J.Lo's 'Rebirth' More of the Same

Jennifer Lopez has the whole package. She can act (her film credits range from Selena to The Cell). She can dance (it’s how she broke into the business). And her fledgling fashion and fragrance empire is already worth a whopping $350 million.

But despite her releasing three CDs and swearing that music is her first love, the jury’s still out on one question: Can Jennifer Lopez sing?

Adam Graham of the Detroit News calls her voice “paper-thin and grating.” Jacqueline Springer of NME says it “lacks character, depth and variation,” while USA Today’s Elysa Gardner labels it “tangy” and “girlish.” It seems to be a consensus. But if it’s true, then how has this much-maligned singer sold 35 million albums? How has someone so “ungifted” met such success?

She’s pulled one over on her fans, that’s how. More specifically, she’s gotten millions of tween and teen girls to purchase not just another bottle of her Miami Glow perfume or her Sweetface diamond-studded jeans but, more importantly, buy into her image. And that—not her musical talent—is why her latest CD, Rebirth, will be another million-seller.

Two Sides to Every Jennifer
For almost a decade, Lopez has played out her persona as “the girl next door.” In movies she’s repeatedly cast as the streetwise underdog struggling to defy the odds. On her albums she’s spunky and full of girl power. And in interviews she often takes the “I’m just a girl from the Bronx” approach. Add it all up and you’ve got a likable, approachable role model who resonates in both the hip-hop world and the bubblegum pop culture.

At times, Rebirth caters to this image with uplifting songs. On “Hold You Down” Lopez and guest rapper Fat Joe share their appreciation for each other, affirming that “You don’t know how much you mean to me/Whenever you’re down you know that you can lean on me.” Elsewhere the singer declares that she loves her man “more than I can love myself,” even stating, “I would die before I hurt you” (“I, Love”)—a sentiment also heard on several other tracks (“I Got U,” “Still Around,” “Ryde or Die”).

But the J.Lo package also comes with serious flaws—and they aren't all vocal in nature, either. That’s apparent on Rebirth’s album art, which includes glamour shots of the singer lying seductively in a skimpy bathing suit and showing off her tanned, topless torso (one reveals the side of her breast).

Lopez’s lyrics can be just as problematic. After “letting Tony touch [her] everywhere” on the song “Cherry Pie,” she repeats the question, “D--n, why do the wild ones turn me on?” and then concludes, “I can be your cherry pie/And you can be my cream on top.” Double entendres continue on the sexually charged “Step Into My World,” where the singer promises listeners “the best of fantasies ... for your eyes only” and dreams of intercourse with her man. The album’s first single, “Get Right,” has J.Lo admitting to “playing” with men too much yet asking, “Can’t a woman take advantage of what she wants?”

Right now, what Jennifer says she wants is to settle down with new hubby Marc Anthony, take care of his kids, think about babies and live a more private, “little bit suburban” life. But she doesn’t want that to get in the way of her ever-expanding career, either—a career that’s routinely shaped by whatever sells.

So which is it: innocent, down-to-earth Jennifer or sultry media machine J.Lo? Both. This diva wants it all, and it looks like she's going to get it, even with a less-than-perfect voice. “I’m sorry if people think I do too many things,” she says, missing the point, “but I would be miserable if I couldn’t do all of these things. I just have to be me.”