Jennifer Hudson wears Bodysuit and Earrings Acne Studios. Hat Adrienne Landau. Belt Stylist’s Own. Gloves Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello. Tights Wolford. Shoes Gianvito Rossi.
After 20 years of navigating the highs and lows of stardom, Jennifer Hudson is finding her happy place, or at least trying to. It’s not easy when, as the host of The Jennifer Hudson Show, she maintains one of the most grueling schedules in show business. But in true JHud style, she’s approaching it with the same spirit and resolve that’s defined her since her breakthrough on American Idol. As she settles in for some R&R ahead of the fourth season of her daytime talk show (more spirit tunnels!), the 44-year-old Chicagoan tells her fellow EGOT winner Viola Davis how she stays blessed and motivated.
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MONDAY 2 PM JULY 14, 2025 CHICAGO
JENNIFER HUDSON: Hello!
VIOLA DAVIS: Hello. Where are you?
HUDSON: I’m at home in Chicago. Praise god.
DAVIS: [Laughs] Is that what you do every time you finish recording? You head home?
HUDSON: I try, but I rarely get home, so that is the vacation to me. How are you?
DAVIS: I’m doing good. I’m at home, too, but I’m in L.A., girl.
HUDSON: Nice.
DAVIS: The good thing is, I still feel like I’m hiding.
HUDSON: You know what? You got to hide because L.A. represents work to me. Going to Chicago, I get to decompress and just do nothing, which is what I’m doing right now. And I love it.
DAVIS: Absolutely. God has blessed me with my life, and I feel so incredibly grateful. But I’m always intrigued as to how people see the view from the top.
HUDSON: I feel like sometimes we’re not allowed to say we’re tired because people think we’re ungrateful. It’s like, “No, no, no. I appreciate what I do.” But sometimes we need a little reset and a little rest. That don’t mean we’re complaining.
DAVIS: Exactly. You know what it is for me, Jennifer? Because I got some years on you now. [Laughs]
HUDSON: Oh, god.
DAVIS: I’m going to be 60 years old this year—
HUDSON: You look good!
DAVIS: For me, it’s a peeling away at what it really means to live a life. The success is wonderful. Then you get to the top, and you’re like, “Wait a minute. Now, god, this ain’t it?” [Laughs]
HUDSON: I’m happy to hear you say that because, the older I get, the less patience I have. And so, I always remind everybody, “Okay, y’all do realize, on American Idol I was 22. I’m 43 now. I ain’t got the same patience that I had back then.”
DAVIS: Yeah.
HUDSON: So no, I’m not going to be bopping around here, there, and there. Hell, I’m tired. I want to sit down. I feel like the older we get, the more important living that life is. People are like, “You get to go here. You get to go there.” Yes. But a lot of times that’s work. I want to be able to stop, smell the roses, and enjoy those spaces and places. I want to sit on the front porch. I want to listen to the birds chirping. You know?
Coat, Top, Earrings, and Gloves Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello.
DAVIS: Yeah. And I look at you, and I look at Sherri Shepherd and Tamron Hall, of course. I look at you sisters, and I’m always wondering what made you decide to do a talk show. See, I’m an introvert. I can’t really talk to people too much. I got about five minutes in me, and then you could see me just shutting down. But you all do such a beautiful job.
HUDSON: Thank you.
DAVIS: So, what was that motivating factor?
HUDSON: It has double meaning for me, at least for my celebrity and artistry and my person. I come from a family, baby, if we ain’t singing you down, we are talking you down. Don’t none of us shut up. Okay? So, it’s just my nature. But what I mean by my celebrity and my artistry is that throughout my career, people have only gotten to know me through singing songs or playing characters. I felt like the talk show gave me space and a place to be just Jennifer, Jenny Kate from the South Side of Chicago. Or Darnell’s daughter, the human and the person.
DAVIS: Mm-hmm.
HUDSON: Also, I love people. If you see me on the street—“Hey, how you doing?”—we going to sit here and chit-chat. And people love to confide in me. I’m a listener, and I’m also inspired by hearing other people’s stories and perspectives. There’s a lot of things I don’t know about, but I get to learn it through my guests, so I’m inspired by all of that.
DAVIS: Oh, that’s beautiful. I’m inspired by that whole idea of sitting down and asking questions, but I took that Myers-Briggs personality test, and I’m the mediator, meaning that I’m usually the person that doesn’t like small talk.
HUDSON: Ah, okay.
DAVIS: When I sit down, I’m like, “When you wake up in the morning, what is your life about?” But with the talk show, who thinks of the questions? Are they a mixture of things that you’re intrigued by or want to know, but also something that the audience and the producers want to know?
HUDSON: It’s a blend of all of those things. Obviously, there’s a pre-interview for every guest, but most of the guests are people I’m intrigued by. When the ball gets to rolling in the interview, you’re in tune with the audience, so you’re going on that journey with them. A lot of times, once the guests come out, they’ll open up in a whole other way that you didn’t expect, which is why it’s important to be present.
DAVIS: Exactly. Can you recall any moment that you’ve had with a guest that just woke you up?
HUDSON: There’s been several moments, but that’s what keeps you intrigued and paying attention. I’m like, “What? That exists?” Or, “That happened?” Or, “This is your lifestyle?” And it’s not in a judging way, but in a way of discovery. I love, love, love perspective.
Coat Dior. Dress Stylist’s Own. Earrings and Bracelet Albright Fashion Library. Tights Wolford. Shoes Isabel Marant.
DAVIS: Absolutely. So my next question is, you finish work. You go to Chicago. What’s your life there? Someone once said to me, you have to find home, meaning the place that brings you peace where you live and your spirit lives.
HUDSON: Yes. But you know, my spirit would be flying around everywhere, child. It’s like my home is within me—every place I go feels like it. But in my perfect world, it’s where I’m sitting right now in Chicago in the residence I call home. But that routine when I’m not working? I have to rediscover those things. It’s like, “Okay, where am I now versus when I left here the last time?” It’s rediscovering yourself. And I’m a sponge. I’m taking from everything and everywhere I’ve been.
DAVIS: Mm-hmm.
HUDSON: It’s like reintroducing yourself to yourself. I love to get up, have my little sip of coffee, and sit here and hear the birds chirping. That’s how I want to start my day. And then I want to set my mind. I love affirmations. What do I want this day to be? And I don’t like no day where I can’t achieve something. But right now, I just want to sit here. To me, that is the definition of a real off-day. Or to have the liberty to say, “You know what? Right now, I’ll do whatever the hell I want.”
DAVIS: [Laughs] Exactly. Jennifer?
HUDSON: Yes, ma’am?
DAVIS: Do you ever have mom guilt?
HUDSON: I think we all do. How old is your daughter at this point? She about the same age as my son.
DAVIS: She just turned 15, Jennifer.
HUDSON: Lord, we in the same boat. My baby about to be 16 next month.
DAVIS: Oh, man. We in it.
HUDSON: Whoo, baby! These teenage years is a whole ’nother realm. But I’m trying to learn how to trust my teachings. I feel like, as parents, we start out making everything perfect for the children and then at some point they want to start venturing out on their own.
DAVIS: They do.
HUDSON: We spend all of these years instilling in them and then at some point we got to fall back and see what they gon’ do.
DAVIS: Yeah, that’s where I’m at right now, too.
HUDSON: Let them learn on their own some, because that’s what’s going to help build character. And you sit up and wonder, “Well, why they so soft?” Well, let them feel it. Let them experience some life on it. So, that’s the phase I’m in right now. And that’s where I feel my guilt a lot of times.
DAVIS: Yeah. You know that Brené Brown is always saying, “If your kid is going through something in their room and the lights are off, don’t turn the lights on. Don’t necessarily say it’s going to be better and problem-solve. Just sit with them and hold them.”
HUDSON: Right.
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DAVIS: That’s hard for me. Especially at 15. I mean, she’s still my puff-puff girl.
HUDSON: Yes. In our minds, they still little. It takes looking at somebody else’s kid that’s around your kid’s age to realize how much older your kid done got. My child is now a junior in high school and starting driver’s ed. I’m like, “Okay, it’s time for you to get a job.”
DAVIS: Yep. I said that to my daughter—“It’s time for you to start thinking about getting a job to pay for those UGG Tasmans that you want.” [Laughs] But Jennifer, it seems like you found a niche for yourself with the talk show. I’m not saying that’s it for you—your life is so expansive—but where do you see it now? I mean, I just saw a documentary on Barbara Walters.
HUDSON: I got to watch that.
DAVIS: I was weeping. She was such a pioneer. But do you have a goal in sight? Or is it just being in the moment and riding this beautiful wave?
HUDSON: When I started, I’m like, “You know what? I’m willing to try this whole experience.” And so, to see how far I’ve come with simply following my heart and doing everything with passion—I said I want 25 seasons. We almost four seasons into that.
DAVIS: That’s it. That’s a goal.
HUDSON: That’s a goal. And if god allows me to get that five, I’m going to come out there singing. [Sings] “Happy place.” But I’m on this journey and just enjoying it. We’re going to take it as we go. But I’ve been blessed to get this far by people allowing me into their homes through the television. So, I hope to continue that journey.
DAVIS: And was it your idea to start the talk show? Or was it something your agent asked you to do?
HUDSON: It was a bit of both. Again, once you get to know me, people see, “Okay, Jennifer’s very talkative.” It’s just a huge part of who I am, and it’s something that I’ve always been open to doing. So, when the opportunity came about, I’m like, “You know what? Let me give it a try.” Speaking to an EGOT—
DAVIS: [Laughs] I’m speaking to an EGOT, too.
HUDSON: The fact that I get to be an EGOT next to you is insane. That’s a bigger honor than having an EGOT. Let me just say, that’s what helped lead me to that. I like to try new things. I been blessed to be able to go from industry to industry to industry, and so long as I continue to lead with my heart and my passion—as the Bible say, “Your gift will make room for you.”
DAVIS: Yeah. Because what we do is just a cosmic carrot to who we’re going to become. Because I grew up in such abject poverty, the big question that I always, always get asked, and I never know how to answer—until lately, it’s becoming more clear—is, “How did you get from there to where you are now?” As if you can sum it up in two sentences. But the word that keeps popping out at me is “curiosity.”
HUDSON: Yes.
DAVIS: God planted in me curiosity. “If you are curious enough, Viola, to see, maybe, just maybe, despite your environment, that you are worth something, there’s something out there for you.”
Jacket Burberry. Dress Stylist’s Own. Earrings Albright Fashion Library. Gloves Lauren Perrin. Belt New York Vintage. Tights Wolford. Shoes Manolo Blahnik.
HUDSON: I totally agree with that. Being open, being curious, being willing and trusting—again, when we out in this world for anyone, people always tell you what you should do, what you can’t do, what you ain’t going to do.
DAVIS: All the time.
HUDSON: I always say, “No one knows your potential the way you do.” So be curious, be open, be willing. As I tell people on The Jennifer Hudson Show, “You will always see me try, and it’s okay to be human. It’s okay to miss.
DAVIS: Absolutely.
HUDSON: Just because it’s not perfect or it’s not according to somebody else’s rule book. It’s okay to find your own way.
DAVIS: Mm-hmm. You take those big swings, and let me tell you something, it is going to lead to some failure, but I always tell my baby, “You never lose. You only win or you learn. That’s it.”
HUDSON: Thank you. I love that. My mother used to always say, “What I love about you, Jenny, is no matter how negative things may be, you always seem to find the positive.” Because if we sit and dwell on those things, we won’t achieve anything.
DAVIS: Boy, I haven’t always been successful at that, Jennifer, but guess what? I’m still here, and I’m still breathing, and I’m still swinging. [Laughs]
HUDSON: Yes. And we all trying to be like you, okay?
DAVIS: Yeah. I’m jealous you’re in Chicago now, girl, because you know that’s my city. I love Chicago.
HUDSON: Do you?
DAVIS: Oh, it’s just the greatest. Best restaurants, best people. I mean, that’s life there.
HUDSON: Yes!
DAVIS: Except for winter. Now, you won’t get me there in the wintertime anymore.
HUDSON: [Laughs] I love all seasons. If it’s winter, please be negative zero. I need a blizzard. See, I like every season to be its season to the fullest. If it’s summer, burn me up. If it’s fall, come on, let the leaves fall. Spring, come on, bring the rain, and let us see some blossom. I want it in its full capacity. And that’s how I want to see my guests, in their full capacity. When they come to the happy place, just know it’s okay to be who you are. We support that. And that’s just how I like to live life.
DAVIS: That’s what I see with your show, girl. It’s just a pleasure talking to you and seeing your beautiful face.
HUDSON: Thank you so much. Viola, I got to say this one thing to you. When Whitney Houston presented me my first Grammy, her presenting it outshined winning the Grammy. So, to have an EGOT is wonderful and all, but to be able to say, “I have an EGOT next to Viola Davis?” Baby. It is such an honor. I have to say that.
DAVIS: Right back at you, sister.
HUDSON: Thank you for all you do.
DAVIS: Thank you. Beautiful talking to you.
HUDSON: You, too. Have a great day.
DAVIS: Bye-bye.
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Hair: Albert Morrison at Mastermind MGMT.
Makeup: Adam Burrell using MAC Cosmetics at Opus Beauty.
Nails: Temeka Jackson using Riya’s Nails at A-Frame Agency.
Prop Styling: Sara King.
Photography Assistant: Joey Abreu.
Fashion Assistant: Isabelle Lange.
Tailor: Albert Bazikyan at SCD Tailors.
Production: Rachel Nagao.
Postproduction: Blythe Cross.
