"Nobody knows your potential the way you do": Jennifer Hudson looks back at 2004 American Idol elimination

Former American Idol contestant Jennifer Hudson recently reflected on her elimination from the show 20 years ago. The 42-year-old singer-actress took to X on Sunday, April 21, 2024, to share the clip of her getting eliminated with the caption:

"On this day in 2004, I was eliminated from American Idol! But God turned it around for my good! From Idol to EGOT baby !!! 20 years later, and now back on TV with my own show. Never give up on your dreams, yal! If I can do it, so can u! If it’s not worth working hard for, it’s not worth it at all ! Remember nobody knows your potential the way you do. Just keep the faith, keep believing, and keep going!!!"

Hudson was part of the third season of American Idol (2004). As a fan-favorite, her exit from the show was unexpected, to say the least. In the X clip, then-host Ryan Seacrest also added, she was going home despite getting the highest votes earlier in the show. The singer was placed 7th on the show.

The elimination made national news, with many criticizing the show, including music legend Elton John, calling it racist.

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All three American Idol season 3 judges have since commented on Jennifer Hudson's elimination

Since her elimination, Jennifer Husdon has continued singing. She released her name-sake debut studio album in 2008. It peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 and also won the best R&B album at the 51st Annual Grammy Awards. Her second and third albums, I Remember Me (2011) and JHUD (2014), both peaked in the top ten on the Billboard 200.

Hudson then made her acting debut in the movie Dreamgirls, released in 2006. The Spotlight singer's work as Effie White in the musical earned her the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the youngest African-American to do so. In 2022, the Chicago native began hosting her talk show, The Jennifer Hudson Show.

All three American Idol season 3 judges, Paula Abdul, Randy Jackson, and Simon Cowell, have commented on Hudson's elimination.

Back in March 2023, Abdul, who appeared on Hudson's show, recalled the moment, stating:

"When you were eliminated, it was like the whole world was p*ssed. I'm sure they come up to you, I mean, people still talk to me about, 'God, that night Jennifer Hudson was eliminated.' I go, 'I know!'"

Paula's fellow judge, Randy, expressed in an April 2022 interview with Entertainment Tonight that "we missed a little bit on Jennifer Hudson, even though she’s gone on to do well."

The multi-talented actress made her Broadway debut in 2015 with The Color Purple. Her work was met with positive reviews and would earn her a second career Grammy. Jennifer Hudson has acted in movies and TV shows like S*x and the City, The Secret Life of Bees, Smash, and Respect.

In September 2022, when Simon Cowell appeared on Hudson's show, he remarked that her song choice might have led to her elimination in 2004. The songstress performed Barry Manilow's 1976 single Weekend in New England, which led to her exit from the program.

"It (Barry Manilow Week) wasn't my idea! And I remember thinking, 'This is not a great song.' Wasn't your fault. And then, of course, what happened, happened," Simon recalled.

Jennifer Hudson's success didn't stop with her acting and singing skills. In September 2021, she won a Daytime Emmy Award. Her work as the executive producer for Baba Yaga, an interactive fairytale, won her the Outstanding Interactive Media for a Daytime Program award.

In 2022, she received her Tony for Best Musical for her work as producer on A Strange Loop, officially making her the one of seventeen EGOT winners. EGOT winner refers to those who have won each of the Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony awards.