Jennifer Hudson

:For the official talk show channel, see Jennifer Hudson Show.
Jennifer Kate Hudson (born: September 12, 1981 [age 42]),https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1617685/ was an American singer, actress, producer, and talk show host. She was a contestant on Season 3 of American Idol.
==About==
She was born in Chicago, Illinois, United States on September 12, 1981. 
She is the third and youngest child of Darnell Donerson and Samuel Simpson. She was raised as a Baptist in Englewood and attended Dunbar Vocational High School, from which she graduated in 1999. She cites Whitney Houston, Aretha Franklin, and Patti LaBelle as her overall biggest influences and inspiration. She has also credited Mariah Carey as being one of her musical "heroes". At age 7 she got her start in performing by singing with the church choir and doing community theater with the help of her late maternal grandmother, Julia. She enrolled at Langston University but she left after a semester due to homesickness and unhappiness with the weather, and registered at Kennedy–King College.
In January 2002, Hudson signed her first recording contract with Righteous Records, a Chicago-based independent record label. She was released from her five-year contract with Righteous Records so that she could appear on American Idol in 2004.
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.https://ew.com/tv/jennifer-hudson-emmy-win-egot-ring/
Hudson's syndicated talk show, The Jennifer Hudson Show, launched on September 12, 2022.https://www.billboard.com/culture/tv-film/jennifer-hudson-show-premiere-date-1235089289/
==American Idol==
She auditioned for the third season of American Idol in Atlanta. She sang "Share Your Love with Me" by Aretha Franklin. All three judges voted "yes", sending her to the next round.
Jennifer's time in Hollywood was not fully televised, but she was shown on the final day of Hollywood Week and although she was not shown singing, was shown comparing her dress to aluminum foil. Despite this, she did enough to advance to the Top 32.
Hudson received the highest number of votes in the "Top 9" after her performance of Elton John's "Circle of Life" on April 6, 2004, but two weeks later, she was eliminated during the "Top 7" show after performing Barry Manilow's, "Weekend in New England". In May 2009, MTV listed Hudson as the sixth greatest contestant in American Idol history and noted her exit was the most shocking of all time.
==History==
Her channel was created on March 5, 2007.
==Personal life==
She began dating James Payton in 1999, when she was 18. They separated in late 2007. Hudson met David Otunga, a professional wrestler in the WWE and a Harvard Law graduate, and the couple became engaged in September 2008. In August 2009, Hudson gave birth to her first child, her son David Daniel Otunga, Jr. In November 2017, Hudson and Otunga had split.https://people.com/music/jennifer-hudson-fiance-david-otunga-split/
On October 24, 2008, Hudson's 57-year-old mother Darnell Donerson and 29-year-old brother Jason were found shot to death inside the Chicago home Donerson shared with Hudson's older sister, Julia. An AMBER Alert was issued for her 7-year-old nephew, Julian King, when Julia reported him missing. Three days later the Federal Bureau of Investigation confirmed a body found on Chicago's West Side was the nephew; an autopsy indicated he had died from "multiple gunshot wounds". Police charged William Balfour, Julia's estranged 27-year-old husband, with three counts of first-degree murder and one count of home invasion. Convicted on all seven counts against him, in July 2012, he was sentenced to three life sentences without the possibility of parole (to be served consecutively), followed by an additional 120 years for his other convictions. Hudson's family created The Hudson-King Foundation for Families of Slain Victims, in honor of the three victims. Hudson and her sister created the Julian D. King Gift Foundation in honor of her nephew. It provides Christmas presents and school supplies to families in need in the Chicago area.
Hudson has been described as a friend of former President Barack Obama, who invited her to appear with him at a fundraiser in Beverly Hills during his first term in May 2009. She also performed at the White House at the "Celebration of Music from the Civil Rights Movement" event.
As of 2011, Hudson resides in Burr Ridge, Illinois, a western suburb of Chicago.
==Trivia==
* Jennifer's elimination was considered one of the most shocking eliminations the show's ever had. All three members of the Bottom 3 the week she was eliminated (Fantasia, Jennifer and LaToya) all had highly praised performances and were generally referred to as the three best singers in the competition. This elimination sparked much controversy. Elton John had called the voting verdict 'incredibly racist'.
* In 2022, Jennifer became the seventeenth person, fifth woman, and first American Idol alum to receive an Academy Award, Tony Award, Emmy Award and Grammy Award (collectively called "EGOT").
* She packed on 20 pounds to play the role of Effie White in Dreamgirls (2006).
* On June 10, 2011, she was rushed to the hospital with severe abdominal pains; was later diagnosed with food poisoning.
* She was in a relationship with maintenance engineer James Peyton between 1999-2007.
* She was cast in the comedy-drama Meet the Browns (2008), but was replaced shortly before filming began.
==Discography==
* Jennifer Hudson (2008)
* I Remember Me (2011)
* JHUD (2014)
== Filmography ==
* Dreamgirls (2006)
* Elmo's Christmas Countdown (2007)
* Sex and the City (2008)
* Winged Creatures (2008)
* The Secret Life of Bees (2008)
* Winnie Mandela (2011)
* The Three Stooges (2012)
* The Inevitable Defeat of Mister & Pete (2013)
* Call Me Crazy: A Five Film (2013)
* Black Nativity (2013)
* Lullaby (2014)
* Chi-Raq (2015)
* Confirmation (2016)
* Sing (2016)
* Hairspray Live! (2016)
* Sandy Wexler (2017)
* Monster (2018)
* Cats (2019)
* Baba Yaga (2020)
* Respect (2021)
* Tell It Like a Woman (2022)
==References==
Category:Music YouTubers
Category:American YouTubers
Category:Users who joined in 2007