Jennifer Lynn Affleck (née Lopez; born July 24, 1969), also known as J.Lo, is an American singer, actress, and dancer. In 1991, she began appearing as a Fly Girl dancer on the sketch comedy television series In Living Color, where she remained a regular until she decided to pursue an acting career in 1993. For her first leading role in Selena (1997), she became the first Hispanic actress to earn over US$1 million for a film. She went on to star in Anaconda (1997) and Out of Sight (1998) and established herself as the highest-paid Hispanic actress in Hollywood.

Lopez ventured into the music industry with her debut studio album On the 6 (1999), which helped propel the Latin pop movement in American music, and later starred in the psychological horror The Cell (2000). With the simultaneous release of her second studio album J.Lo and her romantic comedy The Wedding Planner in 2001, she became the first woman to have a number-one album and film in the same week. Her 2002 release, J to tha L–O! The Remixes, became the first remix album in history to debut atop the US Billboard 200. Later that year, she released her third studio album, This Is Me... Then and starred in the film Maid in Manhattan.

After starring in Gigli (2003), a critical and commercial failure, Lopez starred in the successful romantic comedies Shall We Dance? (2004) and Monster-in-Law (2005). Her fifth studio album, Como Ama una Mujer (2007), had the highest first week sales for a debut Spanish album in the United States. Following a relatively unsuccessful period, she returned to prominence in 2011 with her appearance as a judge on American Idol and released her seventh studio album, Love?. From 2016 to 2018, she starred in the police drama series Shades of Blue and performed a residency show, Jennifer Lopez: All I Have, at Planet Hollywood, Las Vegas. She also produced and served as a judge on World of Dance (2017–2020). In 2019, she garnered critical acclaim for her performance as a stripper in the crime drama Hustlers.

Lopez is considered a pop culture icon, and is often described as a triple threat entertainer. With a cumulative film gross of US$3.1 billion and estimated global sales of 80 million records, she is considered the most influential Hispanic entertainer in North America. In 2012, Forbes ranked her the world's most powerful celebrity, and the 38th most powerful woman in the world. Times listed her among their 100 most influential people in the world in 2018. Her most successful singles on the US Billboard Hot 100 include “If You Had My Love”, “I'm Real”, “Ain't It Funny”, “All I Have”, and “On the Floor”. For her contributions to the recording industry, she has a landmark star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and has received the Billboard Icon Award and the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award, among other honors. Her other ventures include beauty and clothing lines, fragrances, a production company, and a charitable foundation.

Jennifer Lynn Lopez was born on July 24, 1969 in Bronx, a borough of New York City, and raised in its Castle Hill neighborhood. Her parents, David López and Guadalupe Rodríguez, were born in Puerto Rico and moved to the U.S. mainland as children. After serving in the army, David worked as a computer technician at Guardian Insurance Company. Guadalupe was a housewife for the first ten years of Lopez's life and later worked as a Tupperware salesperson and a kindergarten and gym teacher. They divorced in the 1990’s after 33 years of marriage.

Lopez is a supporter of the Democratic Party, and has a long history of backing Democratic candidates for public office. Lopez is also an avid supporter of LGBT rights, and has raised millions of dollars for HIV/AIDS research. In June 2013, amfAR presented Lopez with its humanitarian award for her philanthropic work. That September, she was awarded the Ally for Equality award presented by the Human Rights Campaign, for her support of the LGBT community. The following year, she received the GLAAD Vanguard Award. In July 2016, Lopez released a single entitled “Love Make the World Go Round”, a collaboration with Lin-Manuel Miranda, which benefits victims of the Orlando nightclub shooting. She was also featured on the song “Hands” along with numerous other artists, also benefiting those affected by the Orlando shooting. Among numerous other artists, Lopez signed an open letter from Billboard magazine to the United States Congress in 2016, which demanded action on gun control.

Lopez endorsed President Barack Obama in his 2012 presidential campaign, speaking in television advertisements and attending a fundraising event for Obama in Paris. She endorsed Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton in 2016, headlining a free concert in Florida in support of her that October. In June 2020, Lopez attended a Black Lives Matter movement protest in Los Angeles, in connection with the broader George Floyd protests. Lopez has also been an active advocate for the Time's Up movement. She endorsed President Joe Biden in his 2020 presidential campaign and also performed at his 2021 inauguration in Washington, D.C. In January 2022, she became one of the Co-Chairs for Michelle Obama’s When We All Vote.

Source: en.wikipedia.org