The Voice is losing one gem, Alicia Keys, but welcoming another. NBC announced on Wednesday that Jennifer Hudson is joining the show in season 13. The singer-actress, who got her start on American Idol, will be a coach alongside Voice vets Blake Shelton and Adam Levine and recent addition Miley Cyrus.
Hudson, who was previously a winning coach on the U.K.'s version of the show, shared the news in a series of ebullient Instagrams. "In tears thinking of what this means and represents to me and knowing and walking the journey !" wrote Hudson, whose film debut in Dreamgirls won her the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in 2007. She continued, "Wow , who would of thought after being a contestant , that one day , I would be sitting in one of those chairs from the U.K. To the u.s! Only God !!!! Oh but I made it !"
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Hudson, 35, will be replacing Keys, who will be taking a break from the show to focus on her next album. Earlier this month, Keys told Entertainment Tonight that she was "about halfway" through the process. "I can't wait for you to hear new music, and so that's one of the reasons why I won't be able to come back next season," she explained. "But I love writing. It's just the most beautiful, exciting things, and every time I get better. That's the blessing and magic of writing."
And who better than Hudson to fill her seat? As NBC put it in the press release, "Jennifer is an extraordinary vocal talent and one of the premier voices of our time. She embodies the experience, expertise, positivity and sheer talent that The Voice stands for."