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USA Today
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Hoda Kotb on wellness company Joy 101 and starting over at 60
Hoda Kotb on wellness company Joy 101 and starting over at 60 A week before Hoda Kotb debuts her wellness company, Joy 101, she's in a haze of unrelenting meetings to secure sponsors, experts and more employees. 'It's stuff you don't think about. 'Who's going to do the frequently asked questions?'' Kotb, 60, says. 'All this stuff that goes into websites and apps and events.' Ahead of her company's launch on May 28 she was 'nervous' but 'ready.' 'I'm hopeful, and I'm also proud that we did something,' she says. 'We're not just talking about it. Something's going to be put out into the world. Is it going to be perfect? I doubt it, but it's going to be really good.' Kotb departed her 'Today' anchor chair on Jan. 10, the same day she bid adieu to 'Today with Hoda & Jenna,' culminations of her decades-long NBC career which began in 1998 at 'Dateline.' Craig Melvin replaced Kotb on NBC's morning news program while Jenna Bush Hager has entertained a revolving door of celebrity guests on 'Today with Jenna & Friends.' Kotb revealed in an interview at the start of a wellness weekend she hosted with 'Today' in October that a whisper nudged her to leave her former posts. 'In different forms, it was saying, 'You're an adventurer,'' she said, adding that she also longed for more time with daughters, Haley Joy, 8, and Hope Catherine, 6. 'It was saying, 'What's this next chapter? It was (asking), have you done it all?'' Kotb first mentioned a desire to get into the wellness space when we'd connected in March of 2024 to talk about her children's book, 'Hope is a Rainbow.' 'I am dreaming about one day starting a kind of, sort of wellness, mind, body, spirit movement sort of thing,' she said timidly with a smile. She'd recently began a breath work practice and had an emotional breakthrough in her office the day prior. 'I laid on the ground with a breath works person on Zoom, and I was blubbering, after five minutes,' she said. 'It's just like a release.' TV host Hoda Kotb gets real about motherhood, mornings and moving on Veteran TV host and author Hoda Kotb is one of USA TODAY's 2025 Women of the Year. After the first session daughter Haley noticed a shift and told Kotb, 'You seem different.' Kotb says, 'They were calling me 'Calm Mom' and laughing.' Kotb says she routinely mediates in the morning and again around 2 p.m. before picking her kids up from school in her cherished minivan. She says she's gained perspective and feels more energized. 'I always was one to exercise my stress away, and that works, to a point,' Kotb says. 'But when you wake up again, the next day, there it is again. 'I got to outrun this. If I don't run, all my stress is going to come get me.' You're constantly like on the run from your stress. And then you're realizing, like, 'Well, what is it? Let's try to unload the stress.'' Hoda Kotb's journey to Joy 101: 'You can be a beginner again at 60' An insatiable curiosity about wellness and a desire to share all she's learned motivated Kotb to start Joy 101, which offers an app and events that aim to enhance the lives of its users, with a tailor-made program. Users can preorder the app, which goes live on June 11 and costs $16.99 for a monthly subscription or $99 for the year. 'Everybody seems really tired, and everybody seems like they've got more than they can carry and there's too much on their plate and it's like, 'Not one more thing!'' Kotb says. 'That's what I even found myself (saying), like, 'There's no more room. I'm tapped out. There's not room to pile one more thing on.' This is designed to take things off your plate.' Hoda Kotb returns to host 'Today' with Jenna Bush Hager: What to know On the app, Kotb provides a daily dose of her optimism and wisdom and greets users with a 21-day course, in which she shares life lessons. Kotb has also curated additional research-backed classes and wellness sessions focused on topics like brain health, breath work, mindfulness, personal growth and sleep. Membership includes two livestreams per month with Kotb and her trusted wellness experts. The first occurs on June 11 with Savannah Guthrie and Bush Hager. Users are also given early access to retreats and events, which Kotb says she's really leaning into. During October's regenerative weekend Kotb shared with attendees that before diving into wellness, she 'felt like I was carrying around a heavy backpack for so long and didn't know it.' During her journey, 'the backpack got emptied and I started feeling lighter and better.' At 60, she said, 'I feel better today than I have in decades.' Kotb says the biggest revelation she's realized 'is that you can be a beginner again at 60.' 'It taught me that the learning process is unending, and it showed me that anyone who says they're stuck in their ways is because they're choosing to be stuck in their ways,' Kotb says. 'You can evolve; you can change. You can see the world totally differently. You could try something brand new and risky. You can say goodbye to something that was the safest and most extraordinary career in the world.' Ready to make a change? 'Stop worrying about the odds' Maybe that feels jarring to anyone who fears change or the unknown. Kotb grew up 'in a home of optimism,' as she put it in 2024. 'When I was playing a basketball game, and we were down 5 points with 15 seconds, (my mom) believed that it was possible to win, and therefore I believed.' Hoda Kotb's favorite question is 'tell me more.' Now she shares what's next. Her breast cancer diagnosis in 2007 minimized things that previously felt scary or overwhelming, and she didn't allow rejection or criticism to hijack her hope. 'I was constantly rejected,' she previously said. 'The guys didn't like me; I didn't get the job. It didn't crush me. I didn't feel devastated. I was like, 'Ohh that's how it goes but also something, I think, good will happen.' 'Stop worrying about the odds,' Kotb says. 'Stop worrying about all that stuff, because if you think about the odds, you'll do nothing, ever.'
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Wynonna Judd Says Spending Time with Her Granddaughter Taught Her 'There Is Life After Death' Following Loss of Mom Naomi
Wynonna Judd is sharing that she's discovered there's "life after death" by spending time with her granddaughter Kaliyah The country singer's mother Naomi Judd died by suicide in 2022 Judd became a grandmother in 2022 and has been raising her daughter Grace Kelley's daughter KaliyahWynonna Judd is finding happiness by spending time with her granddaughter. The country singer, 60, recently appeared on Circle Country and spoke about losing her mom, Naomi Judd, to suicide at the age of 76 on April 30, 2022. During the episode, the musician also shared that bonding with her granddaughter Kaliyah has been a light in the darkness for her. "What do you do with that kind of crap that happens to you? You feel so helpless, and there's a mystery there as to why. So I had to go through that, like you did, right?" Judd said to host Clint Black, whose father also died by suicide. "You kind of had more of a why than I do, because everybody thought she was okay. Everybody thought everything's okay, and it's not okay. You don't know what's going on," she continued. "I was on tour and distracted." Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Judd went on to say that they didn't know how much her mother was struggling because she was a "light to everyone else." But on the inside, she was "crumbling." "And it's just a weird time. This past year, I've learned so much about myself, and now that I'm with my grandbaby 24/7, I'm learning that there is life after death," said Judd of her granddaughter Kaliyah. "And if I can go out on this tour, this is heavy, and I can go out on stage and I can help someone decide to stay instead of leaving, then I've done my job." "And I just know that what we're going through after our parents' death is, I'm now an orphan. I have to decide whether the cup is half full or half empty," she added. Judd became a grandmother after her daughter Grace Kelley welcomed Kaliyah in March 2022. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Wynonna (@wynonnajudd) In January, Judd co-hosted Today with Jenna & Friends and opened up about what life looks like for her as she's been raising her granddaughter. The musician has been caring for her granddaughter after her daughter was arrested multiple times. "I don't have a computer. I don't watch television unless it's planned 'cause I'm raising my 2½-year-old granddaughter, I listen to her," Judd shared on the show at the time. "So I don't really, I do a lot of Instagram." Jenna Bush Hager then asked if Judd watches any kids' TV shows, such as Bluey, with her granddaughter. Judd said that while Kaliyah isn't interested in the animated show, she does like Ms. Rachel, and Judd joked, "I'm about to lose my mind." "Listen, I have three kids switch to — now I like Ms. Rachel, nothing wrong with Ms. Rachel," Bush Hager responded. "I do too. I just can't talk like that. I wish I could be that animated, but I just don't know how," Judd joked, with the two women later agreeing that they like Peppa Pig. Read the original article on People
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Wynonna Judd Says Spending Time with Her Granddaughter Taught Her 'There Is Life After Death' Following Loss of Mom Naomi
Wynonna Judd is sharing that she's discovered there's "life after death" by spending time with her granddaughter Kaliyah The country singer's mother Naomi Judd died by suicide in 2022 Judd became a grandmother in 2022 and has been raising her daughter Grace Kelley's daughter KaliyahWynonna Judd is finding happiness by spending time with her granddaughter. The country singer, 60, recently appeared on Circle Country and spoke about losing her mom, Naomi Judd, to suicide at the age of 76 on April 30, 2022. During the episode, the musician also shared that bonding with her granddaughter Kaliyah has been a light in the darkness for her. "What do you do with that kind of crap that happens to you? You feel so helpless, and there's a mystery there as to why. So I had to go through that, like you did, right?" Judd said to host Clint Black, whose father also died by suicide. "You kind of had more of a why than I do, because everybody thought she was okay. Everybody thought everything's okay, and it's not okay. You don't know what's going on," she continued. "I was on tour and distracted." Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Judd went on to say that they didn't know how much her mother was struggling because she was a "light to everyone else." But on the inside, she was "crumbling." "And it's just a weird time. This past year, I've learned so much about myself, and now that I'm with my grandbaby 24/7, I'm learning that there is life after death," said Judd of her granddaughter Kaliyah. "And if I can go out on this tour, this is heavy, and I can go out on stage and I can help someone decide to stay instead of leaving, then I've done my job." "And I just know that what we're going through after our parents' death is, I'm now an orphan. I have to decide whether the cup is half full or half empty," she added. Judd became a grandmother after her daughter Grace Kelley welcomed Kaliyah in March 2022. In January, Judd co-hosted Today with Jenna & Friends and opened up about what life looks like for her as she's been raising her granddaughter. The musician has been caring for her granddaughter after her daughter was arrested multiple times. "I don't have a computer. I don't watch television unless it's planned 'cause I'm raising my 2½-year-old granddaughter, I listen to her," Judd shared on the show at the time. "So I don't really, I do a lot of Instagram." Jenna Bush Hager then asked if Judd watches any kids' TV shows, such as Bluey, with her granddaughter. Judd said that while Kaliyah isn't interested in the animated show, she does like Ms. Rachel, and Judd joked, "I'm about to lose my mind." "Listen, I have three kids switch to — now I like Ms. Rachel, nothing wrong with Ms. Rachel," Bush Hager responded. "I do too. I just can't talk like that. I wish I could be that animated, but I just don't know how," Judd joked, with the two women later agreeing that they like Peppa Pig. Read the original article on People
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
See Photos of Sheinelle Jones' Family, Including Late Husband Uche Ojeh and Their 3 Kids
Over the course of her 10 years as part of the Today show family, viewers have fallen in love with Sheinelle Jones' bright smile and bubbly personality. Jones first joined the morning show back in 2014 and has been a constant across all of Today's programming, co-hosting 3rd Hour of Today alongside Al Roker, Craig Melvin and Dylan Dreyer, as well as filling in as co-anchor for Today and guest co-hosting Today with Hoda & Jenna (now dubbed Today with Jenna & Friends). Off-camera, the 46-year-old is a doting mother to three children — Kayin, 15 and twins Clara and Uche, 12 — with husband Uche Ojeh, whom she married in 2007. On May 23, Jones' Today co-hosts shared that Ojeh had died after several months of treatment for glioblastoma, a brain cancer. Jones and Ojeh first met at Northwestern University in the '90s when Jones, then a freshman, offered to give Ojeh, a high school senior, a tour of the campus. Eight years later, the couple got engaged on that very campus in the middle of a rainstorm. They tied the knot on Sept. 2, 2007 in Jones' hometown of Philadelphia. They later welcomed their children, son Kayin, and fraternal twins Clara and Uche. Below, see photos of Sheinelle Jones with her family. The couple cleaned up nicely while attending a friend's wedding at the New York Public Library in 2022. The two met at Northwestern University even before he was enrolled as a student; as she recalled, 'I was a fake tour guide ... I was just walking to class. [I was like, 'Are you guys lost?' And] I told him I would take him around because he was cute." Jones and Ojeh (with their two boys) attended a family wedding in Italy in 2019. Jones, Uche and their three kids had a cozy moment in this 2023 selfie around the holidays. "Happy Father's Day! ❤️" Jones simply captioned this sweet photo of Ojeh with their kids. In 2023, she shared a reel honoring all that Ojeh did for their family, from coaching soccer to cheering at recitals to sharing his heritage with the kids. "Always to the beat of your own drum," she wrote on the video. "Happy Father's Day Uche." The Today anchor looked happy next to her husband at Lincoln Center for a concert in June 2022. This 2020 family photo was posted to Jones' account around the holidays. Jones often touts her family's accomplishments on her social media accounts, including this one from 2023 where she celebrated "the Uches" for their big wins, her son for winning a soccer tournament and Dad for completing a triathalon. A new assignment hosting NBC's Wild Child had Jones reminiscing about their honeymoon. "15 years ago today …. we were on our honeymoon, and Uche somehow pulled me away from the beach and before I knew it, I was riding on elephants at sunset and feeding a baby cheetah at an endangered species sanctuary in South Africa…. ☺️," she wrote in 2022. Family time was always a priority for the two, as evidenced by this shot she shared from a one-night trip to celebrate Ojeh's brother's 40th birthday. "I remember going to his high school graduation party when Uche and I were dating! Now, we're all at a dinner table with spouses," she wrote. "Time flies. Family time is the best time, even if it's just for one night." The two were snapped on the Today Show plaza in 2019 looking coordinated in blue and white. Jones and Uche had a fun night out with some of the Today show family while attending the wedding of Al Roker and Debbie Roberts' daughter, Courtney in 2021. A baby baptism made Jones dig into her archives and pull out this gem. "I couldn't let another day go by without noting a beautiful moment with our friends Christina and Dan and their daughter Macy's baptism. ❤️ " she began. "Uche & I looked at Macy and immediately thought of our own kids' baby dedications. Our children all wore native Nigerian wear ... I had the best time looking at these 'outtakes' from those early days! ☺️ Having 3 under 3 was an adventure for sure. ❤️" Jones never missed an opportunity to celebrate her man. "Guess what today is? Apparently it's National Spouse Day. The truth is, our days are busy and if we're not careful - all of our conversation can easily be 'transactional'… about who goes where, and when, etc." she wrote in 2022. "So it's nice to push a pause button and tell the person you love that you appreciate them. — 'You caught my eye when I was 19 years old …. and here we are.'❤️ Happy National Spouse Day! 🥂" On May 23, Jones shared that her husband Uche Ojeh had died following a glioblastoma diagnosis. She had been absent from Today since mid-December, in order to spend time with her family during his illness. TKTKTK ADD? In 2023, she commemorated their happy marriage with a heartfelt series of photos looking back at their early days at Northwestern, raising babies, moving to New York and much more. Read the original article on People
Time of India
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
No contract, no problem? Erin Andrews drops bombshell on career-defining moment
Erin Andrews is opening up about the moments that shaped her career and the support that helped her shine. (Getty Images) Erin Andrews , renowned for her tenure at FOX Sports , is charting a new course in her career. Following the conclusion of her contract after Super Bowl LIX in February 2025, Andrews has been exploring opportunities that align with her personal passions and professional aspirations. Erin Andrews aims for closer connections through a fresh podcast format One significant development is the evolution of Erin Andrews podcast, Calm Down with Erin & Charissa, co-hosted with Charissa Thompson. The duo has announced plans to introduce their husbands, Jarret Stoll and Steven Cundari, into the podcast, adding a fresh and intimate dynamic to their conversations. This shift reflects Andrews' commitment to authenticity and deeper audience engagement. Beyond the podcast realm, Andrews is actively involved in initiatives that support and empower women in sports . Her participation in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers ' "She is Football" weekend underscores her dedication to fostering inclusivity and providing platforms for women in the sports industry. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 3 Reasons to Plug This Into Your Home Today elecTrick - Save upto 80% on Power Bill Learn More Undo In addition to these ventures, Andrews has made appearances on various media platforms, including the daytime talk show Today with Jenna & Friends. Her guest spot on the show highlights her versatility and appeal beyond sports broadcasting , allowing her to connect with a broader audience. In the early 2000s, Andrews was fresh off her role as a reporter for the Tampa Bay Lightning. Having developed a strong foundation in hockey coverage, she knew exactly where she wanted to go next. 'I wanted to try to be on ESPN because I knew that they had the hockey coverage for the playoffs, and I was good at it, and I was coming from that,' Andrews revealed. Erin Andrews has never hidden her appreciation for what FOX Sports brought to her career. In a recent episode of her Calm Down podcast , she expressed deep gratitude for the network, acknowledging the role it played in helping her evolve both professionally and personally. 'I think when I went to FOX, I was really able to show who I was. I remember somebody telling me, We want to see you smile and having fun with the players. We want your personality to come out.' For Erin, that support made all the difference in turning her into the confident and relatable figure fans came to know and love. Also read: "I panic, I sweat": Erin Andrews recalls heat-packed pressure sideline moments with Bill Belichick As Andrews navigates this transitional phase, she continues to embrace opportunities that resonate with her values and expertise, signaling a dynamic and multifaceted future ahead.
