Jennifer Lopez, who has long cultivated the image of “Jenny from the Block,” just your average girl-next-door, got into hot water with her critics, and even many of her fans who expressed disappointment, when recently a video went viral.
Back on Saturday, July 13, the singer and actress was spotted in the Hamptons shopping with her stepdaughter Violet Affleck, carrying a Hermès Kelly picnic bag.
A TikTok user captured a clip of Lopez, 55, noting that a pre-owned version of the bag is priced at $70,000. The video that has since amassed 1.2 million views has sparked comments about the bag’s hefty price tag. Some have called it “obscene”.
“Wearing my annual salary,” someone replied.
“Omg the price is ridiculous, the purse is just a strip of leather and the basket is basically some dried corn husk in a braid 🤦🏽♀️😆,” someone else wrote.
Not everyone condemned the uber-wealthy Lopez for wasting her money. Some defended her right to spend any way that she wants.
“It’s HER money,” someone added. “If I had the money I’d buy it too 🥹😅,” another comment read.
“She can buy whatever she damn wants too,” [sic] someone else added.
Jennifer Lopez’s “Jenny from the Block,” released in 2002, became more than just a hit; it was a declaration of authenticity and a tribute to Lopez’s roots in the Bronx. The songs have become emblematic of the artist’s persona and enshrined her in the popular imagination as a down-to-earth girlfriend who made good—tracing the journey from her humble beginnings to becoming a global superstar. Lopez frequently refers to that girl, reminding us that no matter the level of success, she remains grounded, never forgetting where she came from. This message has resonated with fans worldwide, turning “Jenny from the Block” into a cultural touchstone.
But if the seventy-thousand-dollar Birkin handbag has become hot news today, it’s because it runs so counter to the image that she has so carefully cultivated, and her fans have noted it.
As “Debra” comments on social media, “She has been very fortunate to make it. But one thing she’s forgotten? How too [sic] be humble and have some consideration for the hard working people who serve her. Here in the Bx she’s lost whatever fans she has left bc of her Diva attitude🤳👸✌️, #JustSaying¯\_(ツ)_/¯
“Gigi” has her say also: “I used idolize her but with all the bs that she’s done… I don’t waste my time… and this is another one kids are starving… but she’s in style with a $70k purse… I thought she was more humble than that… WRONG.”
“Carol” sums up the criticism: “The problem with rich people spending so much money on bags, houses (60 million) Is that they don’t need these things to live a comfortable life. How much better if they would donate to charities serving people and animals that could put that money to good use. These people have opportunities that the rest of us don’t have. It is so selfish of them to spend ridiculous amounts of money on things like this.”
