AceShowbiz - Despite their authenticity on the "Today" show, Hoda Kotb, 60, and Jenna Bush Hager, 43, have encountered challenges in being themselves on television.

"If you don't fit, they want you to wear something a certain way, cut your hair a certain way, speak a certain way," Kotb stated on the December 2 episode of "Today With Hoda & Jenna."

Addressing Bush Hager, who joined as a correspondent in 2009, Kotb recalled, "I know when you came to the network, too, it's like, 'Welcome in, but you have to change.' "

Bush Hager revealed that NBC objected to her use of the phrase "y'all" on air. "[They were like], 'Hey, y'all,' isn't for the whole country,'" she said. "And I was like, 'Well, but it's who I am.'"

"It's so weird, and this happens in life too. If you have friends and then, all of a sudden, you're acting not who you are, and you're like, 'Wait,' something in your gut feels wrong," Bush Hager added.

Kotb acknowledged that it took them "a long time" to be themselves on the show. Kotb, who joined NBC in 1998, noted, "It took me longer than, I think, it took you."

Kotb's decision to leave the show in January 2025 has elicited mixed emotions from her co-hosts. News of her departure is bittersweet for Bush Hager, who has shared memories with her.

After Kotb's exit, Bush Hager will continue to host the fourth hour as "Today With Jenna & Friends" with rotating guest hosts until a permanent replacement is found. Craig Melvin will take over Kotb's role as Savannah Guthrie's news co-anchor.

As Kotb and Bush Hager's journey on "Today" has unfolded, they have learned the importance of being true to themselves, even in the face of expectations to conform.