A fishing show of men, women, myth and legend.

My name is Michael Horn. I grew up in Kentucky, in a small town called Cromwell. My personal story is much more complex, but here I’ll focus on everything related to Hook Line & Chill.

In 2018, I was 35 years old and bored. I had quit drinking and was looking for something new to do. My old lifestyle revolved around partying and constantly meeting new people, so I had a lot of energy that suddenly had nowhere to go. I ended up channeling that into making videos.

My son and I made several silly videos in numerous different categories. We developed our editing style and learned the basics of social media posting. One video category we had tried was checking trotlines on the Green River. I had grown up running lines with my dad, and after he passed away tragically, I continued doing it on my own. We created a separate YouTube channel for these fishing videos since they didn’t really fit with our other non-fishing content. We called it “Hook Line & Brick” because I used bricks as weights. Terrible name, I know. It was never intended to be a show.

In the summer of 2018, I decided to set some trotlines again. Around that time, I met a new friend named Nina. She was bored too, so I talked her into coming along. Somewhere in the process, I mentioned that I liked making videos, and at the last minute, we decided to throw one together. That first video picked up some views, which was enough motivation to make another… and then another.

‍Before long, Hook Line & Brick started gaining traction. We leaned into the dynamic between my odd personality and having an interesting female presence on the boat. That contrast, combined with the environment and her active participation, gave the show something different from most outdoor channels. We didn’t shy away from the obvious interests of viewers and we labeled our content as entertainment instead of education.

Eventually, we renamed the channel “Hook Line & Chill,” mostly because it just fit and sounded better—and yeah, it had a little humor baked into it.

To keep the content consistent, we started bringing in new people. April, Tara, Mikey, Ashley, Alexis, JoAnna, Maryjane, and others all became part of the journey. By the end of 2019, the channel had grown to over 50,000 subscribers. Word had spread that we offered a genuinely fun activity and the female participants had started contacting me instead of the other way around.

In the years that followed, things continued to grow. We added games, prizes, charity elements, animals, and a variety of gimmicks—learning through trial and error what worked and what didn’t. Some people and activities came and went, while others stuck around long term.

Like anything, it hasn’t all been smooth. There have been ups and downs, but every step has been part of the learning process.

Now, with hundreds of thousands of subscribers, we’re still evolving—still experimenting, still figuring things out as we go.

It’s been a life-changing journey, not just for me, but also for many others. I’m grateful for the experience and hopeful for what’s ahead.

Thank you for your interest, and as always, remember…

A lot can happen between now and never.

-Michael