by Karen Mehall Phillips - Sunday, April 12, 2015
NRA members and gun owners from across America gathered for what many called the concert of a lifetime at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena last night. They enjoyed an evening with one of the biggest names to ever hit the country scene. As I joined the crowd anticipating Alan Jackson taking the stage, we were treated to opening remarks from an NRA EVP Wayne LaPierre and NRA-ILA's Chris Cox, followed by a prayer from Lt. Col. Oliver North and, last but not least, the opening act no one would want to miss: comedian and NRA Life Member Jeff Foxworthy! While Cox stressed how we NRA members are united by the beliefs in our values that made America the greatest nation on earth, Foxworthy came on stage and cut to the chase when it comes to the NRA show, saying, "I've just seen my all time favorite billboard: NINE ACRES OF GUNS!"
It was quite a show before Jackson even stepped on stage. Of course, when he did, an even bigger party started as fans danced and sang along to the countless well-known hits Jackson has released over the past 25 years, many of which he wrote himself. This event just may be my favorite NRA Annual Meeting moment of all time—and that's saying a lot considering I've been coming to the NRA Annual Meetings and Exhibits for more than 20 years!
