The 50-year-old performer covers one of GQ's Men of Year issues as "Icon of the Year."
Don't be fooled by the rocks that she's got! Jennifer Lopez gets real in the new "Men of the Year" issue of GQ. The 50-year-old performer is named the magazine's Icon of the Year, and in doing so, opens up about her biggest career moments.
When talking about her role as the "savage" stripper Ramona in this year's breakout film, Hustlers, Lopez notes that she's never been motivated by money.
"I do things because I love them. I didn't get paid a whole bunch of money for Hustlers," she reveals. "I did it for free and produced it. I bank on myself. That's the Jenny From the Block. I do what I want, I do what I love. But it was kind of a really different mindset to get into to play Ramona."
Part of that mindset was complete and total independence.
"Whether she was doing great things or bad things, she was very clear about what she wanted and what her goals were. And that she could do it on her own," Lopez reflects of her character. "Like, you never see a man in her life. There's men. But she was so self-sufficient. For me, who grew up with my sister sleeping in the same bed, and then went from one relationship to the other, playing that character, and having to be that independent and in charge, I was just like, 'God, this is so empowering.'”
She adds, "It was fun when I was playing it. It was scary when I was watching it."
Lopez is very proud of the impact of Hustlers, calling the movie a "moment" for women everywhere.
"This is our movie where we run s**t. They know it's all women producers, women director, women writer, all women starring in it," she says. "And they kind of took ownership of that. We've been watching men take advantage of women in movies a long time. And so it was a fun kind of ride to see the tables turn."
Just because she's not motivated by money doesn't mean she isn't driven. In fact, her ambition is what makes her relate to her fiance, Alex Rodriguez, most.
"We're really alike in our drive, in our ambition. He's an athlete," she says of A-Rod. "He wanted to be the best. I'm the same way. I just want to be great at what I do. We're both like that. We're both super-hard workers. We're driven by our passions. And we have a tremendous amount of respect for each other."
As she moves into award season, where both she and the film itself have already received Oscars buzz, Lopez has another huge project coming up -- co-headlining the Super Bowl Halftime show in Miami with Shakira.
In her interview, the "Waiting for Tonight" singer acknowledges that performing at the Super Bowl has become a controversial topic, with stars like Rihanna and Pink passing on the opportunity in a stand against the NFL. Lopez says she has no conflicting feelings about taking the gig.
"I understand people not wanting to do it. Everybody has to make their own choices," she says. "They have to feel good about what they're doing. I feel like it's an amazing platform and one of the biggest in the world to put out whatever message you want to put out there. Whatever message of love or — I don't want to give anything away — I think it's taking a chance to do it. I feel that it's a great thing to have two Latina women in Miami headlining the Super Bowl, and what we could do with those 12 to 14 minutes to make people understand our worth and value in this country.… I think it could be a really beautiful celebration."
RELATED CONTENT:
