From Kelly Clarkson to Nick Cannon: Talent Show Celebrities Rule the Talk Show Circuit
Weiss Eubanks/NBCUniversal, Andy Kropa/Invision/AP Reading Time: 4 minutes
Talent shows always showcase some of the most incredible acts from all over the world. Winners take home a big prize after performing in front of millions of viewers. Talent show celebrity judges and hosts are the real winners though since they always get huge opportunities out of the deal. Everyone from Ryan Seacrest to Kelly Clarkson has landed a talk show in the midst of working on talent shows.
Talk shows are really all about strategy. Hosts, producers, and casting directors are always thinking about who they can bring on to generate more viewership. Most of the episodes of these talk shows are pre-taped. If a new program is coming out, a celebrity from that program will make a talk show appearance. The same is the case of new albums, movies, viral videos, and of course, booted talent show contestants.
Good Morning America has set the precedent for hosting guests that were recently involved in talent competitions. Each Dancing with the Stars eliminated contestant gives an exit interview. GMA’s meteorologist Ginger Zee even competed on Season 22 of the show. GMA’s link to Dancing with the Stars is crystal clear. It’s always a race to get the scoop from talent show celebrities. Most talk shows are already connected to talent shows on the same network and always have first dibs at guests.
1. Ryan Seacrest
In 2017, Seacrest joined Kelly Ripa as the permanent co-host of Live with Kelly and Ryan. Seacrest has also been hosting American Idol since 2002. Both shows are now a huge part of ABC’s lineup. Since American Idol made its shift to ABC, Live with Kelly and Ryan has done Live’s American Idol Encore. This allows one contestant from each season the chance to perform again on the daytime talk show. Live with Kelly and Ryan also usually lands the first interview with the American Idol winner each season. Season 19 winner Chayce Beckham and runner up Willie Spence were interviewed virtually by Seacrest and Ripa on the show this year.
2. Kelly Clarkson
Clarkson went from American Idol winner to The Voice coach before landing The Kelly Clarkson Show. Her connections to the two talent competitions have brought so many icons into her talk show realm. This includes former American Idol judges Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson, and Paula Abdul. Clarkson also has had every The Voice coach on her show while filming the Blind Auditions and the other pre-recorded episodes. More recently, Clarkson had Season 14 winner Brynn Cartelli on her talk show to perform her new song.
All day we DREAM about #Kellyoke 😍 pic.twitter.com/YQDQ7nevCc
— The Kelly Clarkson Show (@KellyClarksonTV) October 14, 2021
3. Carson Daly
Before he became The Voice host, Carson Daly started out as a VJ and host of TRL. Talking is literally what he does best. Daly joined The Today Show as a featured anchor in 2013. This year, he gave viewers the inside scoop on Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani’s wedding after serving as the officiant. Like Clarkson, Daly has done segments on The Today Show interviewing The Voice coaches each season.
4. Nick Cannon
Nick Cannon’s new daytime talk show, Nick Cannon, is full of talent show stars. As the host of The Masked Singer, Cannon has been bringing on eliminated contestants from Season 6. It took only a few hours for Cannon to snag an interview with Larry the Cable Guy, the most recently booted contestant. All of these interviews were planned out by Fox and Cannon who is also the executive producer of The Masked Singer.
5. Tyra Banks
Dancing with the Stars host Tyra Banks once had her own talk show, The Tyra Banks Show. It aired from 2005 to 2010, switching from CBS to The CW for the last season. Banks also hosted America’s Next Top Model which eventually aired on The CW in later seasons. Several contestants from America’s Next Top Model appeared in segments on The Tyra Banks Show. Both shows are currently off the air, but Banks has continued to build her empire on and off television.
6. RuPaul
Wait, RuPaul had a talk show? In 1996, the RuPaul’s Drag Race star hosted The RuPaul Show. It ran for 100 episodes and featured Ru’s bestie, Michelle Visage. In 2019, it was announced that RuPaul would be returning to the talk show circuit. The show had a three-week trial run on Fox before it was canceled. RuPaul did interview huge celebrities like Abdul and Adam Lambert during those few episodes. Had the talk show continued, he probably would have invited alums from RuPaul’s Drag Race onto the show.
