Outstanding Women in Music
Music March 06, 2024
Sisters are doin’ it for themselves!
In honor of International Women’s Day (March 8), we’re putting the spotlight on some of music’s most successful women whose careers have spanned decades and whose music have inspired countless other artists.
Head below to celebrate these amazing women in music who have made memorable appearances on “The Jennifer Hudson Show.”
Kylie Minogue Discusses Bringing the Energy to Her Las Vegas Residency
Kylie Minogue is pop royalty after over 30 years in the business! Kylie is the first female artist to have number one albums in the UK across five decades, and she’s the highest selling Australian-born solo artist of all time, selling over 80 million records worldwide!
Kylie chatted with Jennifer about her most recent Grammy nomination (which resulted in a Grammy win for Best Dance Pop Recording!) and her Las Vegas residency.
“It’s insane,” she said. “It’s a really intimate environment… weirdly, I’m putting more energy into this show than a big show.”
“All the joy and emotion and history in that space, I’m having a real blast,” she said.
Dionne Warwick Reflects on 62 Years in the Music Industry
The legendary Dionne Warwick is a six-time Grammy winner who has sold over 100 million records worldwide, including 75 million singles and 25 million albums.
From being best friends with Luther Vandross to being sampled on a Doja Cat record, Dionne Warwick told Jennifer she had a lot more to achieve as she reflected on 62 years in the music industry.
She credits her long career with “being in the right place in the right time, being around the right people, and having confidence with what my heavenly father gave me.”
The legend also reacted to being recognized with a Kennedy Center Honor. “If I listen to all the people who now know that I’m receiving it, everybody says it’s about damn time,” she coyly said. “It’s quite an honor, that’s for sure. I’m thrilled, I’m very, very excited to be recognized for the 62 years I’ve been in this industry.”
Mariah Carey Reveals Her Operatic Past
Mariah Carey has broken so many records as a recording artist, it’s hard to keep track!
Mariah holds the record for the most Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles by a solo artist, a female songwriter, and female producer. She’s the highest-certified female artist in the US, and her ubiquitous Christmas song, “All I Want for Christmas is You,” broke the record for most streams in a single day on Spotify, with 23.7 million listens in 24 hours.
While on “The Jennifer Hudson Show,” the star opened up about how her mother inspired her musically growing up and shared her songwriting process.
The music star recalled a story of her mother, an opera singer, rehearsing at home. Whenever her mom would miss a note, Mariah would sing the correct note back to her — in Italian!
It wasn’t much longer until Mariah began songwriting, too. “As soon as I knew what it was to write something down, I started writing poetry and just started making little melodies,” she told JHud.
Mariah figured out how to play piano on her own, but said she had “too much melody, too little ability to play,” which led her to collaborate with other musicians.
Patti LaBelle Dishes on Her Friendship with Diana Ross and Prince
Patti LaBelle — or “Mama Patti,” as Jennifer calls her — had a lengthy conversation on the show about love, dating, and working with other iconic female artists, including Diana Ross and Aretha Franklin.
“People thought that we had something against each other, but we never really did,” Patti said of Diana, whom she refers to as “my doll.”
She also discussed her close friendship with Prince. “We have a lot of history,” said Patti. “Prince had me at his studio. He had clothes made for me, because he had that beautiful tailor in the basement of his recording studio,” adding that Prince’s tailors made her four outfits.
“We had fun!” she fondly recalled. “He was so mysterious. No one knew what he was thinking.”
Chaka Khan Explains the Real Meaning of ‘I’m Every Woman’
Chaka Khan, the “Queen of Funk,” stopped by “The Jennifer Hudson Show” to discuss her incredible career, which started at the age of 11!
She spoke of recording the 1978 anthem “I’m Every Woman.” Chaka explained that it “took me a long, long time to find some kind of comfort singing something like, ‘I’m every woman.’”
“I was taking it literally, which is wrong,” she added. “I was reading it from an insecure place.”
Once she got comfortable singing the tune, Chaka realized that the song was about everyone “collectively” feeling that they are “every woman.”
“[The song is] talking about it in a collective way, a plural way. We are all every woman and it’s all in us.”
“The Jennifer Hudson Show” airs weekdays. Here’s when to watch in your area.
