Hoda Kotb Appears To Confirm Rumors That Kelly Rowland Bailed On Co-Hosting ‘Today’ Because Of Her Dressing Room: “She Can Share My Dressing Room”

By Radhamely De Leon
Published Feb. 20, 2024, 11:56 a.m. ET

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Jenna Bush Hager kicked off Tuesday’s (Feb. 20) broadcast of Today With Hoda & Jenna by asking Hoda Kotb if she happened to “miss anything” during her day off last Thursday (Feb. 15). And boy, did she ever.

Rita Ora co-hosted Thursday’s broadcast with Kotb after she was asked just minutes before they went on the air, hinting at a major mishap behind the scenes. But a subsequent report claims Kelly Rowland bailed on co-hosting the show at the last minute because she was “not happy” with the dressing rooms they had backstage.

Kotb surprisingly addressed Rowland’s absence during the top of this morning’s episode, saying with a laugh, “Um, I just want to say this. I have great love and admiration for Kelly Rowland, I adore her, I want her to come back on our show and I want her to host again.”

She then swiftly added, “She can share my dressing room. We’ll be in it together.”

Bush Hager laughed in response. “She’s welcome any time!” she added, which Kotb appeared to agree with.

“I just want to say we love her. We’ve loved her on this show for many, many, many years,” she said.

The report from Page Six alleges that Rowland and her team played a game of “musical dressing rooms” as they searched for a room that was up to par for the singer.

“Kelly and her team were not happy,” an inside source claimed. “They did not like the dressing room, so they decided to pull her off the show, leaving [Kotb] without a guest host for the 10 a.m. hour.��

Despite Rowland’s absence, Kotb and Ora really hit it off. She revealed as they were co-hosting Thursday that Ora was asked to join her just “five minutes before we went on the air” because she was already set to be interviewed later on in the show.

Kotb gave Ora her props during Tuesday’s broadcast, saying she “kind of came in at the last second and did a phenomenal job.”

But Bush Hager praised her good friend and co-host for holding down the fort.

“I won’t take a day off until 2024,” she promised, to which Kotb replied, “I was going to say, you’re not allowed! That’s the last day off in months.”

Today with Jenna and Hoda airs on weekdays at 10/9c on NBC.