Jennifer Lopez had to fight to shake off her "diva" label.
The 50-year-old singer-and-actress – who is engaged to Alex Rodriguez and has twins Max and Emme, 11, with ex-husband Marc Anthony – always strives to be "better", and admitted the early days of life in the spotlight was "trial and error" when it came to learning how to behave in the public eye.
She said: "I had terrible things happen in the beginning of my career that I had to come back from.
"I did magazine articles where I said the wrong thing. It was a trial-and-error thing.
"And then you get put in a category of like you’re this person or that person and you’re a diva.
"But at the same time, I had to look and go, what am I doing? Because at the end of the day, it’s always do you like what you’re doing. And for me, it’s always about how can I get better? That’s why I do so much. How can I be better? I’m going to be a better mom, sister, daughter, friend, business partner, a better actress, better singer, better dancer, better producer. It’s always about, how can we do it better next time? Because you make mistakes."
The ‘Hustlers’ actress always tries to be her "best self", even when she’s having a "bad day" because she feels a "responsibility" to be nice to people.
Speaking to the LA Times in a round table with Charlize Theron, Renee Zellweger, Awkwafina and Cynthia Erivo, she said: "I feel like there is a responsibility when you’re a public person. You can’t get around it.
"I know we all want to be like, ‘Just want to be me’, and I just want to do this and I just want to do that. And I don’t care what people say or think. But we have to because we care what people say.
"And so it’s just about being your best self. And I think that’s where I keep my mind.
"It’s like you think I’m a good celebrity because what I’m trying to do is put my best foot forward all the time and still be myself, still be authentic to who I am."
While Charlize admitted she can be a "jerk" when she’s tired or it’s an "inappropriate" time, Jennifer admitted she could relate to that but she is "super conscious" of knowing this could be her only meeting with a fan so she wants to make a good impression.
She said: "I know exactly what you mean because I’m like that too. And I just try to stay super conscious of the fact that I have a responsibility and that maybe that person is never gonna meet me again.
"And it’s not that I don’t have bad days. I’m a human being. So I get tired. And people are constantly judging you."
Jennifer Lopez had to shake off diva tag
