Former ‘The Wendy Williams Show’ Producer Defends Her Legacy in New Interview”

A former “The Wendy Williams Show” producer is breaking his silence about his time working for the popular talk show host in an all-new interview. Norman Baker is setting the record straight on his former boss, how he learned her popular series was ending, and how he felt about staying on to help Sherri Shepherd’s talk show when it replaced hers.

Sitting down for a new interview on the “Awf the Record” podcast, hosted by journalists Jeannette Reyes and Mona Kasar Abdi, Baker revealed that he learned about the transition from the media, as the rest of the viewers did, describing the situation as a “strange” occurrence.

However, Baker made it clear that Shepherd’s show moving into Williams’ time slot wasn’t a move by the powers that be against Williams.

Related: Wendy Williams’ Most Memorable and Shady Moments

“[Wendy] was not able to do it anymore for health reasons, and that’s truly the truth, as far as I know it,” he said.

He went on to talk about his transition from working as a producer on Williams’ show to Shepherd’s, noting that while they wanted to keep the same energy that Wendy viewers loved, he had to learn to adapt to a different style.

“You want the same show, and you get the marching order to make ‘Hot Topics.’ But you want it to reflect Sherri at the same time. And she’s hilarious, so you just pick funny stories that we could be fun with. So it worked to her talents,” he explained.

He also explained that while Shepherd’s version leaned more comical, there were still moments when guests didn’t appreciate their names coming up in conversation – although the words never got to the same level that Williams’ did.

Elsewhere in the conversation, Baker shared that no other host has been able to fill the void Williams left in daytime TV, citing her “irreverent” nature and her willingness to speak her mind.

“Nobody really is allowed to do that, especially [not] a Black woman. Being allowed to do that on daytime television is a big deal, and I feel like nobody really does that anymore,” he said.

Despite the ups and downs, Baker made it clear that his loyalties lie with Williams.

“I love her, still. I owe her so much. But I do feel very, very protective of her and her legacy. I know there are people who want you to trash her or say bad things about her, but I never had that relationship where it was negative. It was all positive,” he said.

You can check out Baker’s full interview below.