|
Jennifer Lopez: A
Star Is Reborn
 |
| |
TOKYO — Jennifer
Lopez can always
count on unusual
questions when
she visits
Japan. This
week, during her
three-day visit
to promote her
new album
"Rebirth" and
her upcoming
film "Shall We
Dance?" the
34-year-old
Latino star was
asked whether
she realized
that her "Shall
We Dance?"
co-star Richard
Gere resembled
Prime Minister
Junichiro
Koizumi.
Breaking into a
laugh, all Lopez
could say was,
"Really, I'm
sorry, I don't
know your prime
minister. That's
so funny."
It's been four
years since
Lopez last
visited Japan
and both Sony
Music and Gaga
were sparing no
expense. Her
three-day stay
reportedly cost
70 million yen.
Whether her new
album and movie
will recoup
those costs is
debatable,
although
"Rebirth" has
been selling
well since its
Feb 23 debut.
"When a new
album comes out,
it is always
scary because
you never know
how it is going
to be received.
Knowing it is
already a hit
here makes me
very happy. I
remember when I
first came to
Japan as a
singer/dancer
for a flower
expo. It was the
first time I had
traveled so far
from home by
myself. I've
always had great
experiences in
Japan," said
Lopez who was
born and raised
in New York's
Bronx.
"Rebirth" is her
fifth album and
signals a new
chapter in her
life. "I had
taken six months
off, which as
anybody who
knows me will
tell you, is a
big deal. It was
my first real
break since high
school. I came
back with a
relaxed,
rejuvenated
sense and I
think this new
album reflects
that. It is a
mix of pop, hip
hop, R&B, but is
a little more
soulful, with
funkier
elements. It's a
bit riskier for
me," she said.
Coming on top of
her new album
and her film is
her new fashion
line and her new
husband, singer
Marc Anthony.
Although they
married last
June, the singer
only publicly
acknowledged it
last month.
However,
questions about
her private life
are out;
instead, Lopez
wishes to focus
on her career.
Lopez has now
released five
movies and four
albums in the
past three
years. "I was
doing one after
the other," she
said. "That's
why I wanted a
break. ?eRebirth'
felt like the
first album all
over again. I
was laughing in
the studio and
having a good
time." She spent
several months
planning the
album, getting
involved in
every aspect of
its production.
In the music
video, she
appears as eight
different
characters.
"That was a lot
of hard work
because we had
to film it in
two days," she
said.
While Lopez's
albums have sold
millions of
copies, her
movie career
chugs along, a
hit here, a bomb
there. In "Shall
We Dance?" a
remake of the
1996 Japanese
film, she gives
a restrained
performance as a
ballroom dancing
instructor
helping stuffy
accountant
Richard Gere
alter his staid
lifestyle.
"I did see the
original and
loved it," Lopez
said. "It was
great to work
with such an
ensemble cast
and a beautiful
experience for
me because I got
to dance with
Richard. I grew
up watching him
in the movies."
Despite being
trained as
dancer, Lopez
found the role a
challenge.
"Ballroom
dancing is very
different. It's
like trying to
teach a hip hop
dancer how to do
ballet, so it
was hard for me,
as the
instructor, and
doubly hard for
Richard," she
said.
She will next be
seen in "Jersey
Girl," followed
by "An
Unfinished Life"
and
"Monster-in-Law."
She is busy
touring the
world to promote
"Rebirth" and is
going to build
her fashion
business.
And her key to
success? "I
think loving
what you do is
the key. That
and finding a
balance between
your life and
your career,"
she said.
|
