This post has been updated since it was originally published on June 12, 2022.
It turns out Jennifer Lopez wasn’t pleased with the fact that she had to share the stage with fellow Latina artist Shakira at the 2020 Super Bowl Halftime performance.
In a scene from her upcoming Netflix documentary Halftime, the 52-year-old singer mentioned that it was in fact “the worst idea in the world.” At the time, this happened while she was planning her performance with her music director, Kim Burse. According to an article published by Entertainment Weekly, Lopez said:
“We have six fucking minutes. We have to have our singing moments. It’s not going to be a dance fucking revue. We have to sing our message. This is the worst idea in the world to have two people do the Super Bowl.”
New York Post reports that Lopez’s longtime manager Benny Medina even said, “It was an insult to think that you needed two Latinas to do the job that one artist historically has done.”
As for Shakira’s side, fans were quick to defend her online. TMZ shared a couple tweets showing that the internet did not fail to call out JLo and show their support for the “Hips Don’t Lie” singer. Check them out below.
https://twitter.com/RandomRan__/status/1535250632478703621
https://twitter.com/nupersona/status/1535303653879316480
Halftime recently premiered on Netflix on June 14 and the documentary reveals that the Jenny From The Block hitmaker and NFL bosses were apparently not aligned with their vision for the show. According to BuzzFeed News, “It seems that J.Lo and the halftime organizers weren’t quite seeing eye to eye about the more political aspects of the performance either.”
In fact, one scene showed JLo in a heated conversation with NFL producer Ricky Kirshner. She furiously said, “I’m trying to give you something with substance, not just us out there shaking our f–king asses and f–king belly dancing,” she says. “I want something real. I want something that’s gonna make a statement, that’s gonna say we belong here and we have something to offer.”
BuzzFeed News reports, “Not long after the doc was released, this particular line of dialogue was shared across Twitter, with a number of fans raising concerns about what JLo might have been insinuating about the art of belly dancing.” (Just in case you’re not aware, Shakira is very much known for this particular style of dance.)
Fans were definitely not pleased with this comment from JLo, as some Twitter users shared:
To say that belly dancing, a Middle Eastern culture, has no "substance" is so so so ethnocentric and, perhaps, racist.
— Yuno (@byakugoshaki) June 14, 2022
But to imply that belly dancing = ass shaking, is reductive. Aside from the skill it takes, performing middle eastern art in the US, of all places, is massive and has substance.
— Ari (@adtellis) June 14, 2022
On the contrary, there were also some who defended JLo and claimed that everything was taken out of context. They believe that the American and Puerto Rican superstar was just trying to prove her point about the message of their halftime performance, and people have just misunderstood.
Did you watch the documentary?? she was trying to fight to project the message of the cages filled with children to the nfl producer and saying they’re more than just shaking their asses and belly dancing on screen, she had a message about human rights
— Anakin’s Missing Limb (@frangiaaa) June 15, 2022
when she says shake her ass she refers to herself, she didn't say anything bad about shakira, that's why she said that together they had more to offer than just another super bowl show, learn to read
— juanp☆ (@revivalrarx) June 14, 2022
https://twitter.com/prettyburnn/status/1536800680802889728
We’ll definitely keep tabs on official statements and comments from each party!
Halftime is now streaming on Netflix.
