Nick Cannon is one of the most recognizable faces in television hosting these days. And while he has also worked as a comedian, actor, rapper, director, writer, and producer, hosting seems to be his career anchor.
He broke on to the hosting scene in 2005 with his own MTV improv comedy series Wild 'N Out and it was uphill from there. His weird mix of both charm and perceived arrogance, as well as his seemingly genuine interest in the festivities, is what really makes him likable to watch.
And now with talks of a new syndicated daytime talk show in the works, let's take a look back at his many hosting gigs, past and present, and how they rank.
Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest
This one was way back in 2011, and yes, hot dog eating contests and Nathan's are apparently popular enough to snag Cannon, who by that time was a pretty well-known name.
The annual competitive eating competition is actually a pretty big deal: it has been going strong since 1972. Cannon hosted that year in New York where he oversaw the big win by Joey Chestnut, who consumed 62 tubed meats as well as Sonya Thomas who ate 40 in the women's competition. Both devoured the dogs in just 10 minutes.
Lip Sync Battle Shorties
Lip Sync Battle, hosted by L.L. Cool J with help from Chrissy Teigen, is a hilarious competition series that sees two celebrities battle in an elaborate lip syncing competition, often with hilarious results thanks to choreographed musical numbers and silly costumes.
This spin-off, which first aired on Nickelodeon as a special hosted by Modern Family's Sarah Hyland in 2016, became a regular series in 2017 with Cannon as host alongside JoJo Siwa. It lasted for two seasons but ended in 2019.
The Talk
Like many other celebrities, Cannon was called upon to sit on the panel of daytime talk show The Talk on numerous occasions, often times as a guest but once as a guest co-host.
That time, in 2017, he co-hosted along with Paula Abdul where he discussed current issues with the then panel of permanent hosts that included Julie Chen Moonves, Sara Gilbert, Sharon Osbourne, Sheryl Underwood, and Eve.
Nickelodeon HALO Awards
In 2009, Cannon was tapped to host the HALO Awards for this network that airs programming for children, along with Justin Timberlake, Hayden Panettiere, LeBron James, Kelly Rowland, and Alicia Keys. HALO stands for Helping And Leading Others and Cannon actually also created the show as well as served as chairman. The idea was to see celebrities hand out awards to deserving teens who work to better the lives of others.
The same year that Cannon started Wild 'N Out, he also hosted Nickelodeon's 2005 Kids' Choice Awards.
The Nick Cannon Show
A spin-off of the sketch comedy series All That, which aired for 10 seasons on Nickelodeon from 1994 to 2005, this comedy series only lasted for two seasons of 27 episodes.
In the semi-scripted series, Cannon would encounter a situation that he thought needed changing and would take it over to make it funnier or improve it. He took over everything from a family to a school, a wedding to a rodeo, each time leaving his signature "Nick Cannon Was Here" mark. While the show had some pretty huge guest stars like Mary J. Blige, Eddie Murphy, and Britney Spears, it never quite lived up to its predecessor.
Caught on Camera with Nick Cannon
This documentary reality series lasted for three seasons back in 2014, and looked at events captured on cell phones, dash cams, security cameras, and by news crews, as well as popular videos from the now defunct short-form video hosting service Vine.
Viewers could see everything from a long car jump to a woman fighting off a thief, daredevils, people with road rage, and weddings gone wrong, taking place from all over the world.
The Masked Singer: After the Mask
Extending the celebrity singing competition The Masked Singer by an hour each week is a new after-show, added for this current third season, where Cannon talks about the events and the latest celebrity unmasking with judges, the newly unmasked singer, former contestants, and other celebrities. While Cannon is in a studio, everything else is done via video chat due to the coronavirus pandemic and requirements for social distancing.
The episodes also include clips from previous episodes, musical performances, and additional clues to the identity of remaining contestants.
The Masked Singer
Cannon currently serves as the host of the oddball singing competition series The Masked Singer, which hides the identity of celebrities under elaborate costumes, revealing hints before they take the stage to belt out tunes and the panel of judges try to figure out who's behind the mask.
The series has become immensely popular, wrapping up its third season in late May and already receiving a renewal for a fourth. A new season was set to be broadcast in the fall but scheduling will likely be delayed due to the coronavirus.
America's Got Talent
One of the gigs that made Cannon a household name for this generation was hosting reality talent competition series America's Got Talent, which he enthusiastically did from 2009 to 2016. Due to creative differences with NBC executives, however, he left the long-held post in 2017.
Tyra Banks took over the role afterward but was then replaced by Terry Crews who has filled Cannon's shoes very well, offering the same hilarious banter and good sportsmanship with the contestants.
Wild 'N Out
This was Cannon's first-ever major hosting gig and it remains his best. He served as host as well as creator of the sketch comedy and improv game show which has aired an impressive 15 seasons starting in 2005 and continues going to this day after being revived by MTV2.
The idea behind the show is to pit two teams of comedians against one another in a series of improvisational comedy games. Every episode also includes a musical performance.