Jenna Bush Hager may have lost Hoda Kotb as a co-host for the fourth hour of TODAY, but she’ll never lose her as a friend. In fact, the two women are still close, and Hager has learned so much from Kotb since her departure.

What Hoda Kotb taught Jenna Bush Hager about goodbyes

“It was a really good lesson in saying goodbye because I was so sad It was almost unthinkable that she wouldn’t be here,” the former First Daughter admitted to E! News about Kotb’s exit. “It’s been three months, which I cannot believe…it’s brought our team really close together. I’m obsessed with everybody I work with, and I really love where I work. So, it’s kind of a lesson in making sure you tell the people you love you love them.”

Now that Kotb isn’t on the show, she’s watching from home…and sending Bush Hager notes. “She’s giving feedback,” the mom of three revealed. “She’s so supportive. You all know Hoda, she’s like the most supportive, amazing force. But she definitely is, like, ‘OK, that was great’ or, ‘This is great.’ She definitely has opinions, which I love. I care about what she thinks.”

How the Jenna & Friends co-hosts have fared

With no permanent replacement yet announced, the Read With Jenna founder has been co-hosting the fourth hour, currently called TODAY with Jenna & Friends, alongside a rotating series of guests. And yes, she already has a few favorites from the ones who have come by so far.

“Dwyane [Wade] was so much fun and kind of unexpected. Dwyane was so much fun. He’s really soulful and super curious. I was kind of surprised by how much fun we had together,” she revealed, adding, “I also love Scarlett Johansson.”

Jenna Bush Hager and Dwyane Wade on TODAY, Monday, March 10, 2025. Photo: Nathan Congleton/NBC

Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager’s special friendship

Nothing, including semi-retirement, could tear Kotb and Bush Hager apart.

“We started off as colleagues/friends. We didn’t really know each other. Over the five years, there’s such a deep understanding of the other’s soul and purpose. We have traveled down these roads together,” Kotb shared during their fifth anniversary of TODAY with Hoda & Jenna. “A lot of times friendships don’t grow, you talk about the old days. Not ours. Like every day [there’s] something different, something new, something we’re learning.”

“We say ‘we’ for everything. I’ll tell mom friends, ‘We’re waiting ‘til 8th grade for phones.’ They’re like, ‘You and [Hager’s husband] Henry?’ I’m like, ‘No, Hoda and me,’” Hager added. “But to have a ‘we’ is so profound at this stage in life. Everybody looks for a partner that will grow with them, and here we are.”