Jennifer Lopez is one of the multiple covers for Paper Magazine’s latest issue. The theme of the issue is, like, “Las Vegas” or even more specifically, “people with Las Vegas residencies.” Mariah Carey has a cover, as do the Backstreet Boys. And Jennifer, of course, because her All I Have show is going like gangbusters – it’s incredibly successful and, I would imagine, quite lucrative for Jennifer. We’re sort of living through Jennifer’s most successful incarnation these days – everything’s clicking for her, from a successful acting turn on Shades of Blue to the Vegas residency, to her myriad side projects like perfumes and clothing lines. Everything’s coming up J.Lo! Anyway, you can read her Paper Magazine profile here. Some highlights:

She thinks Vegas is the sexiest city: “I do, I do. I think people come here to let loose and have a good time, and there’s a sexiness to that. You know, it’s that inhibition letting go and just having a good time.

Her favorite Vegas shows & gambling: “I was really big into all of the Cirque du Soleil shows — I saw every single one of those. And then the restaurants change here all the time. They’re always bringing in the best chefs from all over the world to draw people to gamble, so bonus for me. I don’t gamble, but I do eat a lot. Occasionally.”

Her workouts: “No, I do. I work out in the morning. It just loosens up my body, gets me ready, keeps me strong. You know, injuries come when the muscles get weak or you over-work them. So you have to keep them strong, too.

The costumes for her show: “Yeah — I get a lot of bruises and it’s a hard show on me. It definitely is. And then I like to do costume changes. I like to really put on a great show. It’s not about just the music, or just the dancing — it’s the costumes, it’s the changes, it’s the sets, it’s the dancers, it’s the band, it’s the moments…. Anybody I work with is like, “She has to be able to perform in this.” [We’re like], “And yes, we want three layers. We want a kaftan, and then we want a bodysuit, and then we wanna strip down [from] that bodysuit to a smaller bodysuit, so can you do that?” And then we kind of let them go from there.

She’s crazy busy: “I love acting, and it’s funny because I do such different things, and I play in such different lanes. It’s like being this character here at the All I Have show, and then being Harlee on Shades of Blue, or being in a romantic comedy, or being a judge on World of Dance. It’s all different hats that I wear. And I like it. I feel like I’m always challenging myself to be better, and do better, and do different things, and to not stay stuck in one thing, and to grow. Now I’m doing a Spanish album, and I just want to keep doing different things and keep challenging myself as a creative person, you know? It makes me happy to be able to create like that and just do all kinds of different things. I think people get surprised because they always want to put you in a box, like, “Okay, she’s a singer,” or, “She’s a dancer,” or, “She’s a producer,” or, “She’s a director.” “You can’t do all of these things.” And it’s like, “No, I can, and I’m going to. And thank you. And you’re welcome.”

[From Paper Magazine]

“No, I can, and I’m going to. And thank you. And you’re welcome.” I kind of love that. I wish she was like that about all things, including her love life. Now she’s with Alex Rodriguez and I sometimes wonder if he’ll be interested in having such a busy, accomplished girlfriend/wife in the long term. He just seems like the kind of man – much like Marc Anthony was – who wants his wife/girlfriend to “serve” his every whim and need and give up her career. As for the rest of it… I buy that Jennifer is pretty straight arrow, because she’s always been like that. She doesn’t drink a lot, she doesn’t gamble, she doesn’t overindulge. How did she ever manage to stick by Ben Affleck during the Bennifer 1.0 era?

Photos courtesy of Ellen von Unwerth for Paper Magazine.