Jennifer Kate Hudson (born September 12, 1981), also known by her nickname J.Hud, is an American singer, actress, producer, and talk show host. Throughout her career, she has received various accolades for her works in recorded music, film, television, and theater. Hudson became the youngest woman and second African-American woman to receive all four of the major American entertainment awards: Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony (EGOT).[1] She also received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2013.[2] Time named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2020.[3]
Hudson rose to fame in 2004 as a finalist on the third season of American Idol, placing seventh. She made her film debut as Effie White in the musical Dreamgirls (2006), for which she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the youngest African-American to win in a competitive acting category. After signing to Arista Records, Hudson released her self-titled debut studio album in 2008, which was certified Gold in the United States and the United Kingdom, and won the Grammy Award for Best R&B Album.
On July 20, 2021, Hudson did an interview with Oprah Winfrey about her role as Aretha Franklin in the film, Respect.[108] The Aretha Franklin bio-pic, Respect, was directed by Liesl Tommy and was released in August 2021.[109] Hudson's performance earned her the Chairman's Award at the Palm Springs International Film Festival as well as a nomination for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role.[110][111] The film was accompanied by a soundtrack sung entirely by Hudson featuring covers of several of Franklin's songs with one original song for Hudson, "Here I Am (Singing My Way Home)", being released as the soundtracks lead single in June 2021.[112] The song earned Hudson nominations for the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song and the Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media.[113][114] The film's soundtrack received a nomination for the Grammy Award for Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media.[115]
On August 19, 2021, Hudson performed a show at the Apollo Theater called Jennifer Hudson - Live at the Apollo: A Night of Soul.[116]
On August 21, Hudson performed "Nessun Dorma" at We Love NYC: The Homecoming Concert backed by New York Philharmonic in Central Park.[117]
In September 2021, Hudson won a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Interactive Media for a Daytime Program for being an executive producer for Baba Yaga, a 27-minute interactive fairytale story made for Oculus Quest.
