Jennifer Lopez

Jennifer Lopez, also known as J. Lo, (born July 24, 1969[1]) is a well-known Puerto Rican-American actress, Latin Pop and hip-hop singer, fashion designer, dancer and all-around cultural icon.

Lopez started in television as a 'fly girl' (dancer) on the television comedy program In Living Color in 1990. She moved to Los Angeles to film the show but initially hated it. When her boyfriend, David Cruz Jr., moved to L.A. to be with her, she learned to accept her new environment. She is now married with Marc Anthony.

She also played a small role in a short-lived television program South Central. She later starred in Second Chances and Hotel Malibu.

Music

Lopez's debut album, On the 6, a reference to the 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 #1 lead single, "If You Had My Love", as well as the top ten hit "Waiting for Tonight". It also contained the Spanish language, Latin-flavored duet "No me Ames" with Marc Anthony, which was an international DAN hit, though the song was never released as a single in the US. Despite this, the video received moderate airplay on the US music channels VH1 and The Box as a novelty. The album also spawned another international hit in "Feelin' So Good", a hip-hop track which contained guest raps by Big Pun and Fat Joe; despite the cross-genre technique pioneered by Mariah Carey being used on this particular song, it was a relative flop in the US, as it failed to make the top 50 of the Billboard Hot 100. "Let's Get Loud" was also released as a single, and became a minor dance hit.

Her sophomore effort, J. Lo, was released in January 2001 and debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200. The lead single, "Love Don't Cost a Thing" was her first UK number one single, and, along with its follow-up, "Play" (which was written by rising teen star, Christina Milian) it became a top five hit during the year the album was released. The album's next two singles, "I'm Real" and "Ain't it Funny", ended up becoming her biggest ever hits, with both spending several weeks at #1. However, to capitalize on this, Lopez asked Murder Inc. to remix both songs, completely changing the lyrics and melodies and adding raps from Ja Rule in both songs, and from Caddillac Tah to "Ain't it Funny (Remix)". The "I'm Real" and "Ain't It Funny" remixes were two of the biggest pop and rap hits in late 2001 and early 2002, respectively, and their more hip-hop sound gave J. Lo street credibility and brought her music to a whole new group of fans. She re-released the CD on her 32nd birthday, July 24, 2001, including Ja Rule's remixed version of "I'm Real".

Following the successes of the remix (again, a technique pioneered by Mariah Carey), Lopez decided to devote an entire album to the effort; the result, J to tha L-O: The Remixes, appeared on February 5, 2002. This album, too, debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200, marking the first remix album in history to debut (or even reach) #1 on the chart. This time around, she got 50 Cent and Nas to write rhymes for two remixes of her next single, "I'm Gonna Be Alright", which ended up becoming another top ten hit. The album also included rarer dance and hip-hop remixes of her past singles, and a new song, a ballad called "Alive", which was included in Lopez's movie Enough.

On November 26, 2002, Lopez released her third studio album, This Is Me... Then, which reached #2 on the Billboard 200 and spawned three very popular singles; the top 5 "Jenny from the Block", (sampling the track from the song "Watch Out Now" by the Beatnuts, and including raps from Jadakiss and Styles P), the multi-week #1 "All I Have" duet with LL Cool J and the top 10 "Baby I Love You!" (which also was the musical theme to Gigli). Another single, "I'm Glad", was also released, but only managed to go top forty, a rather low result considering Lopez's usual chart success. The last single released from the album, "The One", failed to make any impact on charts whatsoever. Another song from the album was a cover of Carly Simon's "You Belong to Me."

In 2004, Lopez once again participated in duets with Marc Anthony, this time on his albums Amar Sin Mentiras and Valio La Pena.

After a considerable amount of time away from the music scene, Lopez finally released her fourth studio album, Rebirth, on March 1, 2005. Debuting at #2 on the Billboard 200 to initially decent sales success, the album quickly fell off the charts and remains to be Lopez's biggest commercial (not to mention critical) failure yet. Despite this, the album has so-far spawned one hit in "Get Right", which reached the top twenty; still, compared to her previous high-charting singles, even this can be seen as somewhat of a flop. Even so, "Get Right" was her second UK number one, and also topped the charts in Italy and Ireland. The second single, "Hold You Down", which featured Fat Joe, only barely made it into the top 75, peaking at #64. It has recently been confirmed that J. Lo's next single will be "Cherry Pie" which will hopefully be released around the end of September 2005.

The single "Cherry Pie" release was cancelled by Sony Records, although it did debut in charts around the world due to radio air-play.

Jennifer Lopez has now confirmed that she will be releasing her first ever full spanish album in January 2006. The first single will likely be heard on radios in December 2005. It has also been confirmed that she will be releasing an English album during the summer of 2006.

Fashion

Lopez owns a clothing line called "J. Lo by Jennifer Lopez". Her line is the most successful of any artists' in history and includes many different types of clothing for young women, including jeans, tees, coats, belts, purses, and many other products. Furthermore, she is planning to launch a jewelry line, hats, gloves and a scarves line. She also has a perfume line out called "Glow", and she was in question before, because the name came from another patented perfume.

In October 2003, Lopez introduced a perfume called "Still". During November of the same year, she launched a new clothing line called "Sweetface".

Lopez's frequent use of fur in her clothing lines and personal wardrobe has brought the scorn of people concerned with animal rights. More than one hundred protestors from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals held a demonstration at the Los Angeles premiere of Monster-in-Law. For her part, Jennifer told a radio DJ she was open to being educated on the topic-and the DJ promptly told her animals are routinely skinned alive to make trendy furs.

She has also done a photoshoot to represent the Louis Vuitton Winter 2003 campaign, in which the pictures would be seen all over the world through TV commercials, billboards, ads, newspapers, magazines and more.

Other merchandise includes a clothing and cologne line for men due for release either in late 2005 or sometime in 2006.

J. Lo Inc.

Lopez owns a production company, Nuyorican Productions, in which she is expected to produce some of her upcoming movies. Some of the projects for the company include Carmen, Dirty Girls Social Club(featuring Jeffrey Wilkinson as Dirty Girl # 4) and The Hector Lavoe Project. This company was founded together with her former manager, Benny Medina, whom she filed a lawsuit against because of alleged fraud in July 2003.

The company produced the commercially-successful movies The Cell, The Wedding Planner and Maid in Manhattan. These three movies put together made more than $350 million at the box office worldwide.

Relationships

Lopez has been in two short-lived marriages. The first one, to Ojani Noa, on October 28, 1996 in San Antonio, Noa grabbed a microphone and proposed to her in the middle of the dance floor, presenting her with a large marquis-cut diamond ring. She said, "Yes." They were married on February 22, 1997. He was later named the manager of Jennifer's restaurant, Madre's. Her second marriage, during 2001 and 2002, was to Chris Judd, her former backup dancer. She met Judd while filming the music video for her single "Love Don't Cost A Thing". The two were married in a small ceremony (about 170 guests) at a home in a Los Angeles suburb officiated by attorney Barry Hirsch. The marriage also ended in divorce

Between marriages, from 1999 to 2001, she dated singer and producer Diddy [real name: Sean Combs], breaking up after a shooting incident in a New York night club. Both were arrested in connection with a nightclub shooting in December 1999. Police found them with a stolen gun. The charges against Lopez were dropped, but the charges against Combs stayed. He was eventually tried and acquitted. Their breakup was announced on February 14, 2001.

Lopez became engaged to Ben Affleck and confirmed this in November 2002, after Affleck gave her a reported $3.5 million ring. But the marriage planned for September 14, 2003 in Santa Barbara, California was called off a few days before the event. Stated in interviews during her engagement to Affleck that once married, she would go by the name Jennifer Affleck both privately and professionally. This never came to be as she and Affleck broke off their engagement and split for good in January 2004.

Lopez married singer Marc Anthony in a secret wedding on June 5, 2004, less than a week after his divorce was finalized from former Miss Universe Dayanara Torres. All the guests were invited to a "afternoon party", and they were never told that they were going to a wedding. Years before they married (or even became a couple), she and Marc Anthony sang a song together called "No Me Ames" which appeared on her album "On the 6."

Almost immediately after the wedding, rumors began swirling that the wedding was of the "shotgun" variety and that Lopez was pregnant. A devoted Roman Catholic, Lopez has said in the past that she would never have a baby without being married. Complicating the situation is Anthony's refusal to confirm his marriage to Lopez and the fact that his divorce took place in the Dominican Republic less than a week before his reported marriage to Lopez, making it potentially invalid in the United States.

Derriere

No discussion of Jennifer Lopez could be considered complete without discussion of her famously large and shapely rear end. Example: [2]

It has been the subject of much attention and many jokes, as when Chris Rock wisecracked at the MTV Video Music Awards that Lopez in her speech after winning an award "should have thanked her butt".

The size of her butt was actually one of the key components in helping her win the title role in the 1997 film Selena about real-life singer Selena Quintanilla-Pérez who also was famous for having a large posterior.

Even Channel 4 in the UK got in on the act, commissioning documentary maker Jaine Green to make 'Behind-the Behind', which famously asked hispanic ex-husband Ojani Noa, "Does she have a big arse?" - his reply, which leapt across the language barrier and was subsequently aired around the world was, "a big house? Yes very big".

Lopez herself joked that it's so large and upstanding that it could be used as a tray to serve drinks at parties. (This is a variant on an old joke. Groucho Marx once remarked that the one sister in his otherwise all-brother family had "a rear end that stuck a-way out... you could play pinochle on her rear end!")

In a skit at the MTV Video Music Awards, Triumph, the Comic Insult Dog begged Lopez to let him sniff her rear end, claiming that it was the equivalent of climbing Mount Everest for a dog.

Her infamous butt won her the title of Best Female Body in the UK magazine Celebrity Bodies poll in 2001 and #1 in FHM magazine's 2000 and 2001 poll of Sexiest Girls.

On a Hollywood television gossip show in 2004, an interviewer asked her, "How do you feel about your butt?" Her answer was given as "I can't believe you're asking me a question like that."

Claims to fame

Professional accomplishments

Became the first Latina actress to get paid $1 million (for her role in Selena).
By 2003, Lopez had become the highest-paid Latina actress in Hollywood. She still holds the record, earning $15,000,000 for her performance in Monster-in-Law (2005).
Lopez is the first actress and singer to have a movie (The Wedding Planner) and an album (J. Lo) at #1 in the same week.
Lopez's album J to tha L-O! The Remixes was the first album of remixes to hit #1.
Lopez's perfume "Glow" made history in 2001, by being the #1 perfume in more than nine countries in more than four months.
Lopez is the only woman who has been #1 three years in a row in FHM magazine's list of the 100 Sexiest Females in the World.
Lopez made the 2004 Fortune list of the wealthiest entertainers under the age of 40. Her wealth is estimated at $255 million.
Lopez made the highest debut of 2003 on the US charts with "All I Have" debuting at #25.
Lopez has sold nearly 40 million records worldwide.

Discography

Albums

1999: On the 6 #8 US, US Certification: 3x Platinum (WW sales: 9 million)
2001: J. Lo #1 (Debut) US (1 week), #2 UK, #12 ITA, US Certification: 4x Platinum (WW sales: 8 million)
2002: J to tha L-O!: The Remixes #1 (Debut) US (2 weeks), #3 UK, US Certification: Platinum (WW sales: 2 million)
2002: This Is Me... Then #2 US, #14 UK, #11 ITA, US Certification: 2x Platinum (WW sales: 5.5 million)
2005: Rebirth #2 US, #8 UK, #6 ITA, #10 AUS, US Certification: Platinum (WW sales: 2 million)
Total album sales: 26.5 million

Singles

From On the 6:

1999: "If You Had My Love" #1 US (5 weeks), #4 UK, #1 AUS, US Certification: Platinum
1999: "No Me Ames" #1 Latin
1999: "Waiting for Tonight" #8 US, #5 UK
2000: "Feelin' So Good" (feat. Big Pun and Fat Joe) #51 US, #15 UK
2000: "Let's Get Loud"
From J. Lo:

2001: "Love Don't Cost a Thing" #3 US, #1 UK, #4 AUS
2001: "Play" #18 US, #3 UK, #5 AUS, #7 ITA
2001: "Ain't it Funny" #3 UK, #9 AUS
2001: "I'm Real" (with "I'm Real (Murder Remix)") #4 UK, #3 AUS
From J to tha L-O!: The Remixes:

2001: "I'm Real (Murder Remix)" (with "I'm Real" - feat. Ja Rule) #1 US (5 weeks), 4 UK, #3 AUS
2002: "Ain't it Funny (Murder Remix)" (feat. Ja Rule and Caddillac Tah) #1 US (6 weeks), #4 UK, #1 AUS
2002: "I'm Gonna Be Alright (Track Masters Remix)" #10 US, #3 UK
From This Is Me... Then:

2002: "Jenny from the Block" (feat. Jadakiss and Styles P) #3 US, #3 UK, #5 AUS, #2 ITA
2003: "All I Have" (feat. LL Cool J) #1 US (4 weeks), #2 UK, #2 AUS
2003: "I'm Glad" #32 US, #11 UK, #10 AUS, #31 ITA
2004: "Baby I Love You!" #72 US, #3 UK, #21 ITA
From Rebirth:

2005: "Get Right" #12 US, #1 UK, #3 AUS, #1 ITA, US Certification: Platinum, WW Cert.: 2x Platinum
2005: "Hold You Down" (feat. Fat Joe) #64 US, #6 UK, #19 ITA
2005: "Cherry Pie" Radio single
Total singles sales: 11.5 million (13,000,540 source)

Total album and single sales: 39.1 million

DVDs

1999: Feelin' So Good US Certification: Gold
2001: Let's Get Loud US Certification: Gold
2003: The Reel Me #69 US, US Certification: 3x Platinum

Awards & nominations

1995

1995 Independent Spirit Awards: nomination for Best Supporting Actress ("My Family")

1997

1997 Saturn Awards: nomination for Best Actress ("Anaconda")

1998

1998 MTV Movie Awards: 2 nominations, Best Kiss - shared nomination with George Clooney ("Out Of Sight"), Best Female Performance ("Out of Sight")
1998 Empire Awards: nomination for Best Actress ("Out of Sight")

1999

1999 MTV Video Music Awards: 4 nominations for ("If You Had My Love"), Female Video of the Year, Dance Video of the Year, New Artist Video of the Year, Pop Video of the Year
1999 American Music Awards: 2 nominations, Favorite Artist - Latin Music, Favorite New Artist - Pop / Rock
1999 Soul Train Award: nomination for Best R&B/Soul Album - Female ("On the 6")

2000

2000 MTV Video Music Award: nomination for ("Waiting For Tonight"), Best Choreography, win for Dance Video of the Year ("Waiting For Tonight")
2000 MTV Movie Awards: nomination for Best Female Performance ("The Cell"), win for Best Dressed in a Movie ("The Cell")
2000 Grammy Award: nomination for Best Dance Recording ("Let's Get Loud")
2000 Saturn Awards: nomination for Best Actress ("The Cell")

2001

2001 American Music Award: nomination for Favorite Female Artist - Pop or Rock
2001 MTV Video Music Awards: 2 nominations for ("Love Don't Cost A Thing"), Best Dance Video, Best Dance Video
2001 People's Choice Awards: 2 nominations, Favorite Actress, Favorite Female Musical Performer
2001 Hastings Bad Cinema Society Stinkers Awards: nomination for Worst Actress, win for Most Annoying Fake Accent - Female ("Angel Eyes")
2001 Alma Awards: win for Outstanding Music Video - People's Choice Award ("Love Don't Cost A Thing")
2001 Alma Awards: 4 nominations, Outstanding Female Performer, Album of the Year ("J.Lo"), Outstanding Performance - Music, Variety or Comedy Special ("Jennifer Lopez in Concert: Let's Get Loud"), Outstanding Actress - Motion Picture ("Angel Eyes")

2002

2002 American Music Award: nomination for Favorite Female Artist - Hip-Hop/R&B
2002 MTV Video Music Awards: win for Best Hip-Hop Video ("I'm Real") - shared with Ja Rule
2002 NAACP Image Award: nomination for Outstanding Actress - Motion Picture ("Maid in Manhattan")
2002 Hastings Bad Cinema Society Stinkers Awards: nomination for Worst Actress ("Enough")

2003

2003 American Music Award: win for Favorite Female Artist - Pop / Rock
2003 MTV Video Music Awards: 4 nominations for ("I'm Glad"), Best Female Video, Best Dance Video, Best Choreography in a Video, Best Art Direction in a Video
2003 Hastings Bad Cinema Society Stinker Awards: 3 wins, Worst Actress ("Gigli"), Worst On-Screen Couple (Ben Aflleck, Jennifer Lopez - Gigli), Worst Fake Accent - Female ("Gigli")
2003 Golden Raspberry Awards: 2 wins, Worst Actress, Worst Screen Couple ("Gigli")

2004

2004 Golden Raspberry Awards: 2 nominations, Worst Screen Couple, Worst Supporting Actress for ("Jersey Girl")
2004 People's Choice Awards: nomination for Best Smile

2005

2005 MTV Video Music Awards: 4 nominations for ("Get Right"), Best Editing in a Video, Best Direction in a Video, Best Dance Video, Best Choreography in a Video

Nicknames

J.Lo or "Jaylo"
Jen
Jenny
Jenny-Lo
Jenny from The Block
Bella ("beautiful" in spanish)
"La Guitarra" ("the guitar" in Spanish --because of the shape of her body)
La Lopez

Filmography

My Little Girl (1986)
Lambada (1990)
My Family (1995)
Money Train (1995)
Jack (1996)
Blood and Wine (1996)
Selena (1997)
Anaconda (1997)
U Turn (1997)
Out of Sight (1998)
Antz (1998) (voice)
The Cell (2000)
The Wedding Planner (2001)
Angel Eyes (2001)
Enough (2002)
Maid in Manhattan (2002)
Gigli (2003)
Jersey Girl (2004)
Shall We Dance (2004)
Monster-in-Law (2005)
An Unfinished Life (2005)
Bordertown (2006) (currently filming) (also producer)
El Cantante (TBA) (currently in pre production)(also producer)