Rita Ora revealed she was asked to step in as a last-minute guest host on Thursday’s Today amid reports Kelly Rowland walked off the gig over dressing room issues.
The British pop star, 33, took to her Instagram on Friday to share a fun photo carousel of her time on the morning show and admitted that it all came together in the eleventh hour.
‘Well, this happened! We had two minutes to prepare,’ she captioned the snaps.
‘Ahhh, thank you @hodaandjenna for asking me to co-host the show… Everyone was so lovely and kind, I had SO much fun doing it!! Love to everyone that tuned in, maybe we should do more??!!!’
Rita’s post comes hours after it was claimed that Kelly walked out on the guest hosting job, expressing dissatisfaction with Today’s dressing rooms.
Rita Ora revealed she was asked to step in as a last-minute guest host on Thursday’s Today amid reports Kelly Rowland walked off the gig over dressing room issues
Rita’s post comes hours after it was claimed that Kelly walked out on the guest hosting job, expressing dissatisfaction with Today’s dressing rooms; pictured at Thursday’s Today
The move by the 43-year-old singer- who has been on the promotional trail for new Tyler Perry film Mea Culpa – left Today host Hoda Kotb scrambling, according to sources for Page Six on Friday.
DailyMail.com reached out to representatives for Rowland and have yet to hear back.
Kelly did appear for an interview segment on her new project during the 8am hour of Today.
However, the publication reports that she was expected to fill in for Jenna Bush Hager during the fourth hour as she was to guest host Today With Hoda & Jenna.
Insiders for the publication claim that Kelly dropped out at the last minute due to the dressing room not being ‘up to snuff’ as the 59-year-old television presenter Hoda was left ‘scurrying to find a replacement.’
The insider told the publication: ‘Kelly and her team were not happy. 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.’
They told Page Six the the singer-turned-actress’s abrupt exit was a bit of a surprise.
A source said: She’s beloved at ‘Today.’ She was getting the full hour, and Hoda’s the biggest hype woman on the planet! It made no sense.’
The British pop star, 33, took to her Instagram on Friday to share a fun photo carousel of her time on the morning show and admitted that it all came together in the eleventh hour
‘Well, this happened! We had two minutes to prepare,’ she captioned the snaps
‘Ahhh, thank you @hodaandjenna for asking me to co-host the show… Everyone was so lovely and kind, I had SO much fun doing it!! Love to everyone that tuned in, maybe we should do more??!!!’
Kelly Rowland is claimed to have walked out on a Today show guest hosting gig as she felt like the dressing rooms were not up to snuff which left Hoda Kotb scrambling according to a new report from Page Six
The insiders told the publication that Rowland along with her team played a game of ‘musical dressing rooms.’
Her entourage was said to have inquired about the green room upstairs because ‘they didn’t like the one she was in.’
However Jennifer Lopez was occupying the room at he time as she arrived there earlier to promote her new album and film This Is Me… Now.
Page Six also reports that the dressing rooms on Today are notoriously known as some of the smallest in the industry with one source telling them they are practically ‘glorified closets.’
The source said: ‘They’re not nice. It’s the oldest building. There are major space limitations, [it’s] not glamorous. It’s not fresh flowers, and candles and gourmet food. It’s basically [a] white box.’
Kelly did appear for an interview segment on her new project during the 8am hour of Today however the publication reports that she was expected to fill in for Jenna Bush Hager during the fourth hour as she was to guest host Today With Hoda & Jenna
Her entourage was said to have inquired about the green room upstairs because ‘they didn’t like the one she was in, but Jennifer Lopez was occupying the room at he time as she arrived there earlier to promote her new album and film This Is Me… Now
Today stars Sheinelle Jones and Dylan Dreyer have previously showed their dressing rooms in 2021 and they did not look pretty.
Insiders for the publication claim that producers on the chat show had offered the star several other options including talent dressing rooms and larger make-up and hair areas.
They explained: ‘They didn’t want that. [The show] basically offered up as much as possible, but they weren’t happy with it, so they walked and they left.’
Today stars Sheinelle Jones and Dylan Dreyer have previously showed their dressing rooms in 2021 and they did not look pretty
Hoda was able to find a last minute replacement in Rita Ora (pictured on Friday) who replaced Kelly and is said to have ‘happily’ taken a dressing room previously used by Kelly
Meanwhile in Mea Culpa, Rowland plays a criminal defense attorney who takes a case involving an artist (Trevante Rhodes) murdering his girlfriend
Hoda was able to find a last minute replacement in Rita Ora who replaced Kelly and is said to have ‘happily’ taken a dressing room previously used by Kelly.
Meanwhile in Mea Culpa, Rowland plays a criminal defense attorney who takes a case involving an artist (Trevante Rhodes) murdering his girlfriend.
Filming took place last March at Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta, with additional photography taking place in Chicago.
The film also stars Sean and Nick Sagar, RonReaco Lee, Shannon Thornton and Angela Robinson.
Rowland also served as a producer on the film alongside Perry, Areu and Angi Bones and the film is streaming on Netflix now.