A backstage blunder sent Kelly Rowland on a surprise exit from Today, leaving Rita Ora to swoop in and save the day. The Destiny’s Child alum left the morning show set due to dressing room drama, as reported by Page Six.
Kelly Rowland made an appearance on Today alongside Savannah Guthrie on Thursday at 8 a.m. However, the R&B and pop music icon allegedly departed the New York set before her scheduled 10 a.m. slot as co-host with Hoda Kotb.
Rowland was scheduled to discuss her new movie, Mea Culpa, but reportedly left because she was dissatisfied with her dressing room. “Kelly and her team were not happy. They did not like the dressing room, so they decided to pull her off the show, leaving [Hoda] without a guest host for the 10 a.m. hour,” a source told the outlet.
Rowland’s team allegedly organized a game of “musical dressing rooms,” aiming for an upstairs green room as they were dissatisfied with the current one she occupied. Yet, fellow musician Jennifer Lopez had already settled in the room, having arrived before Rowland to promote her album and film.
The source stated that a variety of rooms were available. However, “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,” the source claimed.
After Kelly Rowland’s Exit, Rita Ora Stepped Up to Host ‘Today’
Following Kelly Rowland’s departure, Hoda was unexpectedly left without a Today co-host. Fortunately, Rita Ora stepped in just in time to seamlessly fill the vacant spot.
Rita took to Instagram to share a series of photos from her co-hosting gig. She revealed that it was an unplanned occurrence. “Well, this happened! We had two minutes to prepare ahhh, thank you @hodaandjenna for asking me to co-host the show…”, she wrote. “Everyone was so lovely and kind, I had SO much fun doing it!! Love to everyone that tuned in, maybe we should do more??!!!” she added.
On X (formerly Twitter), numerous fans expressed their views on Kelly Rowland’s rumored departure from Today. “I guess no one told her that she is not @Beyonce!” one X user quipped. “Well aren’t you a spoiled diva. Way to screw people over because you didn’t like your dressing room. If you think you’re on the same level as J-Lo then you are seriously off,” wrote one outraged viewer.
However, some viewers sympathized with Kelly Rowland’s Today exit. “All for them to eventually make Kelly’s interview about Beyoncé I would have left too,” on fan wrote.