Let’s embrace the silence.
In the aftermath of Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck’s enigmatic divorce, the acclaimed singer made a pivotal decision to withdraw from her tour schedule, opting instead to embark on a journey of self-discovery. As Lopez candidly shared on the “SmartLess” podcast this Monday, this period of introspection, occurring “a couple of years ago now,” marked a significant turning point in her life.
During this time, the Grammy-nominated artist, now 56, posed some tough questions to herself: “What is going on with you? Forget about everybody else. There’s nobody to blame here except yourself in a certain way. … What are you doing? What do you have going on?” These reflections underscored her commitment to understanding her own role in her life’s narrative.
Lopez subtly alluded to her split from Affleck in 2024, hinting that sometimes people “don’t behave in a way that’s not great.” She jokingly remarked that she could divulge more details to podcast hosts Jason Bateman, Will Arnett, and Sean Hayes over a casual glass of wine, illustrating her openness to sharing her personal journey with humor and grace.
She appeared to subtly reference Affleck, whom she split from in 2024, by acknowledging that sometimes “people don’t behave in a way that’s not great” — and joking she could share details with the podcast co-hosts Jason Bateman, Will Arnett and Sean Hayes “over a glass of wine.”
Lopez noted that she used to “attract … certain things” into her life, adding, “Whether people outside knew it or not, I felt like my life blew up in my own face.”
Lopez, notably, was first engaged to Affleck, 53, between 2002 and 2004, with the duo reuniting in 2021 and tying the knot the following year.
Since calling it quits from her “Gigli” co-star, Lopez has looked inward and studied “patterns” in her past relationships.
“I was able to go back to that little girl [I once was] and really look at her,” the performer noted. “And just kind of going like, ‘You did this. You did all of this. Give yourself a little f–king something. A little love! Stop looking for love in other things and give it to yourself.’”
Additionally, her sister Lynda Lopez provided pivotal advice, advising Jennifer to be her own “keeper.”
She said, “These are all little pieces. I feel like the journey is little puzzle pieces that you fit in little by little as you sit there … and go, ‘It’s me.’”
The actress went on to rave over how genuinely “happy” she now is.
“The past 20 years have been this one thing, the past five years have been a tumult and the last two have been kind of the healing process from that tumult where I really got to know myself,” she said. “The person I am today is so different from the person I was even two years ago. It’s crazy.”
Lopez, who has most recently been linked to her “Office Romance” co-star Brett Goldstein, walked down the aisle three times before marrying Affleck, wedding model Ojani Noa, dancer Cris Judd and singer Marc Anthony.
She welcomed twins while with her third husband, and Lopez is currently adjusting to becoming an empty nester as the 18-year-olds graduate high school and head to college.
The tearful mom of two brought up the transition during Monday’s episode, saying she plans to keep busy with “fulfilling” and “intentional” projects.