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Sheinelle Jones Joins Jenna Bush Hager as Permanent Co-Host on Today
New York, NY – The Today show’s fourth hour is getting a permanent new face! After months of rotating guest hosts, Jenna Bush Hager tearfully announced on December 9 that Sheinelle Jones will be joining her as her official co-host, effective January 12. The popular segment, previously known as Today with Jenna and Friends since Hoda Kotb’s departure in January, will be rebranded as Today with Jenna & Sheinelle.
An emotional Jenna Bush Hager kicked off the show by thanking viewers and reflecting on the past year. “Over the last year, you guys, I have had the privilege of co-hosting this show with 60 incredible friends, who’ve all opened up to me, who inspired me, I’ve laughed, I’ve cried, I’ve made some incredible friends, and I’ve learned so much about myself,” she shared.
She continued, “And you the audience have been with me for the entire time, so thank you so much. Today I’m so thrilled to announce that I’ve found my forever friend and we’re gonna start a brand new journey in January.”
Jenna then introduced a montage celebrating her friendship and on-screen chemistry with Sheinelle, highlighting their shared moments and co-hosting segments. “I couldn’t be more excited to share this person with you all.
You all know her, she’s an extraordinary broadcaster. But more importantly, she exemplifies exactly what this show is all about,” Jenna added.
Both women became visibly moved as Sheinelle took her seat beside Jenna, expressing a mix of emotions: “I don’t know whether to laugh or cry or scream or do what!” She added that this new role was “beyond my wildest dreams.”
This exciting development comes months after Sheinelle Jones endured a personal tragedy, losing her husband, Uche Ojeh, to glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer, in May at the age of 45. Sheinelle had taken a leave of absence last year to care for him.
In a poignant interview with Savannah Guthrie four months after her husband’s passing, Sheinelle affirmed her commitment to returning to work and reminded fans to “root for me because I’m fighting for my joy” if they saw her laughing and enjoying herself on the morning show.
“Cancer doesn’t have to steal our joy,” Sheinelle emphasized. “We can get up, we can get out of bed, and we can go to work, we can go to school, we can squeeze the most out of the days that we have.
And honestly, I feel like Uche’s heartbeat lives on in mine. So I owe it to him to just squeeze the most I can out of this thing.”
Sheinelle Jones has been a cherished member of the Today show family since 2014, and has co-hosted the third hour alongside Al Roker, Craig Melvin, and Dylan Dreyer since 2019. She will be transitioning from the third hour to her new role in the fourth.