She sings, ‘Don’t be fooled by the rocks that I got/I’m still, I’m still Jenny from the block/Used to have a little, now I have a lot/No matter where I go, I know where I came from (from the Bronx)’

Now, in 2024, Jennifer Lopez has even more now than she did when the song came out in 2002. According to Celebrity Net Worth, she has a net worth of about $400 million!

And having spent over 30 years in the public eye as part of the entertainment industry, the singer and actress is no stranger to media scrunity or bad press. But the hyper focus on her recently might be something even she is not used to

The singer peformed at the halftime show for the 2020 Superbowl with Shakira. The show was one of the most popular halftime performances in history. The performance and the lead up to it, was also heavily focused in the 2022 Netflix documentary titled, ‘Jennifer Lopez: Hafltime.’

The documentary also shows Lopez’s role in the 2019 movie ‘Hustlers‘ which earned her an Oscar nomination.

Accomplishing all of this at the age of 50 is no easy feat in an industry rife with ageism against women. With all of this success under her belt, Lopez was arguably at her prime.

So it is a little shocking to see public opinion on the singer turn so drastically just a couple years after she was perhaps at the peak of her career. One cannot help but question whether ALL of this could be linked to Lopez’s album that she released earlier this year, ‘This Is Me…Now.’

The music was not well recieved and the ‘movie’ project that accompanied it even more so. The movie has a 4.2/10 rating on IMDb and had scathing reviews from fans and critics alike.

I watched the movie and while it was not my favorite thing I have ever seen, I think the negativity she recieved after releasing it was unwarranted. Many artists have released bad music and bad films. The singer took a chance and it did not work. Turning on her so viciously seems like a tad bit much.

I have always been ambivalent toward Lopez.

So I decided to watch the movie and documentary to see exactly what was so terrible that it led to so much public ill will for the singer.

Her film, ‘This Is Me…Now’ while not my personal cup of tea, wasn’t the worst thing I have ever seen. The music film actively has Lopez poking fun at herself! It revolves around her penchant to fall into cohabitation at the drop of a hat. It heavily features her three failed marriages and her pattern of toxic relationships. The movie is about Lopez trying to find self love rather than rely on external validation. While it might have been poorly executed, it was not a terrible message to impart on viewers.

The documentary, titled ‘The Greatest Love Story Never Told‘ follows Lopez as she navigates the world of self funding her musical movie project. It takes you through what it took to film it.

And I actually found it very endearing.

The documentary starts with a crisis; the production studio has pulled out and they have lost their funding. Lopez makes the brave decision to self fund the project. She believed in thr project so much that she was willing to make the leap for her art.

She talks in the documentary how the project was inspired by her getting back together with Ben Affleck. The couple found one another again twenty years after they had first broken up. The first time they were together, Lopez released her album, ‘This Is Me… Then‘ which featured songs like ‘Dear Ben,’ a musical love letter to Affleck, who was her fiance at the time.

Having reconnected with her old flame again, Lopez was inspired for the first time in twenty years to make an album. Hence, ‘This Is Me… Now‘ was born. The new album featured a song titled ‘Dear Ben Pt. II.’ This seems almost like a full circle moment not just for her career but her personal life.