Dance Again: What sets Jennifer Lopez apart as an MTV Video Vanguard

“My mom and I butted heads,” she revealed in a 2013 W Magazine cover story. “I didn’t want to go to college — I wanted to try dance full-time. So she and I had a break. I started sleeping on the sofa in the dance studio. I was homeless, but I told her, ‘This is what I have to do.’”

She went into full-blown hustle mode. Shortly after foregoing college, Lopez landed a full-time dance job in Europe. Now more known, she appeared in videos for artists like Doug E. Fresh and MC Hammer. Her big break came when she auditioned to be a Fly Girl on the television sketch comedy show “In Living Color,” but she had to beat out thousands of other dancers for the job. 

Show creator Keenen Ivory Wayans recalled how much Lopez stood out against other hopefuls: “I had been there six hours and seen every dancer in New York, and I was almost ready to give up. And then this young girl steps up and a spotlight landed on her, and she captivated everyone in the room."

That same charm and ambition that Wayans saw in Lopez helped her advance in her craft. In addition to her Fly Girl days, she continued working as a backup dancer for artists like New Kids On The Block and Janet Jackson. Fans may recognize a young Lopez in Jackson’s 1993 video “That’s the Way Love Goes.” She stayed on “In Living Color” for two seasons until she decided to take her career in another direction: as an actor.

As she started to make a name in Hollywood with her roles in films like “Selena” and “Out of Sight,” she never lost her love for dance. Hip-hop’s bad boy Diddy, and her love interest at the time, asked Lopez to appear in his 1997 music video “Been Around The World.” Being linked romantically made it all the easier to choreograph a fiery dance routine together. 

And just as landing her first big gig as a Fly Girl was a break, the 1999 release of her debut album, “On The 6,” served as the beginning of a new chapter in her career. Critics and fans alike began to see what she saw in herself as an 18-year-old college dropout. Her singing career took off, and she made sure to create ideal songs for any dance floor.

The music video for her debut single, “If You Had My Love,” not only enticed viewers with the many wonders of the internet, but her standout dance-break routine had “Jenny from the Block” showing off her Latin roots. 

Now, after nearly 20 years in the music industry and eight studio albums to date, she continues to incorporate her iconic choreography in the majority of her visuals. From adding her Boogie Down Bronx moves in “I’m Real,” to her hip-hop style in “Play,” to a steamy number in “Dance Again,” she’s constantly proving her “it” factor. Not to mention, she has choreographers like Darrin Henson (“Love Don’t Cost a Thing” and “Play”), Frank Gatson Jr. (“On The Floor”) and the Talauega Brothers (“Get Right”) to thank for helping her burn up the floor.

When she’s not breaking down the hottest moves in her videos, she’s helping aspiring artists fulfill their dreams. In 2007, she produced and created MTV’s “DanceLife,” a reality show that followed the lives of several dancers trying to break in to Hollywood. A few years later, she became a judge on “American Idol” to help discover the next big star. 

She also teamed up with singer Marc Anthony — her ex-husband — and choreographer Jamie King on Univision’s “¡Q'Viva! The Chosen.” The show lasted only six episodes before being somewhat controversially canceled. But for those six episodes, the show followed Lopez, Anthony and King as they traveled through Latin America searching for the next great talent to join a Las Vegas Latin production, which ended up happening in May 2012 as a farewell to the series.

She kept that same desire and motivational spirit in 2017 when she was brought on as executive producer and judge on NBC’s “World of Dance” competition show. As an artist who has studied the craft for over 40 years, Lopez is an ideal role model for future entertainers.

As MTV honors her with the Video Vanguard Award this year, we look to Lopez as a true icon on and off the stage who has elevated her prowess while proving how artists can visually change the game.