The multi-hyphenate opened up to Gayle King about her wide-ranging collection of awards and the nickname that now comes with them
Jennifer Hudson (@IAMJHUD) tells @GayleKing what it means to her to be the youngest female EGOT winner in history: “I’m still processing it…it came as a surprise.”
Watch our full conversation tomorrow on #CBSMornings. pic.twitter.com/R9mjzuCsZp
— CBS Mornings (@CBSMornings) September 8, 2022
Jennifer Hudson has earned a few different nicknames throughout her career, but her latest, “17,” is one she proudly gave to herself.
As J. Hud explained in a Thursday CBS Mornings interview preview with co-host, Gayle King, her new nickname represents the artist being only the 17th person to earn EGOT status, as an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony Award winner. She earned the rare title after the musical A Strange Loop, on which she worked as a producer, won a Tony in June.
“Now I have a charm that says ’17,'” Hudson told King during a preview of her Friday interview. “So when you see 17, that represents the 17th EGOT.”
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During the discussion, Hudson opened up about the moment she walked on stage at the Tony Awards, only to hear the crowd remind her of the extra importance of the victory.
“It came as a surprise,” Hudson said. “I did not fully see it coming. I went there to celebrate the cast for getting 11 nominations, and I don’t feel like I’ve been present. And then when they said, ‘Strange Loop, best musical,’ I was cheering for them. And once we get on the stage, everybody started chanting, ‘EGOT, EGOT,’ and I was like, ‘Wait what?'”
Her newfound EGOT status, Hudson explained, is something she’s “still processing” three months after the win. But becoming the youngest woman to earn the EGOT title is not all that’s on her mind.
CBS Mornings’ interview with the American Idol alum also touches on her upcoming daytime talk show, The Jennifer Hudson Show, which will first air on her Sept. 12 birthday and offer a sneak peek to fans of the multi-hyphenate.
Counting down til my birthday ! In a few days I will be 41 but then again I will always be 17! #EGOT #17 pic.twitter.com/ULJsbA69su
— Jennifer Hudson (@IAMJHUD) September 7, 2022
Hudson posed with her impressive assortment of awards in a new photo and joked on Twitter Wednesday that while her 41st birthday is fast approaching, she’ll “always be 17.” She first posed with her trophies in August when her Tony finally arrived, but it doesn’t hurt to let fans know she’s taking care of them.
To date, Hudson has won two Grammys for her self-titled debut in 2009 and The Color Purple soundtrack in 2017, an Academy Award for 2007’s Dreamgirls, this year’s Tony Award, and a Golden Globe in 2007 for Dreamgirls.
The Jennifer Hudson Show will air five days a week on FOX television stations, with her first guest being her old friend Simon Cowell. Her interview with King airs in full Friday on CBS.
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