Upon launching her music career in the late 1990s, Lopez contributed to the "Latin explosion" occurring in entertainment at the time. Writing for The Recording Academy, Brian Haack described her as the "breakout female star" of the Latin pop movement in American music. She was featured on the cover of the first issue of Latina magazine in 1996, with editor Galina Espinoza stating in 2011 that there is "no recounting of modern Latina history without Jennifer". Around the time her career began to burgeon, the emphasis on Lopez's curvaceous figure grew; scholar Sean Redmond wrote that this was a sign of her role and social power in the cultural changes occurring in the United States. In August 2005, Time listed Lopez as one of the most influential Hispanics in America, remarking: "Why? Because over a decade ago, she was an anonymous background dancer on the second-rated sketch-comedy show. Today she's known by two syllables." In February 2007, People en Español named her the most influential Hispanic entertainer. In 2014, scientists named a species of aquatic mite found in Puerto Rico, Litarachna lopezae, after Lopez.
Lopez has been influenced by artists such as Tina Turner, James Brown, Michael Jackson, Madonna, Barbra Streisand, and Lady Gaga. Growing up, she was influenced by Latin music styles ranging from salsa to bachata, but it was the 1979 hip hop song "Rapper's Delight" by The Sugarhill Gang that she said changed her life. She was also "hugely inspired in her youth" by Rita Moreno's performance in the 1961 musical film West Side Story. Lopez has cited Janet Jackson as a major inspiration for her own dance and videos, stating that she "probably started dancing" because of Jackson's music video for "The Pleasure Principle".
More InfoLopez is widely celebrated for her callipygian figure, which was the inspiration for Sir Mix-a-Lot's 1992 hit "Baby Got Back". She has been credited with influencing a change in mainstream female body image. In Latin Sensations (2001), Herón Marquez wrote: "Because she wasn't rail thin, Lopez had broken the mold and allowed millions of women to feel good about their bodies. Suddenly, it was okay for women to have hips, curves, and a big backside." Vanity Fair described her buttocks as "in and of themselves, a cultural icon". Details magazine named Lopez the "Sexiest Woman of the Year" in 1998, and she led FHM's "100 Sexiest Women" list twice. In 2011, she was named "The Most Beautiful Woman" by People. The following year, VH1 ranked her the fourth on their list of "100 Sexiest Artists", while Vibe magazine named her the most "lustable" celebrity of the past twenty years. In 2014, Lopez stated, "There's this funny notion in America that you can't be a mom and be sexy (...) It's the craziest thing I've ever heard... The truth is that women can be sexy until the day they die."
More InfoIn February 2019, Lopez announced that she will be embarking on her first concert tour in nearly seven years to celebrate her upcoming 50th birthday. Titled It's My Party, the international tour ran from June to August, grossing an estimated $54.7 million from thirty-eight shows. In March, alongside her fiancé Alex Rodriguez, Lopez launched a collection of sunglasses with the brand Quay Australia. The following month, she premiered the single "Medicine" featuring French Montana, her first release through L.A. Reid's Hitco Entertainment label.
More InfoIn September 2019, it was announced that Lopez will co-headline the Super Bowl LIV halftime show alongside Shakira, which took place on February 2, 2020, in Miami, Florida. Her daughter, Emme Maribel Muñiz, also made an appearance at the show. On April 18, 2020, Lopez appeared in the television special One World: Together at Home, performing an rendition of "People" by Barbra Streisand, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Lopez will next star in Marry Me opposite Owen Wilson for Universal Pictures. Lopez is attached to star as drug lord Griselda Blanco in The Godmother for STX Entertainment, which will focus on the "rise and fall" of Blanco. She will also serve as an executive producer for the film, which is currently in development.
More InfoIn April 2018, Lopez launched her limited-edition makeup collection in collaboration with Inglot Cosmetics. That month, she was named one of Time's 100 most influential people in the world, and released a new Spanish single, "El Anillo". The following month, she released a bilingual single titled "Dinero", featuring DJ Khaled and Cardi B. Later, Lopez made a cameo appearance in the music video of Maroon 5's "Girls Like You", with Cardi B. With earnings of $47 million between June 2017 and June 2018, Forbes listed Lopez as the sixth highest-paid woman in music. In December 2018, Lopez starred in the comedy film Second Act, directed by Peter Segal; she also produced the film, and recorded the single "Limitless" for its soundtrack. Second Act earned mixed reviews from critics, but performed well at the box office, grossing over $72.2 million worldwide with a production budget of $16 million.
More InfoWe don't show ads. Help us keep it that way.