Davina Morris, Voice Reporter

Jennifer Hudson - Contributed

Jennifer Hudson sidestepped the engagement issue, but talked freely to Davina Morris about size and sassiness.

For reasons unknown to Jennifer Hudson, some people have assumed before meeting her that shes got a bad attitude. Honestly? I was a little concerned myself.

Having been pre-warned by Hudson's people that I couldn't ask her about being newly engaged and having read another journalists article on Ms Hudson, in which he claimed hed been warned not to talk about the picture on her album cover (more on that later) I thought we might have a diva on our hands.

cheery and enthusiastic

But thankfully, Hudson was cheery and enthusiastic as she spoke about her debut album. The self-titled offering has been a long time coming, considering Chicago-born Hudson first came to attention on American Idol back in 2004. Then came her Oscar Award-winning performance, alongside Beyoncé Knowles and Annika Noni-Rose, in the 2006 film, Dreamgirls. And yet its only now that her album has arrived.

At this stage were in no doubt that Hudson can sing. So what more do we learn about Hudson on this album?

You learn about my sassiness, she laughs. I think that comes through a lot on the track, Pocketbook. I have quite a big personality and some people have interpreted that as me having an attitude. So I have to be like, I don't have an attitude I'm just sassy!

Hudson struggles to understand why people have assumed she has a bad attitude.

I really don't know why that is. I'm confident, so maybe people mistake that for arrogance. But I think its just a misconception. I find sometimes that some people are afraid to approach me. When those people meet me, they seem almost surprised that Im a nice person!

dangerous woman

Still, if album track, I'm His Only Woman (a duet with her fellow Idol contestant Fantasia Barrino) is anything to go by, Hudson sounds like a woman not to be messed with. The songs comical intro sees Hudson warning off Fantasia, who calls to inform Jen that the man shes seeing is her (Fantasias) boyfriend. Unwilling to believe Fantasias account, Jen angrily responds: If this was 10 years ago, Id be at your front door, ready to whoop yo ass! But I'm too grown for that now.

One suspects she would unleash a similar attitude on just about anyone who stepped to her the wrong way. For example: ask Hudson if shes ever been encouraged to lose her full figure and slim down and you'll see why most people probably wouldn't dare.

crazy questions

Its really not an issue. And you know what? When people meet me they know way better than to come to me and say something crazy like that!

Besides, Hudson is completely comfortable with the way she is.

I just feel that there's no need to fix something that's not broken. I am the way I am because I want to be and not because I have no choice but to be. I think that focusing on that kind of thing is very shallow. People miss out on so many other great things because they're so obsessed with image. And that's kind of backwards to me, because the average person doesn't fit that ideal.

Hudson's love-who-you-are mentality is what sparked confusion when pictures of her album cover began doing the rounds on the Internet. On said cover Hudson appears to have a slimmer-than-usual waistline and this set off a blog debate as to whether the image was photoshopped to make her look thinner.

Was there a bit of tampering with the photo? “No,” she says firmly. “But if there was, I’m not the photographer. I’m just the person in the picture.”

Hmmm. That’s a little confusing. But, apparently, Hudson’s shape has perplexed many people. “Every time I step off the television and go out in public, I get congratulated on my new weight loss,” she says laughing. “I’ll be thinking: I was on the TV yesterday and I was fat, right? But yet one day later I’m getting praised for losing so much weight! I just say ‘thank you’ and move on.”

my appearance

“You’d think people would work out that if I looked different on TV yesterday compared to how I look today it must be because TV adds a few pounds, right? But I guess some people haven’t figured that out. They must think I have an amazing ability to change my shape overnight!”

OK, that’s the weight issue done and dusted. But what about the love life? The news of Hudson’s recent engagement to reality TV star David Otunga has been all over entertainment websites. She herself has been quoted on various sites, expressing excitement about the news. And yet I was told not to mention it. It seemed quite odd that a newly engaged woman would pass up the chance to gush about how happy she is. But ask Hudson if she’s set a wedding date, and sure enough, her ‘people’ were right.

“I don’t discuss that.”

issues of relationships

Celebrities who are all coy and elusive about their relationships; what’s that really about? Jay-Z and Beyoncé, Chris Brown and Rihanna – we know you’re together! We don’t need to know your most intimate details. But when you’re in the public eye, surely answering a few simple relationship-based questions (like, ‘have you set a wedding date?’) isn’t too much to ask? Isn’t it natural that an artiste’s fans will want to know as much as possible about their idol?

“I feel that the extent of what an artist shares should be what they’re comfortable sharing,” Hudson explains. “I share more than enough and I don’t believe in imposing. I’m here for the work and the art of it. The personal thing is personal. If someone says they don’t wanna talk about something, that should be respected.”

Nuff said.

Jennifer Hudson’s self-titled album is out now on Sony BMG.