Hear Jennifer Nettles Duet With Jennifer Hudson for Oprah
When you’re talking about Oprah, two powerful voices are always better than one. On the inaugural anthem for the media mogul’s OWN Network, she didn’t just go big, she went double-diva, with Jennifer Nettles and Jennifer Hudson joining forces on “You Will,” their first duet written by longtime Winfrey friend Diane Warren.
In traditional Oprah-style, the booming ballad is all about self-empowerment (and includes plenty of mantras like “go live a life that’s got no limits”) with Nettles and Hudson using every corner of their famous ranges: lots of runs, lots of big notes, lots of hands in the air.
Written by the legendary Warren, known for hits like Aerosmith’s “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” and LeAnn Rimes’ “How Do I Live,” “You Will” doesn’t fall into either of the singers’ particular genre niches, landing in a nice — and broadly appealing — pop space. (Winfrey is about the every-woman, after all.) Though country has historically treated Hudson well. She was “safe” during Country Week of American Idol when she preformed Wynonna Judd‘s “No One Else on Earth” — it was Barry Manilow Week that did her in.
“You Will,” produced by Grammy-winning team the Underdogs, is available now for download on iTunes and streaming on Oprah.com, and will premiere tonight during the season finale of Tyler Perry’s The Have and the Have Nots via a behind-the-scenes video showing the recording of the song. (You can also listen to the song below.)
“I was so touched when Diane Warren came to me and said she wrote a song with OWN in mind,” Winfrey said in a statement. “And then to have Jennifer Hudson and Jennifer Nettles bring the song to life with their stunning collaboration…what a gift.”
Nettles, who with partner Kristian Bush make up the Grammy, CMA and ACM Award-winning group Sugarland, released her debut solo album That Girl in 2014. She’s currently performing on Broadway in the Bob Fosse musical Chicago.