| Today with Jenna & Friends | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Also known as |
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| Genre | |
| Presented by | |
| Announcer | Les Marshak |
| Opening theme |
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| No. of seasons | 11 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Production locations | NBC Studios New York, New York |
| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | 44–52 minutes |
| Original release | |
| Network | NBC |
| Release | September 10, 2007 (2007-09-10) – present |
| Related | |
| Today | |
Today with Jenna & Friends (also known as thefourth hour ofToday or simplyJenna & Friends) is an Americandaytime televisiontalk show onNBC, hosted byJenna Bush Hager and a rotating cast of guest hosts. The program airs as the fourth hour ofNBC'sToday at 10:00 a.m. in all time zones (subject to local delay) as a "show-within-a-show" with its own hosts, opening sequence, theme music, and website. The Monday through Thursday editions of this portion of the program air live in theEastern Time Zone and on tape delay elsewhere; the Friday edition is pre-recorded.[1]
The program originally began on September 10, 2007 as an expansion ofToday, hosted byAnn Curry,Natalie Morales andHoda Kotb. For 11 years, the program grew as its own distinct entity asToday with Kathie Lee and Hoda, after Kotb was joined byKathie Lee Gifford on April 7, 2008. Gifford leftToday on April 5, 2019, and was succeeded byJenna Bush Hager, becomingToday with Hoda & Jenna on April 8, 2019 until Kotb's departure on January 10, 2025.
On January 17, 2007, at its press tour sessions, NBC News announced thatToday would be expanded to four hours beginning that fall.[2] To make room on its schedule for the expansion, NBC – rather than disrupting an hour of programming time already allocated forsyndicated orlocal programming on its stations – made the decision to cancel the low-rated daytimesoap operaPassions and use that hour allocation for the new fourth hour.[3][4]
The fourth hour debuted on September 10, 2007, originally hosted byAnn Curry,Natalie Morales, andHoda Kotb.[5][6][7] To promote the new hour,615 Music created an original song for the campaign titled "There's More Today, Everyday" for NBC. The song's instrumental version became the program's opening theme[8] and was nominated for Outstanding Original Song - Main Title and Promo at the36th Daytime Emmy Awards in 2009.[9][10]
| External videos | |
|---|---|
 TODAY's "New" Fourth Hour, archived byToday onYouTube. The fourth hour debuts in 2007 withAnn Curry,Natalie Morales, andHoda Kotb. | |
| Kathie Lee's First TODAY Broadcast, archived byToday onYouTube.Kathie Lee Gifford's fourth hour debut. |
Kathie Lee Gifford replaced Curry and Morales as co-host on April 7, 2008,[11] and over time became more of its own distinct entity, and was being referred to more as simplyKathie Lee & Hoda, with its own website and social media presence. The fourth hour does not have news or weather segments (other than local newsbreaks aired during the first half-hour on some NBC stations, provided they air the fourth hour at 10:00 a.m.) or input from the earlier hosts and is structured virtually as a standalone talk show, with an opening "host chat" segment reminiscent of the one popularized by Gifford andRegis Philbin onLive! with Regis and Kathie Lee, as well as interviews and features focusing on entertainment, fashion and other topics aimed at female viewers.
Kathie Lee & Hoda competed with ABC'sThe View and CBS'The Price Is Right in most markets in the Central and Pacific Time Zones, but most stations in the Eastern Time Zone air it live one hour before those programs, as ABC and CBS's late morning daytime programs are not tape delayed for each time zone. Not all NBC affiliates carryKathie Lee & Hoda live. The program airs on tape delay in some markets that may air it later in the morning or early afternoons at the station's discretion to make room for local news or syndicated programming.
On September 26, 2011, NBC began to rebroadcastKathie Lee & Hoda as part of its overnight lineup (formerly known asNBC All Night) on weekday early mornings at 2:05 a.m. Eastern and Pacific Time[12] (varied according to local scheduling; although the rebroadcast is pre-empted by NBC affiliates in a few markets, such as those owned byGraham Media Group), as a replacement forPoker After Dark, which was canceled due tolegal issues involving that show's sponsorFull Tilt Poker and televisedpoker in general.
On December 11, 2018, NBC and Gifford announced that she will be retiring from her position of anchoring the fourth hour in April 2019, her 11th anniversary since joiningToday.[13][14] Kotb would continue anchoring the fourth hour.[15] Gifford's final day was on April 5, 2019.[16][17]
On February 26, 2019, NBC announced thatJenna Bush Hager would replace Gifford on the fourth hour ofToday after Gifford's departure on April 5, 2019.[18][19] The renamedToday with Hoda & Jenna premiered on April 8, 2019.[20] Joanne LaMarca Mathisen, who previously served as senior producer and left in January 2017,[21] returned to NBC to become the new executive producer.[22] Tammy Filler, the executive producer forKathie Lee and Hoda since July 2017,[23] leftToday to become executive vice president and editor-in-chief ofE! News.[24][21]
In the fall of 2019, a number of NBC stations and affiliates also carrying the syndicatedNBCUniversal Television Distribution programThe Kelly Clarkson Show began to carry a late-night repeat of that show instead ofHoda & Jenna to give the former an additional cumulative ratings boost. Those stations that do not airKelly or prefer to air it only once per day continued to carryHoda & Jenna until March 28, 2022, when NBC replaced its late-night rebroadcast ofHoda & Jenna with a rebroadcast ofTop Story with Tom Llamas fromNBC News Now.
It was revealed on the 2019Halloween show that Kotb and Hager had only hosted five shows together since the premiere of the revamped hour in April 2019, due to both women being away forparental leave.[25] On the same day, Hager announced she would return on November 11, 2019.[26]
On January 16, 2020, Kotb and Hager announced that the Thursday and Friday editions ofHoda & Jenna would be recorded in front of a live studio audience starting February 6, 2020, and calledHoda & Jenna & Friends.[27] The revamped editions were broadcast from Studio 6A, formerly used byMegyn Kelly Today, instead of Studio 1A.[28] However, the program would later return to Studio 1A due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, with another NBC programThe Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon moving into Studio 6A.[29]On October 6, 2021, it was announced that former co-executive producer ofThe Wendy Williams Show andTamron Hall, Talia Parkinson-Jones would be named the new executive producer of the show taking the place of LaMarca Mathisen.[30]
On September 4, 2024,Hoda & Jenna debuted a new opening theme performed byMeghan Trainor.[31] The theme music was originally revealed on April 8, 2024, during the 5th anniversary ofHoda & Jenna.[32] Trainor had previously created "Wake Up to Kathie Lee and Hoda", a theme song forKathie Lee & Hoda.[33]
On September 26, 2024, Kotb announced she would be stepping down as co-anchor ofToday in early 2025, but would still remain at NBC.[34] On November 14, 2024, Kotb's final day onToday was announced for January 10, 2025.[35] WhileCraig Melvin was announced as Kotb's successor as co-anchor for the earlier hours ofToday, it was announced that the fourth hour would becomeToday with Jenna & Friends, starting January 13, 2025, featuring a rotating cast of fill-in hosts until a permanent host is named.[36][35] Kotb departedToday on January 10, 2025 and the following week marked the first time none of the co-hosts from the original iteration of the fourth hour were part of the program. The finalHoda & Jenna show was hosted in Studio 8G, the studio forLate Night with Seth Meyers, and included guestsGayle King,Jimmy Fallon, and former co-host Gifford.[37][38]
On the week of Kotb's departure,Taraji P. Henson,Eva Longoria,Keke Palmer andMichelle Buteau were announced as guest co-hosts for the first week ofJenna & Friends.[39] Speaking withVariety, Parkinson-Jones said their goal was to find "a match" and compared the guest co-hosts to dating: "We’re in this new version of the show, and it’s really Jenna’s dating. We get a chance to meet different people, and we’ll fall in love one day, but until then we’re just having a really good time."[40]
ActressScarlett Johansson was named for the second week and co-hosted for a week.[41][42] Johansson's co-hosting was met with positive feedback from fans, with many praising Johansson's chemistry with Hager,[43][44] and suggesting a more permanent role for Johansson.[45][46] Hager suggested starting aGoFundMe to hire Johansson.[47] Speaking toPeople, Johansson called her role "a complete dream".[48]
The guests co-hosts forJenna & Friends have included Henson, Longoria, Palmer, Buteau, Johansson,Kelsea Ballerini,Kimberly Schlapman,Ciara,Wynonna Judd,Ego Nwodim,Amy Poehler,Ana Gasteyer,Mikey Day,Cheri Oteri,Chloe Fineman,Willie Geist, Justin Sylvester,Heather McMahan,Savannah Guthrie,Regina Hall,Dwyane Wade, Donna Farizan,Brooke Shields,Barbara Bush Coyne, her cousins Wendy Stapleton and Sam Bush LeBlond, husband Henry Hager,Olivia Munn,Bowen Yang,John Legend,Jay Ellis,Andrew Rannells,Tyra Banks,Andy Cohen,Tiffany Haddish,Tina Fey,Wanda Sykes,Ken Jeong,Matt Rogers (comedian),Erin Andrews,Hoda Kotb,Leanne Morgan,Halle Berry,Jay Ellis,Henry Winkler,Leslie Bibb,Niecy Nash,Maria Shriver,Octavia Spencer,Nikki Glaser,Ayesha Curry,Anthony Ramos,Cardi B,Rosie Perez,Tom Llamas,Sheinelle Jones,Sheryl Crow,Craig Melvin,Dylan Dreyer, andCarson Daly.
The show's signature element is its opening "host chat" segment where the latest entertainment headlines and stories are discussed. This segment was calledToday's Talk during theKathie Lee and Hoda era of the program,[49] however that name has not been used since Hager joined the program as co-host.
The show is most notable for its frequent use and display ofwine on-air. Speaking about the wine, Gifford, in an interview withVariety, said: "People just assume we are drinking wine the whole time, but the reality is most days it just sits there."[50] Gifford has also said that they have a sip once or twice but the wine is used mainly as aprop to be funny.[51]
The show has had many recurring segments throughout its years. They include:
| Year | Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Daytime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Original Song – Main Title and Promo | "There's More Today, Everyday" | Nominated | [9] |
| 2019 | Outstanding Talk Show Informative | Today with Kathie Lee & Hoda | Nominated | [55] | |
| Outstanding Informative Talk Show Host | Kathie Lee Gifford andHoda Kotb | Won | [55][56] | ||
| 2020 | Outstanding Talk Show Informative | Today with Hoda & Jenna | Nominated | [57] | |
| Outstanding Informative Talk Show Host | Hoda Kotb andJenna Bush Hager | Nominated | [57] | ||
| 2021 | Outstanding Talk Show Entertainment | Today with Hoda & Jenna | Nominated | [58] | |
| Outstanding Entertainment Talk Show Host | Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager | Nominated | |||
| 2022 | Outstanding Talk Show Entertainment | Today with Hoda & Jenna | Nominated | [59] | |
| Outstanding Entertainment Talk Show Host | Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager | Nominated | |||
| 2022 | People's Choice Awards | The Daytime Talk Show of 2022 | Today with Hoda & Jenna | Nominated | [60] |
| 2023 | Daytime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Daytime Talk Series | Today with Hoda & Jenna | Nominated | [61] |
| 2024 | GLAAD Media Awards | Outstanding Live TV Journalism – Segment or Special | "TikTok Sensations 'The Old Gays' Talk About How They Became Friends and Their New Docuseries" | Nominated | [62] |
| 2025 | Daytime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Daytime Talk Series Host | Jenna Bush Hager and Hoda Kotb | Pending | [63] |
