Ravinia 2019, Issue 3, Week 6

I am so blessed to be associated with these legendary classic songs. Jennifer Hudson made her Ravinia debut in 2011 (left), and six years later Aretha Franklin gave her final full concert on the same stage. With Franklin’s blessing, Hudson will carry the Queen of Soul’s legacy in a new biopic entitled Respect . Award winner and Grammy winner is one bestowed on her in 2007 by her Chicago school alma mater: The Pride of Dunbar Vocational Career Academy. “When you can come back home and share your victories and inspire others and make a difference, that gives me chills,” she said. Hudson still calls Chicago home. “I always say Chicago allows my feet to touch the ground,” she explained. “Chicago people allow me to be Jennifer from the South Side. If I wanted to be in front of lights and cameras every time I stepped out of the house, I would live in Los Angeles or New York. I love the nor- malness of living in Chicago. I do what I do, but when I come home, I want to be a Chicagoan.” She also believes in giving back. In 2008, she established with her sister the Julian D. King Foundation in honor of her then 7-year-old nephew who was murdered along with her mother and brother. Each year, the foundation gives free school supplies and holiday gifts to schoolchildren in need around the city. Hudson has passed on these and oth- er lessons as a coach and mentor on The Voice , a role in which she will continue to serve on the UK edition of the show later this year. “That is the show’s most special gift,” she noted, “the opportunity to have mentors. That’s so valuable.” Does she wish she had that advan- tage when she was just starting out? “It would have been easier to have someone to take me by the hand and guide me and instruct me,” she said. “But I can’t complain about my outcome.” Donald Liebenson is a Chicago-based entertainment writer. His work has appeared in the Chicago Tribune , Chicago Sun-Times , Los Angeles Times , and on RogerEbert.com. The first Ravinia concert he attended without his parents was Procol Harum in 1970. PATRICK GIPSON/RAVINIA 24 RAVINIA MAGAZINE | JULY 1 – JULY 14, 2019