Cowboys & Cajuns take heed

Desperately seeking alligator hunters and Swamp People: When reality TV hitsclose to home

Swamp People is known for attracting almost-unbelievable Cajun characters.
It follows swamp-dwellers during the month-long alligator-hunting season.
Swamp People/Facebook
The show just wrapped up its third season.
Swamp People/Facebook
Swamp People/Facebook

There are few reality TV shows more anthropologically enthralling or more endlessly quotable than History's Swamp People, which follows Louisiana swamp-dwellers throughout their annual 30-day alligator hunting season.

Season Three wrapped up last week, and the producers are already looking for fresh blood for the fourth.

This Sunday, The Casting Firm makes its first and only Texas stop during the three-week tour in Beaumont, a Southeast Texas town rife with rowdy cowboys and intrepid Cajuns.

"We invite people to come dressed in character," Randazzo said. "I'd like to see someone from our area get onto the show."

Madison's on Dowlen will play host for the casting call from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Owner Frankie Randazzo tells CultureMap that other local businesses — an air boat company from Orange as well as Golden Triangle Powersports — will also be on hand for entertainment and exposition.

Plus, Gator Country's Gary Saurage, star of the CMT reality TV show Gator 911, will bring his crew and their gator fleet to teach about the conservation aspect of alligator-catching.

"We invite people to come dressed in character," Randazzo said. "I'd like to see someone from our area get onto the show."

The Casting Firm seeks individuals or groups of "experienced alligator hunters — real MEN & WOMEN who live off the swamp." Other requirements include legal U.S. residency and a hunting license with at least 50 tags for the upcoming hunting season.

Think that you have what it takes? Find more information here.

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jon pardi review

Jon Pardi’s rockin’ performance has RodeoHouston fans Head Over Boots

RodeoHouston/Facebook

Jon Pardi performed three new songs at RodeoHouston.

California cowboy Jon Pardi took Houstonians to the honky tonk on Thursday, March 13 at NRG Stadium, punctuating his 16-song set with enough pyrotechnics and fireworks to politely singe the pearl snap shirts and straw cowboy hats in the expensive seats.

This was Pardi’s third trip to RodeoHouston, following up his 2022 and 2023 appearances. He’s well on his way to becoming a rodeo season staple.

Pardi’s fifth studio album, Honkytonk Hollywood, drops on April 11. The lead singles build upon the ‘70s Sunset Strip country sound he began to tease on 2022’s Mr. Saturday Night, full of big drums, arena rock choruses, fuzzed-out fiddles, and steel guitars.

Kicking off the night with the “Honkytonk Hollywood,” Pardi offered fans a taste of the Tom Petty via Bakersfield Sound he’s laying down right now.

“Mr. Saturday Night” is a sturdy bar fly ballad that wouldn’t have been out of place on a late ‘70s Eagles album, like “Desperado” with a Red Bull chaser.

It may have been Thursday night, but the rodeo party crowd knows it’s just the unofficial kickoff to the weekend. Pardi understood the assignment, reminding the crowd that NRG’s bars were still open before launching into “Fill ‘Er Up.”

The brand-new “Friday Night Heartbreaker” features three Southern-rock guitars and a stuttering drum beat. Pardi injected “What I Can’t Put Down” with a splash of grunge, betraying his starched jeans and shirt. “Love The Lights Out” has a streak of textbook Conway Twitty raunch dressing but keeping things a tasteful Nashville PG-13.

The country dancehall staple “Head Over Boots” brought the biggest roars of the night, with fans casually two-stepping in the aisles and hoisting sweaty beer cans in the spotlights.

Easily the catchiest confection of Pardi’s decade-long career, the tune sent the crowd off into the night before he mounted his trusty horse Link for a trot around the stadium dirt.

Setlist

Honkytonk Hollywood (New)
Mr. Saturday Night
Last Night Lonely
Fill ‘Er Up
Your Heart Or Mine
Friday Night Heartbreak (New)
What I Can’t Put Down
Cowboy Hat
Love The Lights Out (New)
She Ain’t In It
Beer Can’t Fix
Dirt On My Boots
Heartache Medication
Heartache On The Dancefloor
Night Shift
Head Over Boots

rodeohouston concert review jon pardi