Jennifer Lopez Recalls First Time She Was Recognized in Public: 'I Was So Freaked Out'

As soon as Selena came out, Jennifer Lopez wasn’t just “Jenny From the Block” anymore. 

The pop superstar, 54, recalled in an interview with Variety the first time that she was ever recognized on the street — and how “freaked out” she was by the experience. 

Lopez opened up about the moment that put into perspective just how famous she was becoming while reflecting on the 1997 film Selena in a video interview.  “That was when I kind of became famous,” the singer/actress said of the hit biopic about Tejano star Selena Quintanilla. “I had been doing television and actually had done a few movies already, but with Selena, there was a new level of fame.”

She continued, “I remember walking down the street and somebody calling my name and thinking it was somebody who knew me. And I turned around and didn’t know them.”

In the clip, the Grammy-nominated artist then reenacted how excited the fan was to come up to her and how confused she must have looked. “I got so freaked out,” Lopez explained. 

“I was like, ‘Oh my God, I’m not anonymous anymore. I can’t just walk down the street. Like, if somebody calls me, it’s not somebody I know, it’s somebody I don’t know,’” she said while laughing. 

Although the “On the Floor” singer was a bit shocked by the first time that she was recognized in public, she revealed that she’s grown to appreciate similar interactions. “That was such an adjustment period for me,” she shared. “But then, you know, you kind of get used to it and embrace it and see it for what it is, which is kind of like love."

After dancing as a Fly Girl on In Living Color and a handful of smaller roles, Lopez was propelled to fame with the titular role in Selena. Not only did she become the first Latina actress to earn $1 million for the role, the breakout performance garnered universal praise and a Golden Globe nomination. 

Over the years, the Hustlers star has spoken candidly about how much the film and its star-making turn meant to her. 

Upon the movie’s 25th anniversary in 2022, Lopez paid tribute to the late singer and the project on Instagram by sharing a handful of old photos and a video of herself appearing alongside the musician’s family on The Oprah Winfrey Show in 1997. 

"What a very special day," the “On the Floor” singer wrote in the caption. "Today we celebrate and honor Selena's legacy and music."

"This movie means so much to me … Selena and her family mean so much to me, and I was so lucky to be chosen to play her," she continued. "I'll never forget this time in my life and it's an honor as an artist to have been part of the magic that is this movie."

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The hitmaker is gearing up to release her highly anticipated ninth studio album This Is Me... Now, due out Friday. The project comes 10 years after her last LP, A.K.A., and serves as a sequel to This Is Me… Then, her hit 2002 album about her and Ben Affleck's relationship at the time.

Lopez also collaborated with her now-husband Affleck, 51, on a film that coincides with the record, This Is Me… Now: A Love Story. The movie, which will hit streaming on Amazon Prime Video on Friday, is said to be a musical and visual reimagining of the life events that inspired her new music.