City of Angels brings pipes and drums to The Jennifer Hudson Show’s massive audience
Following a performance of “Scotland the Brave” by Pipe-Major Trevor Takahashi, Lead-Drummer Lei Lucas, and bass drummer Tangie Hill, the Emmy-, Golden Globe-, Oscar-, and Tony-award-winning host Jennifer Hudson learns about the pipes and pipe bands, and then manages to eke out some drone sounds through a quick lesson with Takahashi.
“The show producers reached out to us via our website,” said Takahashi, “and after initially thinking it was spam, we learned that they were looking to do something with bagpipes around St. Paddy’s Day. After a few conversations, the show folks actually were more interested in highlighting City of Angels and also to have Jennifer ‘learn to play the pipes’ on the show.”
What began as a request for one piper became a full-fledged display of the pipes, snare drum, and bass drum.
“Jennifer wanted to learn more about the pipes, pipe bands, and the City of Angels Pipe Band,” Takahashi added. “Perhaps the most entertaining and complex part was ‘teaching’ Jennifer to play the pipes. We all agreed that Jennifer getting some bursts of sound from the drones would be adequate for a 60-second lesson.”
City of Angels was launched in 2021 with a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion and to inspiring and educating diverse and underprivileged youth who wouldn’t otherwise have access or exposure to these unique art forms.
“It’s definitely an experience we will always remember, and a true milestone moment for the band.” — Trevor Takahashi
The band has been competitively successful in Western United States Pipe Band Association events and performs regularly in Southern California.
“It’s definitely an experience we will always remember, and a true milestone moment for the band,” Takahashi concluded.
According to Nielsen, since its launch in September 2022, the Jennifer Hudson Show has become the second most-watched talk show among women aged 18-34, reaching more than 17-million viewers in 2024.
This is so amazing!! 🥰