There is nothing hip about the Kentucky Christmas Chorus. In some ways, on TV, it almost seems like a special that could have been from a decade or two ago.

Lexington Singers music director Jefferson Johnson.

But that’s also part of its appeal. Christmas kind of likes timelessness. How many other times a year do you see network TV running specials three and four decades old and a black-and-white movie from 1946? What other songs span the generations as well as Christmas carols?

And the Kentucky Christmas Chorus, which was held at and broadcast around the region from Rupp Arena last night, fits right in with that timeless vibe.

This year, it fit in even through its simplicity. It was just a chorus, an orchestra, a couple of children’s groups and a solid baritone soloist singing those old, familiar carols. Even when conductor Jefferson Johnson introduced the world premier of Johnie Dean’s new medley, Repeat the Sounding Joy, it was actually songs we all know by heart. And when Dean took the stage to sing his arrangement of It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year, it had a familiar vibe.

The Christmas Chorus organizers have brought in celebrity guest soloists from time to time. But the real fun of watching is finding people you know in the audience and, last night, among the children’s chourses from Glendover and Gateway Community Children’s Chorus — Hey! Our friends from church are on TV! Even in this YouTube world, there’s a thrill in that.

And there’s a comfort in seeing the Christmas Chorus every year, 21 years old and still just as timeless.

If you missed it, the Kentucky Christmas Chorus repeats at noon Christmas Day on WKYT-TV 27 and WYMT-TV 57.