Last night’s 40th annual People’s Choice Awards marked the beginning of a busy awards season.
The big moment came when Jennifer Hudson was honored for her work with children through the Julian D. King Gift Foundation. Hudson created the Chicago-based foundation in honor of her nephew, Julian King, who was murdered in 2008 at the age of seven.
LL Cool J presented the favorite humanitarian award to the ESSENCE January cover star who delivered a heartfelt speech alongside her sister, Julia Hudson. “My mother always taught us without family you have nothing,” Hudson said. “Whether you know it or not, we are all family. What happens to the other, happens to us. It’s one thing to be a celebrity and have power, but it means nothing if we’re not making a difference and helping someone else. It feels good to see positivity acknowledged. Where we come from all you hear about is who shot who and who went to jail. There is more to life than the block you live on. We want to show them that I came from the same area and if I can do it, you can do it too.”
Queen Latifah nabbed the award for favorite new talk show host. The Queen Latifah Show debuted in 2013 and was renewed for a second season this week.
Justin Timberlake walked away with three awards—favorite male artist, favorite R&B artist and favorite album of the year for the 20/20 Experience. He thanked his wife, Jessica Biel, “for teaching me patience and the little things like just putting the dishes in the dishwasher. It goes a long way. Fellas, your welcome.”
Netflix original series Orange Is the New Black took home the prize for favorite streaming series beating out Arrested Development and House of Cards.