Last week, Chicago rapper and actor Common canceled his appearance at the Chicago International Film Festival due to "unexpected scheduling conflicts." He was scheduled to receive the Emerging Artist Award at the Black Perspectives Tribute on October 18th.
In his place, Jennifer Hudson is being added to the ceremony and will be receiving an Artistic Achievement Award. (Perhaps they should just call it the Last-Minute, Make-Something-Up Award?)
Like Common, the young actress and singer is not scheduled to perform. However, fans of fellow honoree Sydney Poitier may be more likely to recognize her than they would a hometown rapper. Hudson won an Academy Award for her role in Dreamgirls, a film based on the Broadway musical of the same name about a young female singing trio in the '60s, while Poitier also won an Oscar for his role as Detective Virgil Tibbs in the 1967 film, In the Heat of the Night.
