‘The Voice’ Coach Jennifer Hudson Lands her Dream Role Playing The Queen Of Soul, Aretha Franklin
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Jennifer Hudson is officially living her best life. The R&B living legend appeared on Ellen to discuss her upcoming role as ‘Shero’, Aretha Franklin. “Its always been my dream to play Aretha, and its actually happening.” We hope there will be enough J. Hud to go around, because the American Idol superstar also signed on to be a coach for The Voice UK.
Handpicked by the Queen of Soul herself, J. Hud is bound for another Oscar. The soulful singer already has a Golden Globe, and a SAG award for her role in Dreamgirls, as best supporting actress. Scott Bernstein (Straight Outta Compton) and music producer Harvey Mason Jr., (who also worked on Dreamgirls) stepped in as producers for the MGM biopic.
This won’t be the first time Hudson has stepped up to fill the soulful legends shoes. J. Hud brought the house down at Aretha’s going home ceremony, and also sang Aretha tributes at the 2011 Grammy Awards and the 2014 BET Awards.
Back in 2016 Hudson told Billboard, “Good news, we’re ready to sign for the movie, we’ve agreed on all the key points. There’s very little left now (to negotiate), very little. They have given me creative control and that’s all I wanted.” Flash forward to 2018, and the ball has finally started rolling on production for the film. Will we get to see J. Hud put on a producer hat as well? We sure hope so — we want to know what goes down at ‘J. Hud Productions’.
There’s even more on the horizon for the former American Idol finalist. Hudson will join vocalist Olly Murs, music mogul Will.I.Am, and showbiz vet Sir Tom Jones for this season of The Voice UK. Hudson talked about her journey across the pond stating, “I’m so happy to be re-joining my coaches at The Voice UK. I’m ready and excited to discover some beautiful voices.”
The longest standing coach of the bunch, Will.I.Am can’t wait to get this voice show on the road stating, “The UK always surprises me with some of the freshest artists and this keeps me coming back for more. By adding trios, we’re raising the bar, so bring it on UK!”
Host, Emma Willis is also excited to hop back on The Voice UK bandwagon expressing, “We nailed it with the panel. You’ve got to get that chemistry. I love Will’s unpredictability, I want Jennifer to be my best mate, Olly is like my little brother and Tom melts my heart.”
The playful banter between the coaches is just an added bonus to the impeccable talent we are exposed to on this show.
However, The Voice UK winners don’t have the best career track record…its the competition show curse. Vocalists Leanne Mitchell, Andrea Begley, Jermain Jackman, Stevie McCrorie and Kevin Simm have all been dropped by their labels. We hope last seasons winner, 18-year-old Ruti Olajugbabe has a different fate. Olajubabe has been working hard in the studio after soaring to number 1 on the iTunes Charts.
When asked about the lack of career longevity for The Voice UK winners Will.I.Am said, “I’ve tried to keep in contact with people who were on my team, and I always ask. They’re really polite. They’re like: ‘I don’t want to bug you, I know you’re busy.” The music mogul continued, “If I was them, I wouldn’t be that guy. I would ring them all the time. I would not be as polite as they are.”
So in the wise words of Will.I.Am don’t ever apologize for going after your dreams! The Voice UK contestants better bring it this season, we can’t WAIT to tune in!
