Wynonna Takes Listeners to Church, Gets Banner in Honor of The Judds at Kentucky Homecoming

It was an epic homecoming when Ashland, Kentucky born Wynonna Judd brought her star-studded The Judds: The Final Tour to Lexington's Rupp Arena on Saturday night. 

The first ever show at the venue where all featured acts were women included an opening performance from Martina McBride along with special appearances from Faith Hill, Brandi Carlile and Ashley Judd. However, the night was all about Wynonna and the legacy she and her late mother Naomi have left on country music.

Rising up and ascending back into a platform on the floor during her set opening rendition of "Had A Dream (For The Heart)", Wynonna then paraded through the crowd of 11,000 and up to the stage, stopping to take selfies with fans along the way and never once slowing down with her bluesy vocal riffs. 

After running through the duo's 1988 hit "Give A Little Love" Wynonna welcomed both Hill and McBride for the anthem "Girls Night Out" before keeping the blues and country gospel sounds rolling with Hill on "Rockin' With the Rhythm of the Rain" and "Love Is Alive." 

Surprise special guest Brandi Carlile then made her way to center stage to join Wynonna on 1989's "Let Me Tell You About Love," although she was more commonly found throughout the show with the band's backup singers, particularly on "Guardian Angels," "Young Love (Strong Love)" and "No One Else On Earth."

At moments throughout the show archived behind the scenes footage and interviews from The Judds played on the big screen and acted as segues into songs and periods from the Judds' illustrious songbook. Wynonna could be seen tearing up at the footage and the music itself at various points during the show, eventually speaking most directly about her mother's passing between playing her original "Rock Bottom" and "Cry Myself To Sleep."

"The last few months have been somewhere between hell and hallelujah... I wasn't sure," Wynonna said, appearing to allude to doubts about going on with the tour following her mother's death. "When you go through hell you remember who's there. Martina, Brandi, Trisha Yearwood and Faith Hill have all been there. Thank you all for being here as well and making tonight so special."

Despite the tears, the night overall was a joyous celebration of the mom and daughter duo's impact on country music, something that no amount of special guests could pull the spotlight from. This even included Wynonna's half-sister, actress and University of Kentucky alum Ashley Judd, who took to the stage after a run through of Foreigner's "I Want To Know What Love Is" for an intimate a cappella of the Karl Davis penned, Osborne Brothers popularized "Kentucky."

She then stayed to introduce the next song, "River Of Time," and to speak about her mother and the mental health struggles that took her, the second leading cause of death for Kentucky children ages 10-14 and the third leading cause among teens age 15-19. Ashley then encouraged anyone experiencing a mental health crisis to call the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988.

"We're missing our mom today, but we love her and we love the way you've loved us," said Ashley. "We don't necessarily get over it, but we do get through it."

After singing through more hits like "I Saw The Light" and "Born To Be Blue" with Hill, Wynonna briefly left the stage only to quickly re-emerge for a four song encore led by a solo performance of "Mama He's Crazy" before welcoming her band back for the sentimental "Grandpa (Tell Me 'Bout The Good Old Days)."

Following the song, Ashley and Brian Sipe, general manager of Rupp Arena and the Central Bank Center, took the stage to unveil a banner in the venue's rafters alongside the countless Final Four and NCAA Championship banners from the University of Kentucky men's basketball team, making the Judds as the first people not associated with athletics to have a banner in their honor hanging in the arena.

The surprise ceremony led into a performance of "Why Not Me" with Carlile, McBride and Hill and a show-closing cover of Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Free Bird," which Wynonna recorded for her 1996 project "Revelations."

Prior to Wynonna, the dynamite night of nostalgic and empowering country music kicked off with 56 year old Kansas born artist Martina McBride. Sounding as good as ever, she dazzled in her glowing, pink sequin dress on "My Baby Loves Me," "Wild Angels" and "I Love You." 

"I feel like our job tonight is to love and support Wynonna and to honor the incredible legacy of The Judds," said McBride. "And the best way we can support her is by having a damn good time tonight."

Between songs she took time to honor the recent passings of both Naomi Judd and Loretta Lynn, the latter of whom she went on to cover with "You Ain't Woman Enough."

"[Loretta] wrote songs at a time when a lot of women weren't," said McBride. "She sang about things that other women and even men wouldn't sing about. She was feisty, and I loved her."

McBride then went on to take the party up a notch on song's like "This One's For The Girls," "A Broken Wing" (which received a minute long standing ovation that left the artist speechless) and a set closing "Independence Day," each proving that she hasn't missed a beat.

 

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