Jennifer López: "I always considered myself a dancer first than a singer or actress"
Jennifer Lopez as professional ballroom dancer
Well, to be honest, JLo is not a world class dancer. But she played a great role as Paulina, a dance teacher, in a movie “Shall we dance?”. In this movie Jennifer could fulfill her desire to dance – she performed all the Latin-American dances from Salsa to Tango and Waltz.
Since she was a member of the jury of American Idol, Jennifer Lopez found the best way to judge others, in the best sense of the word. And while there are those who judge his private life with three marriages (not counting Ben Affleck or Sean Combs), J. Lo was once again part of another style of jury with 'World of Dance'. Competing this time with ‘Dancing with the Stars’, but without stars, they awarded a million dollars to the best dancer in a world that she knows so well.
- For someone who started from very low as a dancer to become one of the most famous singers in the world, is giving a million dollars to other dancers like rewarding your own roots?
- How I work is a dream, because in a sense they literally created the perfect show for me. ‘World of Dance’ is a competition that has existed for a long time, I have known them for years. I myself got to stay with several choreographers of some of her dancers, every time I saw them with something new. They are famous for that. And to bring it to TV, with NBC, was to create a good opportunity to turn the best dancers into stars, so that they could create their own brand, imposing their names in addition to the millionaire prize. Nowhere in the world can a dancer win a million dollars. And considering that I started out as a dancer myself, it's the best thing I could have done in my entire career.
- What does the true world of dance represent for Jennifer López?
- I love dance, from my heart. I always considered myself a dancer first, because I became a singer and an actress after being a dancer. That was the first thing my mother had instilled in me when I was 5 years old. It was my first artistic expression and in a way it is part of my personality. And seeing children of 9, 10, 11 or 12 years old or people who have danced for a long time as well as such good couples, reminds me of all the reasons why I love dance, why I wanted to do what I do in the first place.
- What does a dancer need to be successful?
- To a certain extent it is the same as singing. I learned it when I was on "American Idol." Many people can sing, but not everyone can go up and dance or sing or feel something or cry. It's very different. It is what makes you an artist.
- How hard is the life of a dancer? Is it as difficult as they say?
- My God, yes, but dancers do what they do because they love dance. Nobody enters this world thinking "I am going to be famous", "I am going to succeed", "I am going to be a millionaire". The one who dances does it for love.
- How difficult were your principles then?
- At the time when I danced I remember that I could barely eat a single slice of pizza per day. He did not eat breakfast, he did not have lunch, he had dinner around six o'clock and he had to catch up with me until the next day. This is how I lived when I left my parents' house. And I did it for a couple of years, before I got my first big job. So I went to Europe and I would not change it for anything in the world. None of the dancers would. They love what they do. That is why they deserve better. That is why I say that I fulfilled my dream. I am not saying it to say, it is not just a typical phrase. No. It is a dream to be able to create this style of opportunity for someone who I know is equal to me.
- Was there not a moment in those early days as a dancer where you thought "This is too much"?
- Not at all. I guess it was also noticed in our TV show, because you saw what it feels like to be a dancer, you could see the passion and everything it means. It is irresistible. It looks irresistible from the position of judge, you can see the desire, the passion they have.
- Was being part of the ‘American Idol’ jury also a good school to achieve the success of ‘World of Dance’?
- When I got to TV, ‘American Idol’ already had a well oiled engine and I could really see how they did the number one show in the United States, how to do a reality show and a competition show. And in that sense it helped me, of course. Derek (Hough) even says that he feels like he had done the same thing for a long time. We all had enough experience to fly from the first step. We weren't rehearsing anything new for ourselves. But I also wanted to do something different, looking for something new. It is what we always try to do.
- Weren't you ever worried about the 'Dancing With The Stars' competition and the possibility of splitting the ratings with the same audience?
- No.
- How important were the rest of the judges in 'World of Dance', such as the dancer Derek Hough who in addition to being famous for 'Dancing with the Stars' is also the brother of Julianne Hough who is precisely a member of the jury of' Dancing with the Stars'?
- The great key in these shows is to have judges who have knowledge about what they are judging and they had a lot to offer, but they also have the best personality and we all get along very well with each other. I suppose the most important thing is, to have respect for each other, we enjoy company. And we were lucky to have all those factors. Besides, they were all always our first options. We asked NE YO, Derek Hough, Jenna Dewan Tatum. And we get them.
- The most unexpected thing you saw?
- To be honest, there were some dancers that I knew long before the competition. I know their names, we know them from the world of dance. But there were also younger people, with groups that even came from as far away as New Zealand and completely surprised us. Completely. Honestly, at one point we wondered if the youngest could compete against a group of adults. We did not know if it could work. And the truth is, we were all impressed.
- They say that ‘American Idol’ is back on TV, on ABC (Disney’s)
- Yes...
- And do you mean that you are also going to return as a jury with ‘American Idol’?
- I do not know i do not know.
