Jennifer Lopez: Dating Younger Men is ‘No Big Deal’

2 minute read

In her words, Jennifer Lopez is a “love addict.”

The artist, who considers herself a dancer first and foremost, admits in Self‘s January cover story that she finds “comfort” in relationships, despite the hardships her love life has repeatedly faced.

Lopez, whose Benjamin Button-like condition continues to run rampant, looks fairly incredible in the magazine, her toned body on athletic and age-defying display. In one photo, she bares all – and mid pull-up, to boot – in a pair of white briefs and a white, long-sleeved crop top.

“I’ve been through divorce. I’ve been cheated on, just like every other girl in the world,” Lopez, 45, told the mag of the similarities between herself and her character in The Boy Next Door, an upcoming psychological thriller that features her as a separated woman who falls in love with the high school-aged boy next door.

“So you sympathize, you understand the emotions. And I’ve dated a younger guy once in my life,” she added, referencing her 2½ year relationship with choreographer and dancer Casper Smart, who is nearly 20 years her junior. The couple split in June, and Lopez is currently single.

“I could definitely understand that part, too – the attraction.”

“All the old clichés about women need to be undone. Enough already,” Lopez added. “We’re in the other position now. We are desirable older, we can date younger guys and it’s not this big taboo. Men have been doing this for years, and it’s no big deal.”

On her many high-profile relationships, breakups and makeups, Lopez revealed to Self: “When you have that much pain, you have to anesthetize yourself in some ways. People do different things. Some go out and party and sleep around, but that’s just not my way. I found the comfort in someone else.”

Lopez will appear at PEOPLE’s first ever PEOPLE Magazine Awards on Thursday, airing at 9 p.m. ET on NBC. The Boy Next Door hits theaters Jan. 23.

This article originally appeared on People.com

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