Huckabee parody video of Adele's 'Hello' grabs attention

URBANDALE, Iowa -- Battling a TV-savvy billionaire, Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee has struggled to grab his share of "free media" -- airtime that doesn't come with a bill attached.

But he captured some extra worldwide attention last week by borrowing "Hello," the chart-topping song by music superstar Adele.

Taking the hit song's tune and adding Iowa-specific lyrics, the Huckabee campaign managed to generate international coverage, some of it unflattering but all of it free.

The new song praises Huckabee and pans the Democrats ("If Bernie wins, I'm gonna die!") The video features clips of Huckabee and also pokes fun at presidential candidate Ted Cruz's Canadian roots.

In two days time, 400,000 people viewed the parody on YouTube before it was taken down, the campaign said. CNN aired a clip. So did FOX News and a number of other outlets.

The London-based Daily Mail Online called "Hello, Huck" "cringeworthy."

The Irish Mirror called it "perhaps the oddest political ad of the 2016 campaign."

But Sud Presse in Belgium called it a "parodie hilarante" -- a hilarious parody.

A Washington Post blogger panned the songwriting but praised the filmmaking.

"Although the lyrics and vocals are iffy, the cinematographer should get credit for those power-pop-ballad-worthy shots of a pensive Huckabee gazing at snow-covered fields," it said.

Jack Sisson, Huckabee's director of research and rapid response and a Little Rock resident, wrote the song and shot the video, putting it together bit by bit with help from staff members. Campaign staff member Abby Lindsey, a Ouachita Baptist University grad from Van Buren, provided the vocals.

"It was a team idea. We were just looking for an opportunity to have a little fun amid a barrage of negative ads that are inundating televisions and radio stations across the state," Sisson said.

The song is, among other things, an homage to Iowa winters: "Arctic blasts, sub-zero chills, campaigning is a dream.

"I got frostbite. Gangrene."

It also pays tribute to Amish chairs, pork chops, Pizza Ranch, corn, coffee and caucus-goers.

Shout-outs are given to Sioux City, Ankeny, Davenport and Cedar Rapids.

"Some people think it's the most hideous thing they've ever heard and other people think it's cheesy and some people think it's innovative and creative. So, the reactions have been mixed, but the reach has been good," Sisson said.

A Section on 02/01/2016