It’s hard not to be happy for Jennifer Hudson. Ever since she made her star turn in Dreamgirls (no small feat, considering that the film was clearly positioned to be a breakout role for the already-huge Beyoncé), its been refreshing to watch the ‘round the way sister from Chicago get the accolades and props that are usually reserved for women who fit Hollywood’s narrow definition of “good enough”. And while some big girls felt left behind by the Oscar winner’s massive weight loss, most folks have given Hudson her props for living healthier and for liking the way she looks. Go Jen!

But…yo. We hate those commercials.

Nina Simone’s “Feeling Good” is a timeless standard. A beautiful, lush tune that *usually* makes listeners feel joyful when they hear it. The arrangement for J.Hud’s ads is weak and her screeching vocals are just too annoying for words. Why is she yelling? Hudson has a beautiful voice, but the Weight Watchers’ ads have reduced her to this loud, hollering thing and it isn’t inspiring us to get more fit or to admire her work. It’s just…aggravating.

The point of the commercials is to get us to look at Hudson, say “Wow, she’s fab. I want to get in shape like that, too!” and to run out and join Weight Watchers. But the spots are so grating on the nerves, its more likely that you’ll just get up and run to the kitchen for more Pepsi or popcorn (or both) when Jen starts to hollering. Why did they reduce her to this stereotypically loud Black woman instead of highlighting her newly improved fierceness?

Is it just us? Do you like Hudson’s ads? Or are you also finding yourselves rushing to the mute button when Jenny starts howling for the ‘sun in the sky’?

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92 Comments

  1. I’m very critical of anyone who tries to cover the High Priestess of Soul’s version of the record. Throughout the tine Nina’s version has become the standard.

    I don’t dislike Ms. Hudson’s rendition. It can be a over the top but that just might be her way of singing the song. Some people will like it. Other people won’t. Some will be neutraul.

  2. I could not agree with you more. I actually liked her prior to the WW commercials. They make my skin crawl…WHY IS SHE HOLLERIN’ AT ME? Very annoying, particularly because like you said, she has been reduced to a stereotype. Way to go, Jen!

  3. I thought it was just me! Everytime it comes on I just want to scratch my eyes out and feed them to myself!

    • @fancypants:

      Your comment made to laugh out loud! I haven’t had the pleasure of viewing the commercial, but I will be on the look out for it. However, seeing all the other commercials on tv and in print, I do believe that they have made her the “puppet” into telling black women what to do with regards to weight…which I find appalling and condescending. This could backfire on Jennifer career-wise.

    • I am so tired of hearing those weight watchers commercials with Jennifer Hudson singing , that high pitched song is getting on my last nerve… It is so ANNOYING !!! I have no desire to even try to loose weight when I hear her… It just makes you want to pull your hair out… Do us all a favor and take them off the air !!!!

  4. I don’t like them. And I’m sad that the only time I hear Jennifer Hudson sing or talk now is always about weight loss.

  5. there is nothing wrong with her rendition of the tune; however, there is something wrong with people that go out of their way to FIND something wrong with everything. what is it? do you think you can do better? can’t just let someone have their win without a BUT?
    her voice is great BUT…
    she’s cute BUT…
    she lost weight BUT…
    give the compliment, then shut up before you add a BUT.

    • But, Weight Watchers sucks too!

    • @good lord: LOL @ CAROL
      AND ….. @ Good Lawd — nobody is looking @ Jh & thinking “i can dnothing at ALL wrong with people stating their opinions about this and any other issue BUT (oopsy well whadda ya know there’s THAT WORD AGAIN) the truth is what it is …. TRUTH. and in THIS CASE, JENNIFER HUDSON & THEM GOTDAYUM WEIGHT WATCHER’S COMMERCIALS ARE SICKENING!!!! her commercials get on MY gotdayum nerves AS WELL. i’m tired of seeing her. everytime you turn around she’s on that gotdayum commercial SANGIN’ LOUD …. ~~~> “BELIEVE IN YOURSELFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF” <~~~ and the shytt is LOUD. so, whoever DOESNT LIKE what's being posted in here about JHud's SICKENING WW COMMECIALS, then YOU shut the hell up. Go suck on a "BUT" …..

  6. @good lord when we get to the point where we are not ALLOWED to criticize a person or state our opinion then we are left with a meaningless [perhaps tyrannical] existence.

    • @marais morris: everyone has freedom of speech. but unless being a hater, in general, is your thing, i can’t figure out what benefit you’d get from tearing someone down. perhaps, that makes you feel better about yourself. if so, don’t mind me. carry on. i’ll be over there trying to uplift a nation…

    • yes political correctness, or rather, the DEMAND for it – now expects us never to utter one word that is considered criciticsm lest we offend someone’s poor widdle feewings. sheesh. especially if they are black or fat or whatever “protected” class you want to be in. that said, I HATE JENNIFER HUDSON,, she has a weird low voice, and i swear i will never join weight watchers if she is the spokesman. (ooo sowwy, we cant say spokesman – we have to say “spokesperson”. sheesh!!! she has those weird eyes that are spaced too wide on her face, i hate that warbling gospel kind of soujnd, wailing it is… not singing. i hate when she says “weight watchas” sheesh.. speak english!!! i hate her.. thats all.

  7. Jennifer had been yelling since American Idol. This commerical is nothing new.

    • @Poppy:
      exactly!

      She hasn’t been reduced to a stereotypical anything. Jennifer has a big voice. She is being who she is. The commercials don’t bother me and I’m not one of her fans either. *shrugs* I don’t like the way she pronounces a few words, but it’s not that serious.

  8. I wonder the sizes of the women (including the writer of this article) who do not like this commercial. It sounds like a little hateration going here. Black women need to start uplifting one another and be more concerned with our weight instead of tearing down someone who has decided to take control of her weight issues. By the way, I think she sounds and looks beautiful in the commercials!

  9. I can’t believe you Jamilah for writing such negative remarks about our sistah Jennifer! She is not screeching & hollering! Her stunning new appearance paired with her beautiful voice, celebrates her arrival into mainstream media. She is being showcased in a positive light. Would you prefer for her to mouth off something corny about Weight Watchers food & diet plan? Haters!

  10. Personally, I like the ads and the song – it’s positive and upbeat. I didn’t know this was a Nina Simone original, I’ll have to listen to Nina’s version.

    Personally, Jennifer Hudson’s weight loss is a motivation for me to get my act together in regards to exercise and getting fit.

    The commercials don’t annoy me one bit. I figure we all have some commercials that after we see them for the 50th time, they start to grate on us a bit.

    Maybe that’s the case here?

  11. Jhud has ALWAYS screamed and hollered….that is nothing new!! And yes,the commercial is hard on the ears. She looks great!! But the commercial is a turn off! She is overrated anyway…!

  12. Aw man. Jennifer has been through a lot. She’s lived a life that is so painful and so beautiful and so scary and so amazing at once. I can’t even bring myself to say anything negative at her. She doesn’t deserve it. God bless the woman.

  13. deesaywhatyoumean

    I think she sounds good. now the commercials have been out for quite some time–possibly over a year. Now you want to say how annoying her singing is. Come on–get a freaking life–I can see that the haterade has been passed around to several individuals. 🙁

  14. This article definitely sounds hater-ish.

    • @Satin: I agree. I have to say I enjoy the commercial because the song is one of my favorites. I also enjoy it because Jennifer Hudson is more than excited about her weight loss and she can sing however she wants to celebrate it. I don’t care if she stumbled across the screen singing, “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going” or “Spotlight”. She worked hard for this weight loss and jump in her career!

  15. oh stop using the word hater. what are you in 8th grade? grow the hell up.

    i love watching the commercials bc she does look so good–sorry great–but i hate her singing. it’s annoying. but i also hate the way she speaks so i guess it’s a loss-loss for me.

    i just watch her and her small waistline and it actually motivates me to put DOWN the food.

  16. deesaywhatyoumean

    @ vee. 8th grade, 12th grade, an adult, a child, a baby—the word “Hater” still applies. It is what it is. If you knew what it meant, then you must be in the 8th grade. SMDH!!! Haterade is so prevalent!!! 🙁

  17. The commercial is fine.

    She looks great. She found her proper BMI. Now its time for her to hit the weights! 🙂

  18. I agree with the article….but maybe it’s because I don’t like her voice in general and I adore Nina Simone. Jennifer comes off as stuck up to me, especially after I saw an episode of Oprah Behind the Scenes…..I roll my eyes nearly every time the commercial comes on…..call it hate if you want….but..er uh…I’m tired of this commercial…and Jhud for that matter….

    • @good lord: @Afeni_X: There are hundreds of back-up singers with better voices that this woman. There is just something very “generic” about the way she sounds. Nothing special, except she won a game show. It’s mostly novelty.

  19. Jen always yells when she sings. check out her audition for American Idol…

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chBW2TPX0AA&feature=player_embedded

    It seems like the author only got irritated by her yelling/singing aft she lost weight.

  20. I don’t hear screaming when Jennifer sings. I’ve never bought her music although I do think she is a talented singer. I applaud her for the way she handled the murder of her loved ones and for her healthy weight loss. I think she sounds and looks great!

  21. Here’s a good article about Hudson’s style of pop singing.

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-eskow/christina-aguilera-and-th_b_819979.html

    No ‘hating’ (a cop-out term used by people incapable of debate) about it. A good voice wasted – with an overly melismatic singing style.

  22. Yes, it is just you. Sounds like you don’t like her rendition of the song and as far as her personality. Jennifer Hudson is from the south side of Chicago. Is she supposed to pretend that she is from London like Madonna and Tina Turner with a fake accent to avoid a stereotype? What about authenticity.

    I think this has more to do with you are probably not on your game as far as weight loss and your health and the commercials remind you of that so you are lashing out.

  23. I am so glad that she has embraced a healthier lifestyle. It’s better for her and for her family. Good for her! She is also a positive role model for others.

  24. Drastic weight loss can cause this big surge in happiness and confidence. This happened to me. Of course I congratulate Jennifer Hudson for making healthful changes and inspiring others to do so…but I have to set the TV volume to ‘mute’ whenever her ad comes on. Her “Mm-hmm, you-go-girl” mentality with the too-loud vocals and finger-popping backround music is definitely stereotypical and annoying. And this doesn’t make me a ‘hater’. ‘Hate’ is a pretty strong word!

  25. uhm, she’s always had a powerful voice, why start complaining about it now that she lost weight. thats interesting 🙂

  26. Like #1 songs on the radio, the JHud WW ads are overplayed & no longer appealing…they’re now seriously irritating.

  27. I think the commercial is just fine and people will always try to find “something wrong” when there isn’t. How about being happy that she adopted a healthy lifestyle and she’s overjoyed that she lost the weight that she wanted to lose?

    There are WAY too many people focusing on the negative aspects of everything and “everyone” and it gets annoying as hell just like this article.

  28. SUN IN THE SKYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

    YOU KNOW HOW I FEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLL!

    *everyone starts running for the hills*

    Well if she’s gonna keep up being the model for Weight Watchers, she should TALK more. It’s a commercial, not American Idol. Yeah, you can sing, great, but please, there’s a line between doing and OVERdoing.

  29. I hate, hate, hate those commercials so much I DO INDEED run to the remote and turn them off. Jennifer is in great shape but leave the yelling out of it. Pleeeeeeaaaase!!!!!!!

  30. WTF???? @Jamilah, have you ever listened to a J Hud album? She sounds exactly the same on the commercials… Have heard her latest song “Whare you at”? She really is screaming on that song. While I personally don’t like the song “where you at,” J Hud has always been a loud singer and that’s part of what makes her “Jennifer Hudson.” I agree with the people who have commented that people tend to find something wrong with EVERYTHING. Let’s just be happy for her weight loss and the new money she’s making as the new face of WW. Damn

  31. She sounds lovely. There is definetely a more R&B sound in J-Hud’s version but it doesn’t sound forced or overbearing to me at all. This woman has a powerful voice and that’s what made the world take notice when she belted out “You’re Gonna Love Me” on the big screen. This complaint truly seems a bit nit-picky and unsubstantiated

  32. it’s annoying after you hear it 500 times in an hour even though you spend that hour flipping channels (thankfully i now watch less tv) the commercial in itself is fine but hearing her sing in such a manner so constantly might even get on her own husband’s nerves haha.

    and wow @ “Why did they reduce her to this stereotypically loud Black woman instead of highlighting her newly improved fierceness?” how is she being loud? she’s a singer and she’s singing the way she’s always sang. If she was cackling and yelling when she was not singing but she’s not….the girl gets to flaunt her new look AND her talent…and weight watchers get to flaunt a powerful testimony…at this point they have overdone it but that’s nothing new in our society.

  33. Hate is a strong word, especially in the opinions of those who are calling others haters for not going with the flow! There’s no difference in their arguments because they’re “hating on” someone else. It’s also called opinions, remember we’re all entitled to them, and really need to learn how to respect them and more importantly how to agree to disagree. Don’t let titles/captions dictate your thoughts, they’re no different from TV. My main concern for Jennifer is her health!

  34. I don’t see anything wrong with the way she’s singing. I agree……Jennifer has a way of screaming in many of her songs (that’s just her).

  35. This was my first time viewing this particular WW commercial of hers and I like it compared to the others. As for the loudness, that is her voice, and it is the way she sings but it is a different kind of loud, as in not good. Some of her notes just seem to be her yelling, while being able to hold a note, it’s hard to explain. Though I think she is a very good singer, a vocal coach should tell her whatever pointers about that. I guess when your in the hood and you have a great voice like hers, that loud yelling is what people will praise you for, or make you say “that girl can sing”, lol! But yeah I like her and I also understand what the writer was talking about.

  36. Jennifer Hudson is fabulous. I love the commercials. This song is perfect because she IS feeling good. She may have gotten on weight watchers. Weight watchers isn’t magic, it’s still taking in less calories than you burn. That’s how you lose weight. Anyone who has tried to lose, and lost as little as 10 – 20 pounds knows it’s hard work. It takes dedication. It means driving past Cupcake Royale (I love me some baked goods LOL). She went from double digits to a size 4. A size 4!!! For Black women it seems that being overweight is more acceptable than not and getting in the gym is a foreign concept. IDK. I’m just saying when I go to the gym I see 1 or 2 other Black women (if I’m lucky) out of a gym that may have over 100 people in it. I actually had a nice looking Black man come up to me and tell me it was good to see a “sista” in the gym. So…do hate, she looks and sounds great. 🙂

  37. THANK YOU. Every time it comes on I put on the mute button. Of course we are happy for her but I absolutely HATE that commercial!

  38. Damn, so it’s not just me. I hate the way she says “Go on” at the end of the commercial. She says it like ‘Go-wan’. If you listen you can tell that the director or somebody specifically asked her to say it like that because she goes out of her way to do so. I guess its supposed to make her sound more “mainstream”. Go-wan. lol!

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  40. Thank goodness for this blog – I thought I was the only one who felt their ears were starting to bleed hearing Jennifer’s screech-owl screaming in these WW commercials. Now she has a new one in which she is screaming “I Believe in You and Me”. Awful, just awful. I have to hit the “mute” button every time she’s on television.

  41. The horrific vocals in ALL of these commercials makes me anti-Weight Watchers!!! All she does is screech and scream….then the newest commercial, with the chubby version and the skinny version screaming at the top of their lungs in a very weak attempt at harmony with bad timing, is the worst yet!!!

  42. I don’t think the author is being a hater at all. She looks amazing. However, she over sung the song and butchered a classic, in my opinion. I think if the marketing geniuses at weight watchers really wanted people to go out anbd try their product, they wouldve focused more on her new body and less on her loud singing voice. Its distracting and overpowering and takes your focus away from the main point–her weight loss.

  43. Agree!!! So oversung, and this is coming from a professional recorded voice coach. The audio recording/editors damaged what could have been a good recording. Ouch ouch ouch. But yes, Jennifer looks great. 🙂

  44. This commercial bothers me because I just think of Nina Simone’s version, the one that put the song on the map. Nina Simone was a civil rights activist (listen to her song “Mississipi Goddamn”), and when you hear her recording of “Feeling Good” from the 60s, you get the idea she was singing about the happiness that came from loving herself as a black woman, regardless of how society felt about her. I’m glad J-Hud’s happy, but to make it the theme song for changing your external appearance totally undoes what Nina was saying when she sang it.

  45. There ain’t Shyt wrong w J. Hud. Ya need to think prt of it is cuz she lost prt of her family. Like she said, the look isn’t for pple or for ppl to judge. By the got danm way. She’s the best singer today. Pple is just hating on her. Just because she acts, sings, wrote a book, and a book on recipies,l. So y’all mad. LIKE I SAID, THERE AINT SHYT WRONG W HER. SHE DOING HER THANG. STOP WORRYING BOUT WHAT SHE DOING………. GO HEAD JENNI
    ..

  46. I hate her singing in the WW’s commercials too, so much so that, I actually did a search and found this! Her screaming voice makes me want to kick myself in the face, and then cut my ears off! Ive had enough of this commercial already!

  47. If I have to listen to another one of these SCREAMING commercials for Weight Watchers I’ll just be FAT. I am so sick of Jennifer Hudson’s voice and image on the TV screen I feel like screaming too. Weight Watchers needs a new spokesman!

  48. Mother of god. I was soo damn annoyed by her singing and her commercial that i freaking GOOGLE’D it……And it brought me here.

    There is nothing unique about her voice. She seriously has a typical voice of an overweight black lady who think they can sing. Sure she has lost weight which is awesome….but her voice is still fat and annoying.

    Shut up it makes perfect sense!

  49. Oh my GOD, do I hate that voice and commercial! I really liked her from American idol but now, every time I see her(usually only on the commercial…guess she doesn’t do so good anymore) singing for weight watchers I mute or fast forward. My husband absolutely freaks out at that voice by now!! Hate hate hate it….SOMEBODY MAKE HER STOP,FOR THE LOVE OF GOD!

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  51. please wieghtwatchers take those disgusting screeching jennifer hudson ads off the air. They do no good for your company as far as I am concerned cause when i hear her i hit the mute button so your ad is unheard. you have a tv ad with an average woman talking about her exp with wieghtwatchers she giggles and says i really did it at the end to me that is a much more realistic representation for you and i’m sure probably cheaper than what you must pay jenifer please take her ads off the air

  52. Please make the commercials stop! I’m not fat. I’m not a hater. I am just burned out on her voice for the commercials.

  53. The original rendition of the song is beautiful, just gorgeous. I didn’t know who Jennifer Hudson was. I figured it out and googled it to find out if I was the only one and sure enough — I’m not. And, please, people, someone who disagrees with you or critiques something is not a “hater.”

    I think JH needs an music and background singers, like a regular recording. In her day. Whitney could have done it solo, but Jennifer is not that good of a singer. I’m tired of muting. Plus, what are they thinking. Didn’t the company listen to the commercial before they aired it? I’m not EVEN going to listen to her ruin I Will Always Love You. No one could ever sing it like Whitney.

    JH may be good — I don’t know, but her singing in the commercials stinks big time.

  54. scratch my eyes out… good phrase..

    I think I should thank Hudson, I have lost 5 pounds running for the remote to change the channel every time the commercial airs. I had one of her CD’s that I threw away because I no longer like her singing..

    • I knew as soon as I saw her she would win. I thought she was a great singer. But now all you hear of her is from those stupid azz BLACK & WHITE commercials, always in black or the black/white deceiving dress. Does she sing anymore? I used to like her but like the other black singers, aka Fantasia, all go GHETTO.

  55. There was a time in television history when we did not see African Americans period promoting anything worth while; especially black women looking beautiful, curvy and healthy. I love seeing “US” on TV because I do remember that time when I was looking for more black faces in television. With obesity rates running high in the African American community, it wonderful to see Jennifer Hudson, Janet Jackson and other showing us that we can take control of our own health. Personally, I don’t agree with the weight watchers method but it works for some people. It just would not work for me. These Ads are inspiring somebody and for that I am grateful because being over weight is a killer in our community. I would rather see Jennifer Hudson promoting weight loss than seeing her do a McDonald’s spot. I try not to criticize people so much because I am not perfect myself. I just hope that someone is inspired to lose weight and live a healthy lifestyle.

  56. If you don’t like it , you don’t like. And you have the right to say so. Her skin color should not be a factor at all. I don’t support someone just because they are Black. If folks can’t get on here and write or say what they feel without worrying about other people accusing them of being “haters” or “not supporting sisters” that’s pretty sad.

    I view this commercial the way I view other commercials I am not overly fond of…I view it as a poorly done commercial that gets played too many damn times. Last time I check we were all still allowed to “not like things.” No hate or racial support issues included..No color infusion is needed. It’s a commercial people, and if the woman screeching (in my opinion) was White or Asian I ‘d feel the same way.

  57. I hate her raspy voice and short clipped way she talks……….I wanna smack her head.
    I’m sure, very soon, Jessica Simpson will get on my last nerve…

  58. I just needed to vent. I don’t understand why certain people are so successful. I.e. Brittany Spears – she can’t sing. I also just don’t like jennifer hudson’s voice. It’s powerful but it’s almost as though she is trying to imitate a great singer. Her voice is who harsh, it’s just not pleasing to my ears and I thought I was alone with my opinion. Then I heard she is getting a star on the walk of fame before so many successful people. I just don’t get it. Can someone explain it?

  59. She definitely yells too much. Look how she yells at tonight at the Oscar awards, again!

  60. I can’t stand her singing. It is so harsh, I never understood how she got where she got. I just detest her voice

  61. I don’t believe it has anything to do with Jennifer being a black woman or where she has come from, gone through. Many have gone through a lot and some even worse than Jennifer. However, I must agree. The weight watchers commercials are annoying and it is over-kill. I thought she had the lap-band though? TMZ was stating that she was having problems with the lap-band not too long ago.

  62. See the last commercial endorsement for weight watchers w\ Jennifer Hudson singing ” I Got the Power?” It turns me off she is using WW as a crutch and its sickening she needs to get off that WW now and put on weight everyone she is too skinny and she needs to stop this diet before she gets really sick !!!!!

  63. I truly, truly thought I was the only person aggravated and dismayed with these commercials. I have ran, ducked, muted, left the room….all of the above.

  64. Her speaking voice is ridiculous. She accentuates syllables that were never meant to be accentuated. She should only ever sing. The latest WW commercial “..I’ve got the power” one, has her saying ‘360’ ridiculously accentuated. I noticed her over accentuation when she first said “I’m Jennifer Hudson.” When she says Hudson the first part sounds forced and overly hearty. So annoying!!

  65. Y’all are just jealous!

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