The Ben in Bennifer is Actually Benny Medina
The Friday Post.
It’s not Bennifer it’s Benny-fer, was the third thought to pop into my head after I reviewed the footage from Jennifer Lopez’s Bridgerton-themed 55th birthday party. The first was “I told you so,” (because devoted Hung Up readers will recall that I did say J.Lo was having a big Hamptons bday). The second was “Of course Ben Affleck no-showed.” The fourth was that, and it really pains me to say this, we’ve strayed so far for “52 … What It Do.”
Instead of that iconic yacht birthday that confirmed what was then unthinkable — that Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez were getting back together — this year we get a party for many but a table for one. At Lopez’s Southampton bash, she was flanked by her mother Guadalupe Rodríguez and her longtime manager Benny Medina. The day had a horse-drawn carriage, a live orchestra, one outfit change, and a vocal performance from J.Lo, plus an impromptu duet with her friend and vocal coach Stevie Mackey.
Affleck wasn’t there, but did you expect him to be? The real marriage in J.Lo’s life is Medina. He’s the one who co-signs all her delusions, who will yes her into a failing album. He helped Tommy Mottola launch J.Lo’s career’s first stage (as a Mariah Carey competitor), later managed Mariah, and then returned to the J.Lo camp where he’s been ever since. (It was rumored that his contract with Lopez says he can’t manage Carey … as if she’d ever take him back.) Medina is the man who barked at that everyman producer not to call “Bennifer: The Album: The Movie: The Documentary” (This Is Me…Now: A Love Story) just a “music video.” When I saw this frame in her bday recap, all I could was laugh. This is the only man matching her freak:
“Her summer isn’t exactly what she originally had planned, but she’s making the best of it,” a source told People of her summer pap strolls in the Hamptons. I know it’s trendy to find J.Lo annoying, and sometimes I do — certainly she is permanently that one aunt that your mom has raised you to be skeptical of. (She is our nation’s leading July leo, after all.) But I can’t help being a little … saddened … by this display. There’s nothing more human than two people not being able to work it out. J.Lo’s birthday party is over-the-top and obnoxious, but why shouldn’t she put on a show? She is doing what she always does, giving us a front-row seat to the making and unmaking of this marriage. At least she’s consistent.
What the paid list got this week:
A ranking of the Love Island USA cast, a blog about Drake’s ugly bathroom (with my thoughts on the Barack Obama-Jennifer Aniston rumor), and a chat about our favorite sexy movie moments.
Links, Please
Moses Sumney with the best greatest for downloading (or re-downloading) Shazam: “Do you not feel the burn of existential curiosity searing a hole into your soul constantly?” (Perfectly Imperfect)
Danyel Smith’s chilling, rigorous writing on her professional experiences with Diddy, and the hip hop culture that surrounded him: “I Knew Diddy for Years. What I Now Remember Haunts Me.” (NYT)
My friend Astead has a politics podcast at the Times, and I listen to his podcast more than I listen to my own. (I mean why would I listen to my own podcast consistently … I already know what I have to say.) The last few episodes about Kamala securing the nomination, Biden dropping out (and about the wives of men incarcerated after January 6 learning just how nebulous the criminal justice system can be) have been pretty spectacular. (The Run-Up)
Here’s the trailer for the Timothee Chalamet Bob Dyan biopic, and here’s the trailer for the first season of Love Is Blind UK.
The Olympics coverage I really want: what goes down in the gifting suite. (
)Gigi going ten does down behind Bradley Cooper?! Hmm. (
)That’s all this week. Thank you for reading! There’s a recap of all the Love Island drama after the paywall.
Katy Cats are doxxing me over this tweet so my account is private for the time being, lmao. If they only knew! Alas. Have a good weekend!
Assorted Love Island updates:
Aaron did an AMA and in the background you can clearly hear Kaylor
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