When it comes to daytime TV, Oprah Winfrey is the gold standard.
Now that Jennifer Hudson is jumping onto the daytime scene with her new eponymous talk show—which premieres Sept. 12—she knew to look to the fellow Oscar winner for inspiration.
"You know, Oprah's it," she exclusively said on the Sept. 6 episode of E! News' Daily Pop. "Those shows are embedded in all of us. They're there and they're the blueprint." The Oprah Winfrey Show concluded its 25-year run in 2011.
Though Jennifer—who recently sparked dating rumors with fellow musician Common—has received words of wisdom from the Hollywood icon in the past, she hasn't had the chance to get any advice from Oprah just yet. So Oprah, if you're reading this, Jennifer said, "I'm listening."
Ahead of her upcoming daytime debut, the actress and singer secured her status as an EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony) winner following the 2022 Tony Awards in June. She served as a producer on this year's Best Musical winner A Strange Loop.
But joining the elite list of accomplished artists—which includes John Legend, Whoopi Goldberg and Rita Moreno, among others—doesn't mean she isn't putting any less effort into her new show. As she told Daily Pop, "It's all there from the heart."
"I'm following my heart," the 40-year-old continued. "I love people, I love talking, and so, y'all gonna give me a couch and a camera to talk to, where's it at? Who you want me to talk to?"
She loves chatting with people so much, she joked, "You gonna have to pay me to shut up!"
Hear Jennifer explain why she's the "cool mom" when it comes to her 13-year-old son David Otunga Jr. in the full interview above.
The Jennifer Hudson Show premieres Sept. 12. Check your local listings for showtimes.