‘I was told I was too old’: It took a global calamity for Kate Hudson to follow her musical dreams

Kate Hudson has revealed that it was the COVID pandemic that inspired her to finally pursue her musical aspirations after being told she was too old for a pop star career.

Everyone who was a Glee fan in the early 2010s has been well aware of Hudson’s musical talent for years, but now the rest of the world seems to be catching up. The actress and singer put out her first album in May of last year, titled Glorious and containing 12 original tracks, including singles “Talk About Love,” “Gonna Find Out” and “Live Forever.”

“I finally took the leap and made a record,” she told Graham Norton during an episode of his BBC talk show set to air this Friday. The incentive was the urgency to complete that nagging bucket list that comes with a global health emergency, she explained.

There was a moment during the COVID lockdown when we all thought we were going to die, so I thought about my creative output and realized I had to do some music no matter what.”

Hudson then explained how she had tried once before, in her early thirties, but was dissuaded by people who thought she was “too old.” That was also around the time she played Cassandra July, a performing arts university professor on Glee, lending her raspy, captivating vocals to songs like the “Americano/Dance Again” mash-up, “Uptight (Everything’s Alright),” and an “All That Jazz” duet with Lea Michele’s Rachel Berry. Frankly, this just goes to show that no one was really paying attention to that show anymore by season 4, because had they been, Hudson would have been handed a record deal on a silver platter. She was fabulous in the role.

“I thought that ship had sailed,” the Oscar-nominated actress confessed, adding, “But after COVID nothing mattered anymore. When I finally did it, I thought, ‘Why has it taken me so long?’” It’s a beautiful thing when we stop caring what others think and go after our dreams. Hudson’s love for the project shows in each of her music videos and live performances, including ones on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and The Voice.

Audience reaction has been overwhelmingly positive, too. The comment sections underneath any of those clips are filled with “I didn’t know Kate Hudson could sing so nicely!” and “Why has she been hiding this ‘Glorious’ voice from us for all of these years?!” type of remarks. Hudson, of course, was born into a family of showpeople, with both of her parents being performers. Though she doesn’t have a relationship with her father, Bill Hudson, it seems his musician genes stuck.

Just last week, Hudson released a deluxe version of the record, which contained a song dedicated to her actress mother Goldie Hawn, 79. “Right On Time” describes Hawn’s childhood and her journey to stardom, honoring her as a “left-hand beauty with big blue eyes, crooked smile, half a beat off time.”

“I think she was confused at first, but when I told her it was about her childhood, she was very emotional,” the actress shared. “You become the keeper of your parents’ stories, so to be able to share it with the world is wonderful.” And we’re sure she’s proud.