Jennifer Lopez's Instagram Video Goes Viral For All The Wrong Reasons
Twenty years ago, Jennifer Lopez, who was already a mega-famous millionaire, dropped a little song and accompanying video called "Love Doesn't Cost A Thing." These were true words, to be sure, at least if you're J. Lo (or Dire Straits, who'd previously informed us that being a rock star means you get "money for nothin' and chicks for free"). You'd think the intervening decades (plus a few divorces) would have taught her that the love part might be free, but the breaking up can be pretty costly — though J. Lo, like most celebs, is pretty darn wealthy. In fact, sometimes stars seem to forget that not everyone else is wealthy enough to enjoy the same luxuries they do.
Case in point: Lopez's recent "Love Don't Cost A Thing" reboot that she posted to Instagram. In this video, she casually strolls down a beach chucking expensive clothing and jewelry into the sand. If Miss Manners were to have been consulted, she'd probably have pointed out that the proper time and the place for such an ostentatious display of disposable wealth is a) never and nowhere and b) especially not during a pandemic.
Twitter's reaction is pretty priceless
While earning — and keeping — the love of her fans might not cost J. Lo any money, it does require some thought as to what those fans might actually want. And social media's not shy about reprimanding her when she gets it wrong. In fact, Jennifer Lopez's "#LoveDontCostAThingChallenge" was instantly hijacked by people who felt the real challenge lay in clapping back.
As one commenter put it, as per the Los Angeles Times: "J lo we supposed to throw our valuables on the beach? Is the challenge to find it after we throw it bc we can't afford to replace it?!?"
Another user seems to have launched a meme, posting: "We are in a panini, still haven't gotten our second stimmy & you want us to go out & throw our sh** away in the sand?!?" Whether this was an autocorrect accident or on purpose, that malapropism soon had the rest of the Twitterati jumping on board: "In the middle of a papa frita and have yet to receive a second stingray," and "Im sorry J but we are in a Planetarium & I can't afford to lose what little I have left."
We'll let this Twitter user have the final word: "Please stop, just be rich in private and leave us regular people ALONE."
Other celebrities have made similar missteps
Jennifer Lopez isn't the only star who's proven to be a little out of touch when it comes to reading the room.
Also in January 2021, Blake Shelton released a song about how his love for Gwen Stefani would make him feel rich even if he were earning minimum wage — which, duh, he wouldn't need, since the couple could easily get by on Gwen's millions alone. Needless to say, he came in for quite a roasting over this, as did all of the celebrities who'd earlier complained about the tough time they've been having quarantining in the lap of luxury. (Is "mansion fever" even a thing?)
Oh, and of course we couldn't forget Madonna's infamous bathtub video, the one where she's floating in the midst of rose petals and calling coronavirus "the great equalizer" — not to mention. Or Ellen DeGeneres' comment that quarantining in her own manse was like "being in jail." Yikes.