Jennifer Lopez has been a superstar for a while, but she still remembers the first time she realized she had reached her dreams.
Jennifer Lopez has been a superstar for quite a while now, but the 46-year-old still remembers the first time she realized she had reached her dreams, which, surprisingly, wasn't that long ago.
Even after all the hit records, awards and GRAMMY nominations, Lopez still needed one more thing to prove that she had "made it."
"Probably last year when I bought my first apartment in New York," the American idol judge said when asked when she knew she had arrived in show business. "I used to dream about that when I was growing up in The Bronx."
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Believe it or not, the pop icon has spoken to ET a whopping 198 times, and we showed her some of her early interviews with us during a recent sit-down.
"It hasn't been overnight! There's no such thing as overnight in this business," J.Lo told ET in 1995.
"I knew everything about this business in 1995," she joked after reviewing the video.
Not many entertainers get to reach the summits that Lopez has and even fewer have been able to remain as relevant. While her path to success did come with a fair share of road bumps, she was able to overcome all obstacles by maintaining her passion and perspective.
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"It's just growth," she shared. "You guys got to see me all through my early 20s and into my 30s and now I'm in my 40s -- going from a girl to a big girl."
Lopez has certainly done it all, racking up titles such as singer, dancer, actress, producer, author and fashion designer, but her proudest title is being mom to 7-year-old twins Emme and Maximilian.
"They just bring me the most joy, and I know that I would not be as good a mother if I wasn't doing all the things that I do, because I am fulfilled as an individual," Lopez said. "Everything starts with you, so being fulfilled as a person, as a woman, as a performer, as an artist makes me a better person for them."
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For all of her accomplishments, we awarded Lopez with the first ever ET Icon Award. The distinction was created to honor stars that have made a huge impact on our audience over the span of decades.
"It is such an honor, honestly," Lopez said. "It really does mark a career, something like this. You realize how long you've been doing it, and you realize that people actually do appreciate what you do. It means a lot and I'll treasure this. Thank you so much."