Keke Palmer dropped a teaser Sunday that has podcast listeners circling Tuesday on their calendars.
The actress and entertainer announced that Jenifer Lewis – one of the most celebrated figures in American television – is the next guest on “Baby, This Is Keke Palmer.” The episode drops June 23, 2026.
Palmer’s announcement on the podcast’s Instagram account was short. “If you thought you enjoyed this season so far… you haven’t seen nothin’ yet,” she wrote. She described her upcoming guest as “one of the most iconic mothers in television.”
That framing is interesting. Palmer didn’t pitch the booking as routine. The language reads more like a genuine promise. A host doesn’t build anticipation that way without good reason. She clearly believes what’s coming will deliver.
Lewis has spent decades earning that “iconic” label, and audiences around the world would agree. She’s perhaps best known internationally as Ruby Johnson on “Black-ish.” The ABC family comedy ran for eight seasons. Her performance turned the character into one of the most recognizable maternal figures in recent American television history. Her following extends well beyond U.S. audiences.
The career goes much deeper than one show, though. Lewis worked on Broadway and built a Hollywood filmography stretching back to the early 1990s. She appeared in “Sister Act” in 1992 alongside Whoopi Goldberg, and later in “The Preacher’s Wife” in 1996 with Denzel Washington and Whitney Houston. She also published a memoir called “The Mother of Black Hollywood.” The title wasn’t promotional spin. Audiences and the industry had long thought of her exactly that way.
Beyond the credits, Lewis has been openly candid about living with bipolar disorder. That willingness to speak honestly about difficult things makes her interviews compelling and, at times, stunning. She doesn’t soften things for a tidier story.
That honesty is a natural fit for Palmer’s podcast. “Baby, This Is Keke Palmer” has built a reputation for personal, candid conversations. The show pulls in guests with real range. Palmer came up in the industry early. She later reached a significant new international audience with her role in Jordan Peele’s “Nope” in 2022. The podcast is her space to lead.
Two candid voices in the same conversation tend to produce something worth listening to. Conversations with either Lewis or Palmer individually tend to be memorable. Put them together and Tuesday should be more than worth the wait.
The episode drops June 23 on all major podcast platforms. Palmer’s message to her audience was clear: the season is only getting better.
