It’s hard to believe that 2018 is wrapping up already! This was a huge year for Jennifer Lopez. As always, I like to take some time at the end of the year to count down some of my favorite moments of the year. Jennifer had a huge variety of projects and also wrapped up a few major projects, freeing up some time for new things in 2019. But before we jump into the new year, here are my top 10 JLo Moments of 2018 (in no particular order)!
Second Act
Second Act, Jennifer’s first theatrical release since 2015, was released on December 21. I LOVED the movie. It was funny, sweet and very empowering! I really identified with the idea that “the only thing stopping you is you”. It might sound silly, but seeing it and watching countless interviews where Jennifer spoke about the message of empowerment in the film and what it meant to her, actually empowered me to know my worth, be bold and accomplish something very important, but also very difficult. So thank you Jennifer and everyone involved! <3
Limitless Music Video
Jennifer premiered Limitless, the official Second Act single, at the AMAs in October and the music video was released in December to support the theatrical release. The female empowerment themed video marks Jennifer’s directorial debut and also features her daughter, Emme! I love the video concept and the overall message of “I am worth something. I have value. I am equal. I am limitless.” As a fan since 1999 when she released “If You Had My Love”, I’m incredibly proud of Jennifer for getting to this point in her very accomplished career and I can’t wait to see what she directs next.
Shades of Blue
After 3 seasons on NBC, Shades of Blue wrapped up this past Summer. I loved the show and especially Jennifer’s performance as Harlee, so I was sad to see it end. At the time, Jennifer told EW, “Where she winds up is so tragically, poetically Harlee. It’s perfect. This is where it needs to be, and this is the end of that journey. Whether she’ll come back or not for some special or for another season, who knows, but for right now this is what happens for her. It’s a tragic ending, but really poetic and beautiful.” If you aren’t caught up, stream all three seasons for free on NBC.com!
VMA Vanguard Award
Jennifer was the recipient of the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award at the 2018 MTV Video Music Awards earlier this year! She is the first Latin artist to be honored with the award. She put together an epic 10-minute performance for the show. The performance was amazing, covering the majority of her biggest hits. Jennifer also had a beautiful acceptance speech, giving a heartfelt thanks to her fans. Again, as a long-time fan, this moment was a long time coming and made me so proud to be a JLover!
Time’s 100 Most Influential
Another spectacular accomplishment this year was when Jennifer was named one of TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential people in April. Jennifer was featured on the cover of the magazine and the accompanying article was written by Kerry Washington. Jennifer was later honored at the TIME Gala and showed off a couple of of her many talents by treating the other honorees to a performance!
All I Have Wraps Up
In September, Jennifer wrapped up her Las Vegas residency, All I Have, after 120 shows. The critically acclaimed residency was a huge hit, grossing more than $100 million with 487,303 tickets sold during the 3-year run. All I Have is the highest grossing Las Vegas residency by a Latin artist and the 6th highest grossing of all time! I was lucky enough to be able to fly to Las Vegas on two separate occasions to see the show a total of 3 times! Both were such wonderful experiences. There’s nothing quite like watching Jennifer perform live on stage. She radiates such joy when she performs and I love watching her. Will Jennifer ever head back to Vegas? Time will tell!
Inglot Collaboration
In April, Jennifer announced that she was partnering with Inglot Cosmetics to create a new limited edition cosmetic collection! At the time, Jennifer said “It is something I have been wanting to do for a very long time. A makeup line seemed like a natural progression since people are always asking about the products I use and how I get the glow to my skin.” Finally we all get a chance to try to replicate that JLo Glow! New products continue to be released as part of the collection, including the recently released Holiday Set. Next up, a skin care line in 2019!
Super Saturday Night Performance
Jennifer put on a huge new show in Minneapolis ahead of the Super Bowl in February. Not only did she debut her latest single at the time, US, but she performed a tribute to Prince, Aretha Franklin’s Respect, and a ton of her hits. The show streamed and aired live and was later packaged as a concert and behind the scenes special on DirecTV’s Audience Network. If you missed it, you can stream it on the DirecTVNOW app. Jennifer also partnered with AT&T to raise money for hurricane relief in Puerto Rico.
World of Dance: Season 2
I always love the opportunity to watch Jennifer on my TV screen every week! World of Dance aired its second season on NBC this past Summer. It was such a success in Season 1 that the show grew from 10 episodes to 16! It was also renewed for Season 3 before Season 2 aired. Somehow, the dancers were even better this year. I won’t spoil the finalists and eventual winner in case you haven’t seen it yet, but it was quite a showdown! If you did miss it, you can stream it for free on NBC.com. If you’re all caught up, we don’t have to wait much longer for Season 3, because it premieres on February 26!
The Year of Music
Jennifer released a whopping 9 songs this year! There was a little something for everyone this year. Here’s a list of releases: Us, Se Acabo El Amor with Yandel and Abraham Mateo, El Anillo, El Anillo Remix feat Ozuna, Put Your Lovin’ Where Your Mouth Is (Poo Bear), Dinero, Te Guste with Bad Bunny, Limitless, and Te Bote 2! Six of the nine songs also have accompanying music videos, so music JLovers were very spoiled this year!
That’s a wrap on 2018! Jennifer has a lot coming up in 2019. World of Dance premieres in February, she recently told The Wing that she will be releasing a skincare line and will tour the US in June and July. She will also be filming Hustlers around March and another movie in August. I can’t wait to see what she accomplishes as I approach my 20th year as a JLover!
