out in the Spring
"That was the next logical step for us - to go in the theatrical world (laughter). There is a group that put this show together. They approached us a year or two ago and wanted to base it off our book "The Duck Commander Family." The story is just incredible. So much about redemption and 'rags to riches.' It's a great American story. They put it together in the theater and it's just unbelievable. It will blow you away. It's a powerful message. We can't wait. Hopefully we will be opening up at the Rio Las Vegas in March. It should be a lot of fun."
