J-Hud, Clarkson Joining The Voice

Oscar winner, recording artist, Broadway star and American Idol vet Jennifer Hudson has signed on as a coach for this fall’s Season 13 of the NBC’s The Voice, joining Adam Levine, Blake Shelton and returning coach Miley Cyrus. Variety is also reporting that Kelly Clarkson as been inked as a coach for Season 14.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Hudson is already well versed in the mechanics of The Voice — she recently won her first season as a coach on The Voice UK. “Jennifer is an extraordinary vocal talent and one of the premier voices of our time. She embodies the experience, expertise, positivity and sheer talent that The Voice stands for,” said Paul Telegdy, President of NBC Entertainment Alternative and Reality Group. “Her exceptional skills as a singer and actress have extended to film, television and Broadway, which makes her an incredible addition and a natural fit for our show.” Hudson is repped by CAA, Azoff Music Management and Ziffren Brittenham.

• Clarkson’s announcement comes as something of a surprise, seeing as how a) she was the Season One winner on American Idol in 2002, and b) Clarkson had also been rumored to be under consideration to become a judge on ABC’s upcoming Idol revival, sometime in the 2017-18 season. And yes, Ryan Seacrest is still strongly favored to work out a deal to host Idol. Stay tuned.

According to Variety, “Clarkson had been in long-simmering talks about possibly joining The Voice for an upcoming season. She was approached by the show multiple times in the past and had expressed interest, but had been unable to work its production cycle into her schedule.” Both Clarkson and Blake Shelton are represented by Narvel Blackstock‘s Starstruck Entertainment. Despite some minor technical difficulties, Shelton took great delight in sharing the Hudson, Cyrus and Clarkson news in a video posted to Facebook.