Jennifer Lynn Lopez (born July 24, 1969), popularly nicknamed J.Lo, is an American actress, singer, songwriter, dancer, and fashion designer. She is the richest Hispanic in Hollywood according to SocialiteLife.com and the most influential Hispanic entertainer in America according to People en Español's list of 100 Most Influential Hispanics which pays tribute to Hispanics who have had an impact on their communities. In 2001, she was named the thirtieth most powerful woman in America by Ladies' Home Journal.Early life Lopez was born and raised in Castle Hill, a neighborhood in the Bronx, New York City, New York to Puerto Rican parents Guadalupe Rodríguez and David Lopez. Lopez spent her entire academic career in Catholic schools. She financed singing and dancing lessons for herself from the age of nineteen. After leaving a one-semester career at Baruch College, Lopez divided her time between working in a legal office, dance classes, and dance performances in Manhattan clubs at night. After months of auditioning for dance roles, Lopez was selected as a dancer for various rap artists' music videos, and was given a guest spot at the American Music Awards as a backup dancer for the New Kids on the Block and their performance of their song "Games" in 1991. After being rejected twice, Lopez gained her first regular high-profile job as a "Fly Girl" dancer on the television comedy program In Living Color in 1991. Soon after, Lopez became a backup dancer for famed singer Janet Jackson and made an appearance in her 1993 video "That's the Way Love Goes". Although she was originally set to be one of Jackson's dancers for her janet. Tour, she asked to be let go so she could pursue an acting career.
Film and television
Lopez has appeared on the short-lived television programs South Central, Second Chances, and Hotel Malibu, and the made-for-television film Nurses on the Line: The Crash of Flight 7. Lopez broke into the big screen in 1995, in the drama My Family and then appeared opposite Wesley Snipes in the action film Money Train. Lopez has played roles in Francis Ford Coppola's 1996 comedy Jack starring Robin Williams, and the 1997 thriller Blood and Wine with Jack Nicholson.
Lopez played the lead role in the 1997 film Selena for which she was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for "Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy" in 1998. She became the first Latin actress to get paid $1 million or more for a film role. Some of her other critically-acclaimed films include Selena, Out of Sight, The Cell, and An Unfinished Life. Lopez's performances were less well-received in the financially successful films The Wedding Planner, Maid in Manhattan, and Monster-in-Law. Lopez has finished shooting two new independent films: Bordertown and El Cantante. El Cantante was shown at the Toronto International Film Festival where it got positive reviews. Bordertown was shown at the Brussels Film Festival.
Both films were produced by Lopez and her production company, New Yorican Productions. In April 2004, Lopez guest starred in the sixth season finale of Will & Grace, playing herself. This was the highest-rated episode of the series since Elton John's appearance in 2002, and Lopez appeared again in the season seven's opening episode. In May 2006, MTV gave the greenlight on her executively-produced reality show, DanceLife. The show will follow the lives of six aspiring dancers as their struggle to make it in the competitive world of professional dance.
Lopez, who took an active role in selecting the show's participants, is slated to make cameo appearances over the course of the season and the show's eight-episode run began on January 15, 2007. Lopez made an appearance as a mentor on American Idol on April 10, 2007. The next day, she appeared on the show during a live taping as a performer singing her single "Qué Hiciste." Her performance received a standing ovation from all three judges.
Lopez is currently filming the latest Don Roos film, Love and Other Impossible Pursuits, based on the 2006 book of the same name by Ayelet Waldman.
Box office standing
Despite not having a film that grossed over $100 million domestically, Lopez is one of the highest-paid actresses in Hollywood and the highest-paid Latin actress in Hollywood history. Lopez appeared in the 2007 Guinness World Records as the most powerful actress. She was on the The Hollywood Reporter's list of the top ten actress salaries in 2002, 2003, and 2004. She received $15,000,000 for her role in Monster-in-Law. Her top-grossing film domestically is Maid in Manhattan which grossed $94,011,225. Meanwhile, her most successful film internationally is Shall We Dance? which grossed $112,238,000 at the international box office. Domestically, Shall We Dance? grossed $57,890,460 for a total of $170,128,460 in worldwide tally.
Lopez has sold over forty-eight million records worldwide. Lopez made the 2007 Forbes magazine's list of The 20 Richest Women In Entertainment and ranked ninth. Her wealth is estimated to be $110 million.
Music
On the 6 (1999) Lopez's debut album On the 6, a reference to the 6 subway line she used to take growing up in Castle Hill, was released on June 1, 1999, and reached the top ten of the Billboard 200. The album featured the multi-week Billboard Hot 100 number-one lead single, "If You Had My Love", as well as the top ten hit "Waiting for Tonight". It contained the Spanish-language, Latin-flavored duet "No Me Ames" with Marc Anthony. Though "No Me Ames" never had a commercial release, it reached number one on the U.S. Hot Latin Tracks. Despite this, the music video for "No Me Ames" received moderate airplay on the music channels VH1 (United States) and The Box (United Kingdom). On the 6 featured guest artists such as Big Pun and Fat Joe on the track "Feelin' So Good", which failed to make the top fifty of the Billboard Hot 100. "Let's Get Loud", the final single, earned Lopez a Grammy Award nomination in the "Best Dance Recording" category in 2001. "Waiting for Tonight" was nominated for the same category the previous year. "No Me Ames" received two nominations at the 2000 Latin Grammy Awards — "Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal" and "Best Music Video".
J. Lo (2001)
Lopez's second album, J. Lo, was released on January 23, 2001 and debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. When her film The Wedding Planner achieved number one shortly after, Lopez become the first actress-singer to have a film and an album at number one in the same week. The lead single, "Love Don't Cost a Thing", was her first number-one single in the United Kingdom and took her into the top five on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. She followed it up with "Play" which gave her another top twenty hit on the Billboard Hot 100 and reached number three in the UK. Her next two singles were "I'm Real" and "Ain't It Funny" which were quickly rising up the charts. To capitalize on this, Lopez asked The Inc. Records (then known as Murder Inc.) to remix both songs, which featured rap artists Ja Rule (on both) and Caddillac Tah (on the "Ain't It Funny" remix). Both remixes reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 for several weeks. She re-released J. Lo on her thirty-second birthday with the remix of "I'm Real" as a bonus track.
J to tha L-O!: The Remixes (2002)
Following the success of the re-release of J. Lo, Lopez decided to devote an entire album to the remixing effort, releasing J to tha L-O!: The Remixes, on February 5, 2002. This album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, becoming the first remix album in history to debut at the top on the chart. Featured artists on J to tha L-O!: The Remixes included P. Diddy, Fat Joe, and Nas, and the album included rare dance and hip hop remixes of past singles. Lopez's album is the first remix album to debut at number one on the Billboard 200. It is the third all-time biggest-selling remix album in the world, after Michael Jackson's Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix (1997) and Madonna's You Can Dance (1987).
This Is Me... Then (2002)
On November 26, 2002, Lopez released her third studio album, This Is Me... Then, which reached number two on the Billboard 200 and spawned four singles: "Jenny from the Block" (featuring Jadakiss and Styles P), which reached number three on the Billboard Hot 100; "All I Have" (featuring LL Cool J), which spent multiple weeks at number one; "I'm Glad"; and "Baby I Love U!". The album included a cover of Carly Simon's 1978 "You Belong to Me". It performed well on the charts, selling 2.5 million copies in the United States alone. The video for "I'm Glad" recreated scenes from the 1983 film Flashdance, leading to a lawsuit over copyright infringement.
Rebirth (2005)
After a year away from the music scene, Lopez released her fourth studio album, Rebirth, on March 1, 2005. Although debuting and peaking at number two on the Billboard 200, the album quickly fell off the charts. It spawned the hit "Get Right", which reached the top fifteen in the U.S. and became her second Platinum hit (after "If You Had My Love"). "Get Right" was also successful in the UK, becoming her second number-one single there. The second single, "Hold You Down", which featured Fat Joe, reached number sixty-four on the U.S. Hot 100; it peaked at number six in the UK and ascended to the top twenty in Australia. Another song, "Cherry Pie", was slated for a fall release, but the plans to make a video were cancelled as the album sales were definitely too weak and the promotion budget exceeded. It was released to radio stations in Spain. Rebirth was certified Platinum in the U.S. by the RIAA. Nevertheless, Lopez was featured on LL Cool J's single "Control Myself", which was released on February 1, 2006. It reached number four on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and number two on the UK Singles Chart. It was Lopez's first U.S. top ten hit in three years.
Como Ama una Mujer (2007)
Lopez officially released her first full Spanish-language album, titled Como Ama una Mujer, on March 27, 2007 in the U.S. and March 23, 2007 in Europe. The album peaked at number ten on the U.S. Billboard 200, number one on the U.S. Top Latin Albums (for four straight weeks), number one on the U.S. Latin Pop Albums (for seven straight weeks), and number one hundred and thirty-one in the UK. It set the record for largest sales for a Spanish debut album. The album did well in Europe peaking at number three on the albums chart, mainly due to the big success in countries like Switzerland, Italy, Spain, France, Belgium, Germany, Austria, and Portugal. The lead single, "Qué Hiciste" (Spanish for "What Have You Done"), was officially released to radio stations in January 2007. Since then, it has peaked at eighty-six on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, number one on the Hot Latin Songs, and number six on Hot Dance Club Play. It also went top twnety on the European chart. The video for the song was the first Spanish-language video to peak at number one on MTV's Total Request Live daily countdown. The album leaked to the Internet on March 15, 2007. The second single is rumored to be "Tú" (Spanish for "You").
Untitled English album (2007)
Lopez is working on her fifth English studio album, in which she is mainly working with producer Swizz Beatz. "It's coming out incredible", he said. "We're putting together some great things, and not what everyone's expecting. Think a little Jamiroquai, a little Sade. It's real feel-good music". Other rumored producers are Timbaland, Cory Rooney, Jermaine Dupri, and newcomer Peter Wade. It has been confirmed to be released in September 2007 and that Jonathan "J.R." Rotem is working on some tracks as well.[13] On March 27, 2007, Lopez appeared on MTV's Total Request Live and stated that the album's first single would be released to radio in June with album confirmed to be released in September 2007. She said that she's choosing between four uptempo songs for the first single. She stated she will finally be going on tour in late 2007 with a mix of her English and Spanish music. Lopez has confimed three tracks so far which are "Brave", "Wrong When You're Gone", and "Stay Together". Lopez played one of the tracks in Las Vegas in late April.
Business
Lopez owns a clothing line, JLO by Jennifer Lopez, whose brand has been licensed for a term by Warnaco Group. Her line includes different types of clothing for young women, including jeans, T-shirts, coats, belts, purses, and lingerie. In 2005, she launched a new clothing line called Sweetface. She is planning to launch a jewelry line, as well as an accessory line that includes hats, gloves, and scarves.
Lopez participated in the Louis Vuitton Winter 2003 campaign. In the fall of 2007, Lopez will retire JLO by Jennifer Lopez and launch a new juniors' line called JustSweet. The ad campaign will be featured in major magazines such as Glamour and Vogue. A runway show during New York Fashion Week is expected. Lopez's frequent use of animal fur in her clothing lines and personal wardrobe has brought the scorn of people concerned with animal rights. At the Los Angeles premiere of Monster-in-Law, more than one hundred protesters from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) held a demonstration to highlight their concerns.
Lopez told a radio DJ she was open to being educated on the topic. On April 12, 2002, Lopez opened an elegant Cuban restaurant in the South Lake district of Pasadena, California named Madre's. A media sensation was creating when during a press shoot for the fancy restaurant, a mysterious man appeared out of the sidelines and gave Lopez a floral arrangement from Ben Affleck, even as then-husband Cris Judd stood next to her. Lopez was widely criticized for what appeared to be infidelity on her part.
Lopez has ventured in the perfume industry, with her debut "Glow by J.Lo" which broke numerous records in sales, making history by being the number-one perfume in more than nine countries in less than four months. In October 2003, Lopez introduced a perfume called "Still". Before launching another completely new fragrance, she revisited 2002 "Glow" by creating a limited edition spin-off entitled "Miami Glow by J.Lo", in homage to her adopted hometown of Miami. Around the same time, Lopez came up with a "Glow" body line, which featured different body lotions and bronzers. For the Christmas season of 2005, she launched another fragrance, "Live by Jennifer Lopez". Most recently, for 2006 Valentine's Day, "Miami Glow" was replaced by yet another "Glow" spinoff — "Love at First Glow by J.Lo". Her latest fragrance is called "Live Luxe" and was released in August 2006, with "Glow After Dark" following its release in January 2007. She is expected to release another perfume called "Desire" in 2007.
Lopez is a spokesperson for Lux shampoo in Japan, appearing in the product's television commercials. Lopez has been recognized by People en Español magazine as both the cover subject for the "50 Most Beautiful" issue in 2006 and the "100 Most Influential Hispanics" issue in February 2007.
Personal life
Lopez's first marriage was to Cuban-born Ojani Noa on February 22, 1997. Lopez met Noa while he worked as a waiter at a Miami restaurant. They divorced in March 1998. Lopez later employed Noa as the manager of her Pasadena restaurant Madre's in April 2002, but fired him in October 2002. After Noa sued Lopez over the termination, they drew up a confidentiality agreement. In April 2006, Lopez sued to prevent Noa from publishing a book containing personal details about their short marriage, contending it violated the confidentiality agreement. She then had a two-and-a-half-year relationship with Sean Combs. On December 27, 1999, Lopez and Combs were at Club New York, a midtown Manhattan nightclub, when a gunfire erupted between Combs' entourage and another group. Lopez and Combs were being driven away from the scene when they were chased and stopped by the police. A stolen gun was found in the front seat of their vehicle. Lopez was charged with felony gun possession, but the charges were dropped, as she was riding in the back seat at the time. Lopez terminated her involvement with Combs shortly thereafter, and Combs reconciled with Kim Porter, mother of his three children. Her second marriage was to her former backup dancer, Cris Judd. She met Judd while filming the music video for her single "Love Don't Cost a Thing". The two were married on September 29, 2001, at a home in a Los Angeles suburb. Their marriage ended in August 2002.
Lopez's subsequent relationship with actor Ben Affleck was highly publicized, with the media dubbing them "Bennifer". Lopez announced her engagement to Affleck in November 2002, after Affleck gave her a six-carat pink diamond ring worth a reported $1.2 million. Lopez promised interviewers that Affleck was indeed "the one", and that they would soon have a family. The marriage, planned for September 14, 2003 in Santa Barbara, California, was called off just hours before the event. During the week before the scheduled nuptials, Affleck had been seen by press carousing at a strip club in Vancouver with friends. The media blitz intensified when it was Lopez's own sister who called in live radio to tell Lopez where her fiancé had been the previous night. Lopez would only respond by saying it was a terrible way to begin the day, finding out about Affleck's behavior in that manner. Publicists announced a permanent split on January 20, 2004. Affleck has refused to speak of his relationship with Lopez, only citing intense media attention as the cause of the break-up. Their relationship was parodied on the South Park episode "Fat Butt and Pancake Head", which aired on April 16, 2003. There was a mild media furor as to whether Lopez would give Affleck back his ring after the break-up. Lopez did return it and it was discreetly placed for sale at the original jewelers. Affleck has since married actress Jennifer Garner on July 1, 2005 and they have a daughter, Violet, born on December 1, 2005.
Shortly after her break-up with Affleck, Lopez was seen out with singer Marc Anthony, a long-time friend she had worked with in music videos. They had briefly dated in the late '90s, before his first marriage and her second one. Lopez and Anthony were recording a duet together in early 2004, for Lopez's upcoming film "Shall We Dance." He had separated for the second time, in October 2003, from his first wife, the former Miss Universe, Dayanara Torres, with whom he had two young children. Lopez and Anthony married in a quiet home wedding on June 5, 2004, less than a week after his divorce from Torres was finalized on June 1. On the morning of the wedding, however, the media was tipped off and circled her backyard in helicopters. Photographs, alerting the rest of the world, soon followed. Reports fueled rumors that Lopez was pregnant but this was not the case. Lopez's guests had been invited to an "afternoon party" at Lopez's house and had not been made aware that they were actually going to her wedding. Days after the wedding, Anthony was promoting his new album Amar Sin Mentiras, but refused to comment on their marriage during interviews. Lopez eventually confirmed the marriage in February 2005, but admitted that "everyone knows. It's not a secret". Anthony's daughter, Ariana, appeared in Lopez's music video "Get Right" as her little sister. Regarding his marriage and family life, Anthony maintains a private and sometimes defensive stance with the media, which has influenced Lopez to set some boundaries with interviewers.
Human Rights
On February 14, 2007, Lopez received the Artists for Amnesty International award "in recognition of her work as producer and star of Bordertown, a film exposing the ongoing murders of hundreds of women in the border city of Juarez, Mexico." Nobel Peace Prize winner Jose Ramos-Horta presented the award to Lopez at the Berlin Film Festival. She also received special recognition and thanks from Norma Andrade, co-founder of Nuestras Hijas de Regreso a Casa (Bring Our Daughters Home), an organization consisting of mothers and families of the murdered women of Juarez.
Discography
Albums
- 1999: On the 6
- 2001: J. Lo
- 2002: J to tha L-O!: The Remixes
- 2002: This Is Me... Then
- 2005: Rebirth
- 2007: Como Ama una Mujer
- 2000: Feelin' So Good
- 2003: Let's Get Loud
- 2003: The Reel Me
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