Fans of Jennifer Lopez know that she can pretty much do anything from singing to acting to dancing.
Over the years, fans have been interested in following her personal and romantic life, too, and they enjoy seeing her happy with Alex Rodriquez as they’ve continued to grow as a couple.
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Here are 10+ facts about their relationship that even huge fans of the star didn’t know.
1. They met in 2005.
At the time, J-Lo was with her then-husband Marc Anthony at Shea Stadium in Queens where A-Rod was playing for the Yankees.
They met for the first time there, but it was just a brief meeting as she was still married.
Despite this, there were already sparks flying between the two.
While nothing came of that first meeting specifically, Lopez already could tell that there was chemistry between the two of them.
“We shook hands, and it was this weird electricity for, like, three seconds… Three to five seconds of looking at somebody right in their eyes, and getting stuck,” she told Sports Illustrated.
2. A-Rod kept a signed photo of Lopez from the ’90s.
Their relationship seems meant to be in a way given that Lopez actually signed a photo of herself back in the ’90s that he kept as a fan.
Rodriquez kept the photo all of these years, and it’s now a sweet reminder for the couple.
3. They started dating in March of 2017.
While they might have met all those years ago, they didn’t start dating until 12 years later.
A PEOPLE report on March 8, 2017, was when the couple was first confirmed to be dating. They had only been dating for a few weeks at that time.
4. They bumped into one another at a restaurant.
Things definitely did seem like fate once again for these two as they reconnected after running into one another in a restaurant.
Lopez told Ellen Degenera that, “I was having lunch somewhere and I saw him as he passed by. Afterwards, I went outside, and for some reason I felt like tapping him on the shoulder.”
He then made the first move.
While Lopez might have felt like she needed to tap him on the shoulder and say hello, Rodriquez took things from there and made the next move to set up a date.
Lopez further told Ellen that, “He texted me, said, ‘Let’s go out to dinner,’ and I said, ‘OK.’ We had a nice dinner.”
5. Rodriquez didn’t recognize her at first.
When Rodriquez re-counted their first meeting on The Ellen DeGeneres Show , he explained very endearingly that he didn’t recognize her at first.
“Someone taps me on the shoulder, and I turn around and I do not recognize this person. And it’s Jennifer, but she’s dressed up as Harlee from Shades of Blue, and she’s in her jeans and her big boots. And it took me about four or five seconds. And she said, ‘It’s Jennifer! It’s Jennifer!'”
6. The pair made a glamorous appearance at the MET Gala.
In May 2017, the couple had only been dating for a few months and hadn’t attended any big events together, but this changed when they arrived together at the MET Gala.
Lopez wore a flowing, baby blue dress while A-Rod was in a navy blue suit.
7. They both feel they truly understand one another.
In an endearing and revealing joint interview with Vanity Fair in October 2017, the couple opened up about their connection.
“We are very much twins,” Rodriquez said.
“I understand him in a way that I don’t think anyone else could,” Lopez added.
8. Fans speculated on their engagement back in 2018.
While the couple got engaged in 2019, many fans thought they were in July of 2018 when J-Lo posted on Instagram a picture wearing a ring on her left finger.
This sparked speculation that the couple was about to tie the knot, but it was actually just a normal ring.
9. They slowly started to blend their families.
Lopez has two children, twins, with ex-husband Marc Antthony while Rodriquez has two daughters with ex-wife Cynthia Scurtis.
J-Lo and A-Rod slowly started to blend their families together, and they’ve posted many adorable Instagram pictures of everyone looking really happy together.
10. They got engaged on vacation.
After engagement rumors circulated for a while, they finally officially promised to wed in March 0f 2019.
The proposal happened while the pair was vacationing in the Bahamas, and Lopez posted an Instagram picture of her giant, rectangle-shaped diamond.
11. They were congratulated by the Obamas.
It’s not every day that someone gets congratulations on their engagement from the former President and First Lady, but Lopez and Rodriquez did.
Obama even wrote them a personalized note. What a kind and awesome gesture that meant a lot to the couple!
12. He helped her prepare for *Hustlers.*
Lopez was absolutely fantastic when she played the role of Ramona in Hustlers , and Rodriquez helped her prepare in a very….direct way.
The film’s director Lorene Scafaria said in an interview with Vulture that Lopez and Alex went to a strip club together to gather research.
13. They’ve really been focusing on family during quarantine.
In an interview from September with PEOPLE magazine, Lopez explained that being able to spend more time with Rodriquez and their children has been a good thing to come from the pandemic.
“Because Alex and I have both separately and now together lived a gypsy-type life, as both of our careers require tons of travel. The blessing of the quarantine for us was having dinner with the kids every night…”
