This bright and booming talent is a perfect example of how NOT winning the title of American Idol can actually be a boon to your career and not necessarily the end of a childhood dream.

Born Jennifer Kate Hudson on September 12, 1981, in Chicago, Illinois, she earned minor attention as one of the twelve finalists (she came in an underwhelming sixth runner-up) on the third season of the amazingly popular FOX reality/talent-search TV series in 2004. Prior to this Hudson grew up singing in gospel choirs. Her relative inexperience included acting in community theater productions, singing on cruise lines and touring for Disney in "Hercules: The Musical". With no formal musical training to speak of, her naturally gospel-tinged belt initially pleased the panel of judges on "Idol". Admittedly, the songs that tested her on the FOX talent show were frequently ill-advised but evidence of her greatness certainly peeked through from time to time. She, along with the other two African-American powerhouse singers, Fantasia Barrino and La Toya London, were promoted as the show's own version of the Dreamgirls and were expected to be the final three standing in the competition when Jennifer was unceremoniously whittled out of the pack. Perhaps her plus size, her lack of viewer popularity, and/or distinct musical style were out of sync with the "American Idol" image. No matter, a brilliant Fantasia won the competition...and, it seemed, all the glory and the fame.

Fast forward: Hudson played out the "American Idol" summer tour and held on to her "15 minutes" of fame as long as possible by performing on the road in concerts for the next two years. What seemed like an eventual road back to obscurity, she found her way into the auditioning room for the coveted role of Effie Melody White, the cast-off member of a popular 60s Supremes-like girl group in the long-awaited film version of the esteemed Broadway musical "Dreamgirls". Among Jennifer's competition of over 750 hopefuls was Fantasia herself. This time Jennifer was the winner...and she was even ordered to gain weight for the role. With the insurmountable task of taking over a role so indelibly identified with the original Effie on Broadway, the Tony-winning legend Jennifer Holliday, the making of Dreamgirls for Jennifer Hudson could only have been described as daunting, surreal and thrilling -- with the word "daunting" certainly an understatement.

In a make-or-break role of a lifetime, Hudson no longer has to play second fiddle to anyone. Her film bow in Dreamgirls has got to be one of the most triumphant musical film debuts since Barbra Streisand in Funny Girl. In no way is her performance a shallow, wannabe imitation of the great Holliday. Hudson not only makes the role her own in both acting and musical intensity, but she delivers the same heart-breaking, gut-wrenching one-two punch that made Holliday the toast of Broadway in 1981. Hudson's rendition of "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" has spurred out-of-the-seat standing ovations, a rarity in film houses. To outshine Beyoncé Knowles and Eddie Murphy is no easy task but Hudson, with all due respect to the phenomenal other talents involved in this prize-worthy film (including Murphy's major comeback turn), is THE heart and soul of the movie. She copped the National Board of Review (for "Breakthrough Performance"), New York Film Critics Award, Phoenix Film Critic's Society Award, Golden Satellite Award, Golden Globe Award, the British Film Award and, finally, the coveted Oscar itself to complete the fairy tale ending. While some may quibble about her placement in the "Supporting Actress" category, no one can deny the deserving of such accolades. In the future there will no doubt be recording work, concerts and Broadway...and, hopefully, more films. Her real-life Cinderella story has just begun. The late, tragic Supreme Florence Ballard, on whom the Effie character is so obviously based, would be very inspired indeed to see Jennifer Hudson's meteoric rise from reality-show underachiever to full-fledged musical star.
Jennifer was going to perform "Over the Rainbow" for Movie Night but was informed that she'd have to perform it Kimberley Locke's way and decided to sing "I Have Nothing" instead. Beat out American Idol winner Fantasia Barrino for her role in Dreamgirls Beat out 782 actresses for her role in Dreamgirls. Was born a few months after "Dreamgirls" debuted on the New York Broadway stage. Jennifer's role of Effie Melody White in Dreamgirls is a thinly-disguised portrait of the late ousted Supreme Florence Ballard. Flo's story, however, ended up tragically, unlike that of the Effie character. Of Diana Ross and Mary Wilson, Ballard, who gave the Supremes its name, was the strongest vocalist of the three and all three girls at one point shared leads. Labeled the "No-Hit" Supremes for a time, astute Motown mogul Berry Gordy decided Ross had the ideal personality and coy voice to pull in cross-over white audiences. He was right and the Supremes were a sensation with Ballard and Wilson shoved permanently into the background and never given any solo lines in any of their hits. Unlike Effie, Ballard's weight was not a factor until well into stardom, fed by Ross's diva-like stance, Flo's ongoing depression and problems with alcohol. Ballard's unreliability for shows triggered her dismissal in 1967 and an attempted solo career was a complete bust, never allowed to feed off the Supremes name for publicity. Ballard became destitute with three children to support and her health severely declined. Unlike Effie, Flo never was able to make a comeback and died of a coronary thrombosis in 1976 at age 32. The first contestant from American Idol to be nominated and win an Academy Award. A revival of the 1981 Broadway smash "Dreamgirls" is in the talking stage and Jennifer has been approached about recreating her Effie role. One of a very few actors to receive an Oscar-nomination for their debut performance. After appearing on the March 2007 issue, she became the third African-American celebrity to grace the front cover of Vogue Magazine. The other two celebrities are Oprah Winfrey and Halle Berry, respectively. Worked in Burger King before becoming a contestant on American Idol and winning the role of her Academy-Award winning performance in Dreamgirls. She attended Dunbar Vocational Career Academy, where she graduated in 1999. She cites Whitney Houston as her musical/movie influence, and has also said recently that her biggest wish is to collaborate on her debut album with Houston. Is close friends with singer Beyoncé Knowles since they made the film Dreamgirls together. Beyoncé was present at the Academy Awards ceremony in February 2007 when Jennifer won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. Is one of the 15 actors to win an Oscar for their film debut. The others are: Shirley Booth for Come Back, Little Sheba, Julie Andrews for Mary Poppins, Barbra Streisand for Funny Girl and Marlee Matlin for Children of a Lesser God (all for Best Actress in a Leading Role), followed by Katina Paxinou for For Whom the Bell Tolls, Mercedes McCambridge for All the King's Men, Eva Marie Saint for On the Waterfront, Jo Van Fleet for East of Eden, Goldie Hawn for Cactus Flower, Tatum O'Neal for Paper Moon and Anna Paquin for The Piano (all for Best Actress in a Supporting Role). The three male actors are Harold Russell for The Best Years of Our Lives, Timothy Hutton for Ordinary People, and Haing S. Ngor for The Killing Fields (all for Best Actor in a Supporting Role). Out of these 15 actors, only Mercedes McCambridge, Julie Andrews, Barbra Streisand and Goldie Hawn have been nominated since their win. In November 2006, she signed a record deal with Clive Davis's label, Arista Records. Packed on 20 pounds to play the role of Effie White in Dreamgirls. Dedicated her Golden Globe to Florence Ballard on whom her Dreamgirls character Effie White is so obviously based on (January 2007). Managed to eke out a thanks to the original stage Effie, Jennifer Holliday, as the orchestra music began to unceremoniously drown out Jennifer's emotional Oscar acceptance speech. Both Holliday and Sheryl Lee Ralph (the theater's first Deena) had expressed hurt and dismay earlier at being snubbed during the mounting publicity for the "Dreamgirls" film. The third original Dreamgirl on stage, Loretta Devine, received a singing cameo in the film version. The other two were not offered or even approached to appear in the film. She was overwhelmed to receive the Sammy Davis Jr. Award for Entertainer of the Year at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium, California. She also performed at the ceremony and said, "I just can't believe I got the Sammy Davis Jr. Award. I'm standing on the same stage where I made the top 32 of American Idol." (10 March 2007). Jennifer attributes her vocal talents to her late grandmother Julia Kate Hudson, who was a former choir mistress in Chicago. Is one of four African-American actresses to win an Oscar in a competitive category. In chronological order the others are: Hattie McDaniel for Gone with the Wind, Whoopi Goldberg for Ghost and Halle Berry for Monster's Ball. Her Best Supporting Actress Oscar statuette for Dreamgirls stands on the mantelpiece in her apartment in Chicago. Her favourite female pop artist is Céline Dion. Her favourite types of music are R&B and pop. One of 115 people invited to join AMPAS in 2007. Began singing when she was 7-years-old. As a child, Jennifer performed as part of a choir at her local church in Chicago. Is one of 12 African-American actresses to receive the Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination. The others in chronological order are: Hattie McDaniel, Ethel Waters, Juanita Moore, Beah Richards, Alfre Woodard, Margaret Avery, Oprah Winfrey, Whoopi Goldberg, Rosie Perez, Queen Latifah and Ruby Dee. As of 2008, Whoopi Goldberg is the only African-American actress to receive nominations in both the Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress categories. Had a role in the film Meet the Browns, but was replaced at the last minute. Made her stage debut with the one-off concert revival of 'Hair' on Broadway in September 2004. She then returned to Broadway for the one-off concert revival of 'The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas' as Jewel in October 2006. Was not in attendance at the 2007 BAFTA Awards ceremony when she was won the award as Best Supporting Actress for Dreamgirls. Actor and fellow BAFTA-nominee Daniel Craig accepted the award on her behalf. As of 2007 she is the eighth youngest recipient of the Best Supporting Actress Academy Award. She won the award at the age of 25 for her performance in Dreamgirls. The others, ranked from youngest to the seventh youngest, are: Tatum O'Neal (aged 10) for Paper Moon, Anna Paquin (aged 11) for The Piano, Patty Duke (aged 16) for The Miracle Worker, Anne Baxter (aged 23) for The Razor's Edge, Teresa Wright (aged 24) for Mrs. Miniver, Goldie Hawn (aged 24) for Cactus Flower and Angelina Jolie (aged 24) for Girl, Interrupted. She is also the youngest African-American actress ever to win an Academy Award. Claims that Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit is her favorite film. Sheryl Lee Ralph, who appears in that film, was one of the original "Dreamgirls" from the Broadway production. Companion of James Peyton, a maintenance engineer, since 1999. Presented Javier Bardem with the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his performance in No Country for Old Men. (24 February 2008).