Jennifer Lopez was supposed to be there. She rehearsed. She went to Madonna's house. She was IN, in the most iconic pop moment of the 2000s. And then—a movie got in the way.
The 56-year-old singer finally revealed why she missed Madonna and Britney Spears' "Like A Virgin" performance at the 2003 MTV VMAs, where Madonna kissed both Britney and Christina Aguilera.
"I was working on a movie, Shall We Dance, at the same time," JLo told Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live on June 8. "And they just wouldn't let me out of the movie, but we rehearsed and everything."
She had gone to Madonna's house, where the trio rehearsed. But they did not rehearse the kiss.
"She said that that's what she wanted to do," Lopez revealed, referencing Madonna. "Like it was a thing. She was like, 'And then we're going to get married. I'm going to be a groom. You guys, you're going to sing.'"
Christina Aguilera stepped in instead. The performance became one of the most talked-about moments in VMAs history—a scheduling conflict with lasting consequences.
Lopez has long cited Madonna as an inspiration. "When I was little, I wanted to be like her," she told social media show Track Star on June 5. "That's why I started coming to the village. I wanted to dress like her. I cut up my clothes to look like her."
"I always said to myself, I never want to get stuck," Lopez said. "I always wanted to keep evolving."
