On January 16, 2020, Kotb and Hager announced that the Thursday and Friday editions of Hoda & Jenna would be recorded in front of a live studio audience starting February 6, 2020, and called Hoda & Jenna & Friends.[18] The revamped editions were broadcast from Studio 6A, formerly used by Megyn Kelly Today, instead of Studio 1A.[19] However, the program would later return to Studio 1A due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with another NBC program The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon moving into Studio 6A.[20] On October 6, 2021, it was announced that former co-executive producer of The Wendy Williams Show and Tamron Hall, Talia Parkinson-Jones would be named the new executive producer of the show taking the place of LaMarca Mathisen.