Jennifer Lopez

Jennifer Lopez Biography

Jennifer Lynn Lopez is a superstar singer, actress and performer. She was born on July 24, 1970. Her parents came to New York from Ponce, Puerto Rico. Her father is a computer operations manager, and her mother, a kindergarten teacher. She is the richest Latin American in Hollywood according to Forbes magazine[1] and also the most influential Hispanic entertainer in America. As a child, Jennifer always wanted to be a performer.

At the age of 7, young Jennifer went on her first tour - around New York City with her dance class. Jennifer graduated in 1987 from Preston High School, and she enrolled at Baruch College in New York City, but was dropped out after one semester. At the age of 16 Jennifer got a little break with a bit part in the film "My Little Girl" (starring Mary Stuart Masterson). But Jennifer's first love was still dance, and when she read about a scholarship to a dance school in Manhattan, she went down and grabbed the opportunity. At this time she was taking a full time course load at Baruch, working in a law office and taking her dance classes. Eventually this would lead to a falling out with her mother, who didn't want Jennifer to pursue dance as a career. When her mother gave her the ever popular "you live by my rules as long as you live under my roof" speech Jennifer took that as her cue to break out on her own. Not having anywhere else to live, she took up residence in the building where she took her dance classes.

A year and a half of auditioning with no success brought Jennifer Lopez to the verge of a breakdown. Jennifer then landed a role dancing as one of "The Fly Girls" on a production of "In Living Color". Subsequently, she gained ground in her next film, "The Money Train", with Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson. Jennifer's next role as Selena, launched her into the public eye, with her dancing and vocal talent. This led to Jennifer being picked as one of People Magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. A few more major roles followed with the modern film "Blood and Wine" and "U-Turn", which secured her star status.

After an extensive nationwide search, Jennifer Lopez was chosen to play Selena Quintanilla Perez, in the official biopic of the life of the fallen Tejano star. Taking part in the production of "Selena" would impact Jennifer's life in many ways. On the personal side, Jennifer's fianc Ojani Noa, proposed to her at the wrap party for Selena. They were married in Miami on February 22, 1997, after knowing each other less than a year. Jennifer's sudden rise to fame with the release of "Selena" the following month would put an excessive strain on the marriage. Some of her other critically-acclaimed films include Selena, Out of Sight, The Cell, and An Unfinished Life. In May 2006, MTV gave the greenlight on her executively produced reality show, DanceLife.

After news of the divorce with Ojani Noa made headlines, the gossip papers quickly had her romantically linked to the likes of rap impresario Sean "Puffy" Combs, Sony Music President Tommy Mottola and Salsa singer Marc Anthony. Her second marriage was to her former backup dancer, Cris Judd. Jennifer's next relationship was with actor Ben Affleck. Shortly after her break-up with Affleck, Lopez was seen out with singer Marc Anthony. Lopez and Anthony married in a secret wedding on June 5, 2004, less than a week after his divorce from Torres was finalized on June 1.

Back on the professional level, after a bidding war among a number of record companies, Jennifer Lopez was signed to Sony Music's Work Group label. Her first CD, a pop album with a Latin flavor (although mostly in English) was released June 1, 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. Lopez's second album, J. Lo, was released on January 23, 2001. On November 26, 2002, Lopez released her third studio album, This Is Me... Then. After a year away from the music scene, Lopez released her fourth studio album, Rebirth, on March 1, 2005. Lopez was featured in 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.

Jennifer 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.