Jennifer Hudson Says Boyfriend Common Gets ‘a Bit Bossy’ When They Make Music Together

Jennifer Hudson is speaking candidly about collaborating on music with boyfriend Common.

The singer and actress, 43, appeared on Late Night with Seth Meyers on Thursday, Nov. 27, in promotion of her new holiday album, The Gift of Love, which features the song “Almost Christmas” that she and Common, 52, collaborated on together.

“I mean, we’re both very musical,” Hudson told host Seth Meyers of the track. “Two Chicagoans, and I was like, ‘Where’s the poetry and the storytelling in the holiday albums?’ And who better to do it than him? To do, like, spoken-word poetry for the holidays? And so that’s where the song came from.”

Still, Hudson admitted that the couple’s musical partnership can have occasional hurdles, as she detailed, “He’s a bit bossy when it comes to being Common.”

“Common and Rashid are two different people musically, but he’s a musical genius, so it’s an honor to be able to work from him, work for him, work with him, and on his album and my album,” the Dreamgirls star added.

Alongside their recent holiday track, Hudson and Common also collaborated on the song “A GOD (There Is),” from Common’s album The Auditorium Vol. 1., which was released in July.

The rapper previously told PEOPLE that he “loved” working with Hudson on the track.

“When I played it to musician friends, they were like, ‘Who is that singing?’ I’m like, ‘That’s Jennifer!’ It doesn’t sound like things you’ve heard from her before,” he said. “I love that we were able to utilize her gifts in a new space. She brought it, man.”

Hudson and Common seemingly confirmed their relationship in January, when Common appeared on Hudson’s talk show, The Jennifer Hudson Show.

The two first sparked dating rumors in 2022, after the announcement of their movie Breathe.

“I’m in a relationship … with one of the most beautiful people I ever met in life,” Common said on the talk show earlier this year. “She’s smart, she loves God, she has something real down-to-earth about her, she’s talented.”