Jennifer Hudson sings 'Natural Woman' as both Aretha Franklin and herself

Nick Romano
·2 min read
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The Late Show With Stephen Colbert turned into a musical affair on Thursday night between guest Jennifer Hudson, pianist Jon Batiste, and the host himself.

An interview question about how Hudson would sing "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" as Aretha Franklin in the biopic Respect versus how she would perform it herself turned into a demonstration.

"I had a dialect coach and he told me Aretha sings from the top of her head, and I said, 'Where do I sing from?' And he said, 'You sing from your feet,'" Hudson tried to explain. She then mentioned, "I could probably show you better than I could tell you."

The Dreamgirls Oscar winner then traveled to the piano so she could demonstrate her Aretha voice on the hit 1967 soul song and then her own interpretation.

Batiste and, to Hudson's surprise, Stephen Colbert joined in on backup harmonies.

Hudson stars as Franklin in Respect, which chronicles the icon's journey from singing in her father's church to becoming a world-renown performer. Franklin died in 2018 before the film's release, but she did handpick Hudson to play her in the movie.

"We met in New York, and one of the first things she said to me was 'You're gonna win another Oscar for playing me, right?' Imagine Aretha Franklin looking you in the face and saying that," Hudson previously told EW. "I was like, 'Eh, uh, eh… I can try.'"

The film, directed by Liesl Tommy, also features Marlon Wayans, Forest Whitaker, Audra McDonald, Mary J. Blige. Respect is now playing in theaters.

Watch Hudson's performance in the video above.

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