Profiles of Singers

She is as much known for her ‘revealing’, precariously pin-held dresses as for her famous, famous number, Waiting For Tonight. Jennifer Lopez may have made her singing debut in 1999, but she has been a well-known actress in Hollywood since 1995. With the resounding success of her debut album On The 6 and her star turn in the film Out Of Sight, Jennifer has proved that she is not just a sexy butt and sultry charm, but a singer with oodles of talent. Along with Latin compatriots Ricky Martin and Enrique Iglesias, she has paved the way for the emergence of artistes from across the divide. A Star Is Born 

The daughter of a computer analyst and a kindergarten teacher, Lopez decided very early on in life that she wanted to be a star. Her parents wisely furthered her ambition by enrolling her in dance classes. She started out doing stage shows, but it wasn’t until she won a national competition for Rosie Perez’s ‘fly girl’ dancers for In Living Colour that Jennifer got the entry into Hollywood. Couple of seasons later, she got a break in television with the short-lived South Central. Two more serials followed, Second Chances and Malibu Road, both of which had a very short run. Jennifer closed her television career with Nurses On The Line: The Crash Of Flight 7. By then, the call of the silver screen was too strong for her. 1995 saw her starring in the sluggish Money Train with Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson. Though the men took a hammering, Lopez emerged unscathed from the experience. The same year saw her starring in Gregory Nava’s critically acclaimed Mi Familia. This was also the movie that brought her to the notice of top-notch filmmakers. Her next role was opposite Robin Williams in Jack, an “embarrassment” as she likes to call it. Despite that, she made it to the lead role in Selena. Her portrayal of the dead Tejano singer won her a Golden Globe nomination, as well as one million dollars, the highest paid to a Latin actress. 

Selena marked the turning point in her life in more ways than one. She got married to boyfriend Ojani Noa, but the marriage ended in a year’s time. Luckily, the notoriety did no harm to her career. Anaconda, her first film after Selena, was a commercial success even though it wasn’t appreciated by the critics. She landed a role opposite Jack Nicholson in Blood and Wine and starred with Sean Penn in Oliver Stone’s U-Turn. Her final effort was with George Clooney in the steamy crime thriller Out Of Sight. By now, Jennifer Lopez was a well-known face in Hollywood. She had achieved what she had set out to do: become a star. 

It was now time for her to exploit her other talents, namely music. With a major supporting cast Jennifer Lopez cut an album, On The 6. The first single If You Had My Love topped the US charts for five weeks, and the follow-up number Waiting For Tonight had her fans screaming for more. If there is something other than her sexy body and music that’s talked about, it is her relationship with singer Puff Daddy. Or looks like her past relationship, since rumours about their breakup are doing the rounds. The pressure of the gun possession case against Puff Daddy has perhaps taken its toll.