Core Post 5 - JLO - Hana Lee

In our readings centered around Jennifer Lopez and her famous booty 🍑the discussion launches into JLo's embrace of her ethnically-given curves.

With JLo claiming the original booty, pre Nicki Minaj, Iggy Azalea, and Kim Kardashian, it is interesting to see her influence on the perception of butts in Hollywood. Back in 2014, in an interview with Power 106, Jennifer spoke to how "in Hollywood, it’s a little bit of a novelty" (Us Magazine). She further goes on to explain that "for [them], who grew up where [they] grew up, it wasn’t that big of a deal!" In the fashion of becoming a more progressive society and the changing trends in body types, we see how JLo catalyzed the acceptance of curves. Jennifer was the exception to the rule, as Beltrans declares her embrace empowering, for she did not succumb to society's Eurocentric body standards.

With the increasing popularity of the butt, the thicc body type, and an overall growing appreciation for bodies beyond the skinny, model-like bodies we have seen in years past, I wanted to analyze the proportion of plastic surgeries over the last couple years. In a study by the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, from 2015 to 2016, there was a global increase of fat transfers for buttock augmentation and butt lifts by 10% and 14% respectively. I also found it interesting that the percentage of transplants for buttock augmentation decreased by 4%.

As other studies have shown the negative side effects and possible dangers of injections and implants, one star came to mind for me: Kimberly Michelle Pate, formerly known at K.Michelle who you may recognize as an R&B singer and a cast member of Love and Hip Hop: Atlanta. At the end of 2017, going into 2018, Kimberly announced in an Instagram post that she would be party ways with Betsy, her beloved booty due to health reasons. In the post she details the inflammation her implants would cause, just one potential side effect of buttock augmentation. 

It is interesting to see this shift from the butt being a "novelty" to being trendy and this newfound perception of the body illustrates how JLo and the stars known for their behinds have reclaimed the body part and pushed the standards of beauty to where they are today.