Jennifer Hudson

Biography of Jennifer Hudson

Jennifer Kate Hudson was born on September 12, 1981 in Chicago. She is an American singer and actress who has received the Oscar and Golden Globe film awards, as well as the Grammy music award and the Tony Award for theater, among others. She is one of the few artists to have received all four major entertainment industry awards (EGOT).

Hudson graduated from Dunbar Vocational Career Academy in 1999. She competed in the American Idol competition in Atlanta in 2004, where she placed seventh. She sang the song The Future Ain't What It Used to Be in a duet with Meat Loaf, which is featured on the album Bat out of Hell III: The Monster Is Loose. In November 2006 she signed a recording contract with the music label Arista Records.

In the drama film Dreamgirls (2006), she took on the role of Effie Melody White, which she played alongside Jamie Foxx and Beyoncé Knowles. She also sang numerous songs on the soundtrack, such as Love You I Do and I Am Telling You (I'm Not Going). For her role in Dreamgirls, Hudson won the 2006 National Board of Review Award, the New York Film Critics Circle Award, the Satellite Award, and the 2007 Academy Award and Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress. She also received the 2006 ShoWest Award for Female Star of Tomorrow, the Hollywood Life Award and the Washington, DC Film Critics Association Award in two categories. At the 2007 Oscars, she performed a medley with Anika Noni Rose and Beyoncé Knowles.

In the comedy film Sex and the City (2008), Hudson played the role of Carrie Bradshaw's (Sarah Jessica Parker) assistant. In the crime drama Winged Creatures, which followed its release in 2008, she took on a role alongside Kate Beckinsale, Dakota Fanning and Forest Whitaker.

In the fall of 2008, Hudson's first solo album was released. The first single, Spotlight, was co-recorded with Ne-Yo and Stargate and released in June 2008. Among others, Akon, R. Kelly, John Legend, T-Pain and Timbaland took part in the recording.

On February 1, 2009, Jennifer Hudson sang the national anthem at Super Bowl XLIII. This was her first public appearance after the crime against her family. At the 51st Grammy Awards on February 8, 2009 in Los Angeles, she received the Grammy for Best R&B Album.

In June 2009, it was announced that Hudson and her boyfriend, professional wrestler David Otunga, were expecting a child. At the request of the Jackson family, on July 7, 2009, Jennifer Hudson, eight months pregnant, sang a rendition of the song Will You Be There, ending with spoken quotes from the deceased, at the funeral service for Michael Jackson at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. In August 2009 their child, a boy, was born.

At the 54th Grammy Awards on February 12, 2012, the singer performed in honor of Whitney Houston, who died in Los Angeles the previous day. On February 3, 2013, she sang the song America the Beautiful with students from Sandy Hook Elementary School as part of Super Bowl XLVII.

On November 13, 2013, she received star number 2512 on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. At the 87th Academy Awards, after honoring the actors who died last year, she sang the song I can't let go, which comes from one of her appearances on the TV series Smash. At Aretha Franklin's funeral service on August 31, 2018, she dedicated a soulful tribute to her. In 2021 she played Franklin in the film Respect.

Hudson received an Emmy Award for producing Baba Yaga in 2021 and a Tony Award for producing A Strange Loop in 2022. She was the 17th artist to complete the EGOT

On October 24, 2008, Hudson's mother, brother and nephew were murdered. The trial of Hudson's sister's former husband, who was charged with murder, began in April 2012. He was found guilty in May 2012. The perpetrator was sentenced to three life sentences for murder plus 120 years in prison for kidnapping, burglary and possession of a stolen vehicle.