In her new Netflix documentary titled Halftime, Jennifer Lopez opens up about the media attention on her body, explaining that she found jokes about her butt hard to deal with.
The 52-year-old singer originally broke into the industry as a dancer in the 80s before landing her breakthrough role as the lead actress in the Selena biopic in 1997.
Now over 30 years later, Lopez delves into her music career, success, and the pressure of being a person in the spotlight in her newest documentary.
One of the subjects she discusses in Halftime, which premiered on Tuesday, June 14, is the media coverage she received earlier in her career - specifically about her backside.
In a 2002 interview with Access Hollywood, the Hustlers actress was asked by interviewer Billy Bush how she "feels" about her butt.
Watch her (2002) Access Hollywood interview below:"Are you kidding me? You did not just ask me that," a shocked Lopez replied. To which Bush responded: "I did."
In Halftime, the 'Get Right' singer disclosed that she was always proud of her physique, saying: "I grew up around women with curves, so it was nothing ever I was ashamed of." But she admitted the constant scrutiny on her body got to her at times.
Lopez's figure was a topic everywhere on channels from South Park to the MTV Video Music Awards. In 2000, she wore an infamous green Versace dress, and the attention on her backside in the media only strengthened.
"It was hard when you think people think you're a joke like you're a punchline," she admits. "But I wound up affecting things in a way that I never intended to affect them."
The Hustlers actress also revealed that she nearly quit the industry early because of the lack of coverage on her career compared to her personal life.
"No matter what I achieved, their appetite to cover my personal life overshadowed everything that was happening in my career. I just had very low self-esteem," Lopez said.
"I really believed a lot of what they said, which was that I wasn't any good - I wasn't a good singer, I wasn't a good actress, I wasn't a good dancer, I wasn't good at anything. I just didn't even belong here why wouldn't I just go away," she added.
Ben Affleck, the singer's fiancé whom she also dated in the early 2000s, appeared in the documentary to recall what he witnessed when they were first together from 2002 to 2004.
"I said to her once, 'Doesn't this bother you?' And she said, 'I'm Latina, I'm a woman I expected this.' You just don't expect it. You expect to be treated fairly," he said.
The 'Love Don't Cost A Thing' singer said to push through, she had to "figure out" who she was.
Halftime is out globally on Netflix today.