These videos are bringing joy to the internet: Inside 'The Jennifer Hudson Show' Spirit Tunnel
Where is the happiest place on daytime television? At 'The Jennifer Hudson Show,' where your favorite celebrities and public figures smile from ear-to-ear strolling down their personalized Spirit Tunnel, which has captured so many hearts online.
For instance, Aaron Pierre's widely beloved entrance has garnered over 65 million views on TikTok alone. The actor danced down the hallway while the crew gleefully chanted 'Aaron Pierre, That's Mufasa' before he went on stage. He was on the show talking about his rising career and role in "Mufasa" the prequel to 'The Lion King'.
His appearance became a sensation, including being reposted on X and shared by popular blogs like The Shade Room. Creators from around the world posted their spoofs of his catchy two-step. Some fans gushed over Pierre and even edited themselves with the heartthrob actor in the clip.
'He took over. Aaron Pierre's Spirit Tunnel was the first time we actually had to turn off the comments on our social media," Jennifer Hudson recently revealed on her show.
Other guests include Damon Wayans & Damon Wayans Jr., "Squid Games" lead actor Lee Jung-jae, actress Angela Bassett, singer Gwen Stefani, and rapper GloRilla. Recently, actor Coleman Domingo couldn't help but to snap and move his shoulders to the crew's rendition of The Ghost Town DJs' 1996 'My Boo" and legendary singer Usher was captured grooving down the path in his roller skates to a "Yeah" remix.
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"Yeah, we got Usher," the crew sang. "Got us feeling like he's ready to roll."
'It gets them hyped up," executive producer and showrunner Andy Lassner told USA TODAY, adding that it achieves the same feeling as when an athlete walks through their tunnel and are met with cheers.
'I've been doing this almost 40 years in the daytime space, and I got to tell you, I've never seen guests come out so ready and so energetic and so in the right mode to do an interview. It makes them feel welcome, and it makes them feel like the building is very excited to have them here.'
During her sit-down with Hudson in October, GloRilla admitted that she had a ball in the Spirit Tunnel: "They just turned me up!" she said.
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The staff creates the ideas, then executes them to welcome guests
'The Jennifer Hudson Show' is a one-hour national syndicated show that launched in 2022. Since the early stages, Hudson knew that she wanted her program to be a sanctuary for her viewers 'to celebrate, to escape, to have fun, for comfort, for peace,' the EGOT winner said during an interview with Variety at the time. She wanted to create that environment for her guests, too.
The idea for the Spirit Tunnel was birthed in the first season when Hudson came out of her dressing room and was greeted by her staff.
'It made her so happy, and the energy she felt was so infectious that she wanted the show's guests to start feeling what she was feeling,' Lassner explained. 'Then, when guests started coming down the hallway on their way into the studio, they were surprised by our staff doing these Spirit Tunnels. Then it seemed to take on a life of its own beyond anything any of us could have expected.'
In an exclusive look into the creation of the tunnel, the staff members said it started organically with simple clapping and eventually the vibes "leveled up" to full-blown songs. When it started going viral, they would get tags from friends on social media and see comments about them from viewers.
'Every day, we are producing a talk show. That's our primary goal, but what this has created is a whole second job for everyone that gets them just as excited as producing the talk show,' Lassner continued. "Everybody on the staff who's available at the time can participate, and they get to see themselves. They catch their faces in it, and they're not doing it for that reason, but it's just an added bonus."
The entire team collaborates in developing the songs, but the younger staff are at the core of the fun, Lassner said. From interns to production assistants, the group uses the talent's interest to create the lyrics and rehearse the number, sometimes weeks in advance. Because the Spirit Tunnel has become so popular, many guests are asking to come to the show to take part in it.
Lassner noted one memorable guest was former First Lady Michelle Obama, whose Spirit Tunnel also blew up on social media. Her walkthrough has more than one million views on TikTok at the time of publication. She went on to promote her new workbook and her executively produced Netflix series "The Later Daters" in December, but not without taking her moment in the tunnel.
"This staff, the people who work here, have created a whole new viral sensation and a whole new piece of pop culture, and that feels exciting," Lassner said.
Spirit Tunnel has been 'helpful' for viewership
In the general daytime television landscape, interest has declined in recent years amid the rise of social media and podcasts. However, for "The Jennifer Hudson Show," the Spirit Tunnel has helped to draw more eyes to the program.
"Many of us working in the entertainment space are fighting every day to get people's awareness," Lassner said. "So this has been so incredibly helpful for us."
For Hudson, the Spirit Tunnels are a reflection of the "heart of the show" and her staff and crew "have always understood the assignment," she said in a statement.
"To see how people from all over the world have connected with these moments of music and celebration has not only been a source of fulfillment for all of us but a reminder that our mission of bringing joy to people's lives remains just as important as the day we started," the host continued.
Taylor Ardrey is a news reporter for USA TODAY. You can reach her at tardrey@gannett.com.
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