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If you're a celeb visiting the Jennifer Hudson show, it's almost guaranteed you're going to make your way down the spirit tunnel and possibly go viral. The spirit tunnel's a vibe. In just a few seconds, these videos can reveal a lot about a celeb's personality and persona. Like, do they have rhythm? Are they any good at improv? And how famous are they really?
The answers are sometimes really surprising. I'm Ayesha Harris, host of NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour, and today we're talking about the Jennifer Hudson show's Spirit Tunnel.
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In the spirit of this episode, I feel like I need to give you the proper introduction here, Shamira. Okay. It's Shamira Ibrahim. She's a culture writer, critic. She's a dream. Let me see you do it. Hey, let me see you do it. Hey, hey, Shamira. Aisha, I hope you know that I'm saving that as my ringtone for eternity. Okay.
Look, I got to live up to this episode here. Right, right. Happy to be here as always, Ayesha. It's great to have you, Shamira.
Well, yes, I'm excited for this episode. This is going to be fun. For sure. Yeah. So Jennifer Hudson is a former American Idol contestant, an EGOT winner, and now a daytime talk show host. And her show's gone viral for its video showcasing what has become a behind-the-scenes ritual, the Spirit Tunnel. Basically, as guests make their way to and or from the interview couch, staff members line up and down the hall and sing a song they crafted specifically for them. Now,
According to the lore, it started out as a way to hype up Hudson herself before the tapings, and then eventually it morphed into a way to hype up the guests. People magazine reports that Angela Bassett was the first to get the treatment. Angela Bassett! Angela, Angela Bassett! Angela, Angela!
They're very spirited there. I have to confess that I have probably watched all of maybe a minute or two of the actual Jennifer Hudson show. No shade to her whatsoever. But I've watched maybe over an hour of these videos and they're very short videos. I am obsessed with this. But like, what is it that makes you so fascinated by the spirit tunnel? Absolutely.
I'm the same way, by the way. The longest interview I think I've watched on the Jennifer Hudson show, no disrespect to Jennifer Hudson, is when she had Common on to talk about their relationship. And they did a lot of, so we're in a relationship, huh? And I was like, oh, never mind. Like,
I find it so fascinating because it's kind of like excerpts from a teen movie brought to life. You know what I mean? Like it's that opening, you know, segment for Bring It On, like brought to life for a talk show. Yeah. And like the different pieces that are required to bring it together all indicate different things, right? Like it's unofficially celebrity popularity contest slash it's an indicator of what the celebrity is most famous for because they have
to kind of figure out how to quickly make a song, make it sound charming, make it look like the entire crew is interested in you being there while they're busy running production for a show, right? And you can tell which celebrities are like worth the effort or which celebrities are just a little too early in their celebrity status to merit like
expansive songs. Yes, yes, absolutely. It does feel sort of like a barometer to some extent of like how beloved or how like invested are, you know, the people who are creating these songs, but also we as a culture and who these people are. The first thing we heard at the top of this show was Aaron Pierre. He, of course, as the
They said he was Mufasa in Mufasa, the movie that was sort of like the prequel to The Lion King. He was the voice of Mufasa. But he also, he's been in other things. And it was interesting to see because if I recall correctly, there were people...
people there, but it looked a little sparse. Like sometimes there's more crew involved in this than other ones. It kind of went viral in part because like people were saying, well, it didn't feel like they didn't put their all into it in the same way that they have with others. But like, what are your thoughts on that kind of situation? Yeah, it's funny because I think that meme went viral for two reasons. One, because Aaron Pierre is like a strikingly handsome man with very piercing eyes. The second is like when you point it
you pointed out, right? You know, when you have to hammer it on what is the thing that makes them socially relevant as well as for the press moment they're here for. And because, hey, that's Mufasa. That's the biggest thing that we know him for. I mean, he had a Netflix film that actually garnered him a fair amount of attention. And I do think the Green Lantern announcement happened around that time. But I'm not sure if it's before or after. Nor do I think Eric Pierre, that's Green Lantern, is really much more significant than
That's Mufasa, right? Yeah. So it's just funny for them to have to figure out how to pick a song, make it lyrical enough and not overdo it because they just don't have enough biographical details and have to be like Mufasa from South London. Like what?
what else do we say at this point in his celebrity? Right? Yeah, yeah. I loved it because, like, he seemed so happy to be there. Oh, absolutely. He's giving high fives. The crew also, like, despite the fact that it felt like it was kind of a high bar for them to try and clear in terms of trying to make it relevant, like, they seemed very into it and they were giving it their all. There's little ad-libs. They're having fun. Right. But in
That is kind of a challenge. I have to say another example that felt even stranger to me was Alfonso Ribeiro. Did you watch this one? Have you seen this one? I did see this one. And what blew me away was that he did not do Tom Jones.
Well, that was the thing. You would have thought that they would have done something to It's Not Unusual because it is a pattern. You know, oftentimes they will take a song that already exists and they will, you know, change the lyrics. They did that for Shamar Moore. They did, like, Destiny's Child Survivor for his song. Chris Perfetti from Abbott Elementary. They did Black and Yellow. Like, Bellamy Young from Scandal. Like, they did Forever Young. Bellamy!
They will do that. But then Alfonso doesn't get something to the tune of it's not unusual. And he also just seems like not that happy to be there. I don't know. I feel like there have to be two options to that. Yeah. One is, Aisha, I fear that we may be washed. And the classic Fresh Prince Tom Jones reference is too dated for the youth, which I fear is not the case.
I don't think that's it. Or the second is that Alfonso explicitly told them, I'm not doing the dance. That's true. I feel like it has to be one of the two. Yeah. I feel like it's probably the latter because Fresh Prince, that is kind of, even despite, you know, it being 30 plus years old now, like that's what he's known for. If you know him for anything, it's for the, it's not unusual dance. So I think the second suggestion seems most likely, especially because he ends it kind of aggressive. He's like, Oh, cut. Cut.
The vibes are off. It really only works if the celebrity is willing to ham it up, right? Yes, yes. And, I mean, let's talk about that because I feel like there are two parts to this, right? It's, like, what the staff and crew put into it beforehand, but it's also, like, you got to give something. This is kind of like a twist on the Soul Train line, right? It's, like, you are at this point expected to walk, not just walk down, but, like, really get into it and interact with the others. Yeah.
I feel like the ones where the synergy is all together, where you have both the crew, they're putting their all into the lyrics or they're into the performance, and then you have the people giving it back. I feel like that synergy often comes when you've got an actual songwriter musician coming into the mix. So like Money Long. First of all, she gets a whole song with a full verse and a chorus. Can we actually hear a little bit of that? Nobody loves Money Long.
We do, can't even deny it. Other shows may try it. When she got J-Pers, we ain't lyin', lyin'.
Right? And, like, she's a songwriter. She's written for, like, Rihanna, Fifth Harmony. She's a singer as well. She gets a lot. And even at one point, one crew member gets in a little soulful ad-lib. Right. And it's fun. You also see that with, like, Kelly Rowland. For hers, they incorporated motivation, one of her biggest songs. Kelly's at the happy place. She's so fly. She's got motivation and you know why. She's a child of destiny. Yeah, that's right.
That synergy seems to me, that's like sort of one of the patterns I've noticed is if you got like an actual musician, it feels like they might feel as though they have to up their game, you know? Right. I definitely see that. I also see that it gets into like very traditional camp counselor sing-along vibes where there's like a handful in every single lineup that are like all
in on the lyrics. Like you can tell they're the ones that wrote it, right? You know? Yes. And then the others who are like, oh, I've got this line here, so I'm going to sing up right now, right? And then I'm going to fade into the background. So you get a little bit of that. I think those are the opportunities where they flex like their inner musical theater capability. Yes, yes. But it gives them that opportunity to do that. And we should note, like, since this has become such a viral sensation, the Jennifer Hudson show has really leaned into this. And
And, you know, they've talked about how it came to be. And, you know, of course, it was Black people in the staff who came up with this idea as a way to just, like, make it fun. It kind of has morphed into, depending on the guest, of course, but, like, it's morphed into more extensive, not just stomping and clapping, but, like, actual, sometimes even harmonizing, which is cool. Right. I mean, look at the one for Michelle Obama. Like, I would hate to be the guest who had to be interviewed after Michelle Obama, like,
Like, are you kidding me? We got Michelle Obama. The happy place, we got Michelle. The happy place, we got Michelle. The entire staff and crew came out and did a cover of Stevie Wonder's I Wish. Yeah, it's so interesting to see the way that works. Like, I thought it was really interesting that, like, Regina Hall, they went kind of all out. Regina's here, a tunnel at the house.
They, like, shouted out the scary movie franchise, The Best Man. They shouted out, like, her specific movies. And you notice, like, a lot of these actors, they're not getting that specific treatment. But, like, she was special. I love that video in part because, like, she looks a little bit embarrassed. Like, she's like, oh, the...
Which is like, again, it goes back to like there's the performance that the crew is giving and the performance that everyone else is giving. Right. I also noticed like, I don't know if you've noticed this either, but there's certain people of a certain age, certain Black men of a certain age where I'm looking at them and I'm like, oh, this is how you dance at the weddings. This is how you get down. Johnny Gill. Do you remember the Johnny Gill one? I don't remember off the top of my head, but I can already imagine it. Yeah.
Johnny Gill, what's the deal? Johnny Gill, how you feel? So yeah, Johnny Gill is basically dressed like an ESPN sportscaster in this very bright suit. And then he's grooving down the hall. And he's kind of dancing like a cat daddy. I'm not going to lie. I was just like, oh. Okay, Johnny Gill, look at you.
It's funny how like different celebs become their own version of a showman. You know what I mean? Yes, absolutely. I think there's a little bit of a, depending on the celebrity, there's a script, right? It's like some of them will be like, oh, I'm surprised that this has happened. Like the initial moment of like shock, like, oh, what is this? And then like, oh, I'm going to get into it. But then other times it's like, you know, you can tell that there are some people who like this is the most embarrassing moment of their lives. It's like who's game and who's not.
Right. I do have some boots on the ground reporting, if I may share. Yes. Oh, please do. I do know of someone who was a guest on the Jennifer Hudson show, and I'll protect their anonymity. But what they told me is that you're not necessarily communicated when the spirit tunnel is about to happen. So you're just like...
Getting ready in the green room, right? Yeah. So I think for some of them, they think, oh, I'm going to be the odd one out because I just have all this like lingering time. And that's why we see the genuinely shocked reactions from people where they're like, oh, wait, no, it is happening.
Oh, that's so funny. Okay. Because I thought that was maybe a little too performative. Because if you're going to... At this point, wouldn't you know that if you're going... Exactly. I would think you would expect it, right? Yeah. But I do think some of them have so much downtime that I think in their heads they're like, oh, it must just not be for me. You know what I mean? Yeah, that's very true. I guess my other question for you is just like, why do you think that of the show, why this is the thing that has...
struck a chord, generally speaking. Because, I don't know, I guess this is kind of like J-Hud's carpool karaoke or one of the, like, this is the thing. But, like, why? Why? Why is this the thing? It's so fascinating that you make the parallel to carpool karaoke. Because one thing I will say about carpool karaoke is that
It's supposed to indicate something about the interest of the guest, right? Because usually they end up lip syncing or doing karaoke to a song we would not expect from them and it indicates their taste. With this, it's like weird magnifying glass of like the current performative lens of celebrities, right? We have them do gimmicks, right? We have them eat...
hot wings while they talk about their life stories. And it's like this weird encapsulation of like the ways we can algorithmically add a hierarchy to celebrity because in like a 10 second clip, we can see how many people are showing up, how quickly, you know, they have however many cultural references that we want to add, how they participate in celebrity as a celebrity themselves, whether they're going to be really game for it, whether they'll be reluctant, whether they're turned off by the experience. And like, it's just like a really great 15 second way to artificially rank people.
You know, as well as get a sense of people's like sense of musicality, right? Like for all the leftover glee lovers, it's like, oh, how quickly can we make a song in 30 seconds or less? Like in my head, there's an SNL sketch of like some poor intern who is just trapped in a closet writing melody after melody, day after day, begging to be free. You know what I mean?
Well, that was going to be my follow-up question is like, is this something that you would find enjoyable to be able to do at your job? Because like, look, they put together like a whole thing where they have the people who started this and some of the people who are involved on the staff who are creating these ideas. They seem very into it. But like, I can't imagine that every single person is that excited to do it.
All the time. I don't know. I'll put it like this. Yeah. You know, in college, I was a college tour guide for extra money. One of several jobs I took on, right? And I think the first two weeks of being a college tour guide where I could enthrall parents with like random fun facts of my school's campus, right? It was fun to be able to hit the same beats, get the same magical reaction every time. By like month two, I was like...
here's this random trivia fact that I'm sure you know or don't know. Oh, you don't know how great. Let's move on to the next thing. Like, I have a feeling that like the novelty has kind of
like lost a little bit of its shine after like being the most on-demand thing from their program like they're also running the production of a show right so I'm sure they have other things to do look I'm a former theater kid nerd and I also went through a phase throughout middle school and high school where I would do this exact thing I would make up songs to like the lyrics of popular song like ask me off offline about a song I made up to the the tune of Maya's Case of the Axe like that I
That's what I did. So, like, would I enjoy this? Probably. And I also, like, I can imagine that for a certain type of person, the demands of putting on a show, this is kind of like a way to let loose a bit. If you've watched enough of them, you see the same people. You notice them on the sidelines. And then you see, like, the ones who are, like, really, really into it. You see the ones who, like, they're clearly into it, but they're not.
It might not be quite on the beat, but that's okay. They're there. It's happy. And I really, like, I just, I do hope that, like, everyone who does appear on screen feels as though, like, they're not feeling like they have to do it, you know? It seems fun. And I've also seen people commenting, like, oh, my God, I would hate for this to be a part of my job. And I'm like, well, you know.
I don't want to be presumptive. Like I said, for me, I definitely would probably by month two be over it. But like you said, I can see a specific personality that really loves it. What I selfishly, selfishly would love to see is someone somehow like pierce through it in a way. Like I can see like a Nathan Fielder type, right? Going on Jeff Hudson and like doing an elaborate bit, right?
And they just, like, collapse on the ground and everybody stops singing out of fear. You know? Like, how far can we take the bit of the celebrity being fully in persona for the actual spirit tunnel? You know what I'm saying? Like, let's get really meta with it. Yeah, I mean, I would love to see that as opposed to the people who just kind of run down the hall and are just like, I hate this. And, of course, Noah...
Wiley, perhaps most famously so far, he actually decided not to do it ahead of time. He's like, I don't want to do this, which I, you know what? I respect that. If you feel as though this is not your thing or you don't want to be embarrassed, but just like,
I don't know, sometimes people, that is their worst nightmare is like having attention in that way. And the fact that he was like, I don't want to do this. I wonder how often that happens actually. Personally, me, myself, if I were to watch Usher Raymond roller skate down a spirit tunnel, I would be like, no, thank you. I actually, I don't need to sign up for this competition. Please send me through the side entrance so I can respect it. Yeah.
Usher in them roller skates. Like if he's not wearing roller skates, is he even Usher these days? I don't know. Well, do you have any last thoughts on this Spirit Tunnel and any dream Spirit Tunnel celebrities that you would love to see? I mean, there's so many. I want them to get into, I'm not even thinking about celebrities. I'm thinking about complex rhyme schemes. Like I want them to do a Bone Thugs-N-Harmony song. Like, I don't know how that happens.
But I need to see it happen. Like, I want the most absurd, like, Ciara comes on, let's do the chorus of Like You, make it happen, right? Yes, yes. So that's my ambition. My hope is that they get even more and more out there with their song choices. Oh my goodness, yes. I think that's the only natural progression is for it to get just weird as hell. Yeah.
I would love to see it. So that is our challenge to you, oh great staff of the J-Hud show. Please get weirder. I'm sure we would all love to see that.
Yes. Well, we want to know what is your favorite Spirit Tunnel video. There are so many. We didn't even get close. There's so many. Not even close. Not even. But you can find us at Facebook.com slash PCHH. That brings us to the end of our show. Shamira Ibrahim, thanks so much for being here. And yes, please do make me your ringtone. Yes. Yes.
Looking forward to it. Thanks as always, Ayesha. This episode was produced by Mike Katzeff and edited by Jessica Reedy. Audio engineering was performed by Jimmy Keeley, Robert Rodriguez, and Kwesi Lee. And Hello Come In provides our theme music. Thanks so much for listening to Pop Culture Happy Hour from NPR. I'm Ayesha Harris, and we'll see you all next time.
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