Artist of the Week: Jennifer Hudson

When eliminated on the season 3 of "American Idol", Jennifer Hudson stepped out with an exit speech, saying that something big out there had been waiting for her. "I don't know when or where or how, but God has something in store for me," she said at that time.

Two years later she proved it by landing the part of Effie White in a musical film called "Dreamgirls" along side other big names such as Jamie Foxx, Beyonce Knowles, and Eddie Murphy. The song, "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going", that she performed on the movie, has been praised as "five mellifluous, molto vibrato minutes". Also as Effie White who sang the tune, Jennifer won Golden Globe Award as Best Actress in a Supporting Role. In addition, she won Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her big screen debut performance.

With such huge successes, many then thought that she would quickly release an album. She was signed to Arista Records but the recording company decided not to rush her and reportedly gave her plenty of time in cooking her new materials.

Her first single "Spotlight", which is written by Ne-Yo, was released in June and since has peaked at number 41 on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles chart and at number 3 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart. Other songs to appear in her self-titled debut album include her song from the Broadway musical "Dreamgirls" and a single called "All Dressed in Love", which is penned by Gnarls Barkley's Cee-Lo. Worked on by great producers and songwriters such as Timbaland, StarGate, and Robin Thicke, her debut album is expected to hit the market on September 30.

© AceShowbiz.com