Last Band Standing
September 4, 2001
Jennifer Lopez Vital Stats aliases: J-Lo, the former Miss Diddy hometown: Bronx, New York albums: “On the 6,” “J. Lo” single: “I’m Real” featuring Ja Rule body part most often lampooned on “Saturday Night Live”: ass Judges’ Scores
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Janet Jackson Vital Stats aliases: Janet hometown: Gary, Ind. albums: “Janet Jackson,” “Rhythm Nation 1814,” “Janet,” “The Velvet Rope,” “All for You” single: “Someone to Call My Lover” body part most often lampooned on “Saturday Night Live”: breasts Judges’ scores
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The Fight
Editor’s Note: Last Band Standing is the Daily’s
weekly battle to the death between pop stars armed only with their
latest singles.
Face-off: It’s good to see J. Lo ditch P. Diddy for an
up-and-coming talented rapper in the gravel-voiced Ja Rule. Her
sometimes mediocre voice blends well with Rule’s rhymes in “I’m
Real,” making for a surefire dance hit. Following her bomb, “Velvet
Rope,” Janet has made a successful comeback, with the self-titled
first single off “All For You,” a club and pop hit saturating radio
waves. She still has the power of her family name to support
anything she releases.
Weak link: J-Lo falls short in the lyrics category, as she is
anything but “real.” Shortly after being labelled an icon on MTV, the
blandness of “Someone to Call My Lover” falls way short of living
up to that status.
The winner: She may not be considered an icon, but
hooking up with Ja Rule for “I’m Real” was a fresh and creative
way for J-Lo to keep the hits coming.