Jennifer Lopez, an actress, and singer, has received backlash on social media for launching a line of alcoholic beverages despite previously stating that she does not drink.
Lopez announced her new Delola brand of flavored spritz cocktails in an Instagram video on Tuesday.
“I’ve been grinding nonstop for decades, and I’m realizing the importance of enjoying life,” Lopez says in the advertisement. “All I wanted to do was make something better.” Delola is better tasting, has better ingredients, and is something I want to drink with my friends and family.”
The cocktails are free of the usual “artificial ingredients” and sugars found in other beverages, and have roughly the same amount of alcohol as a glass of wine, according to Lopez in the advertisement.
Lopez is shown holding one of the beverages with a straw in her mouth, but she does not appear to drink it
Nonetheless, some fans were “disappointed and confused” by the actress and singer’s decision to promote alcohol consumption, given that she has been outspoken about the negative health effects of drinking and that her husband, Ben Affleck, has stated that he is sober after completing alcohol addiction treatment.
“Wow. I’m so disappointed and perplexed by her narrative about how she doesn’t drink alcohol and all the benefits of not drinking. And her companion is sober? “It doesn’t matter what kind of ‘good for you ingredients’ and ‘health labels’ (gluten-free) alcohol has, it’s still a carcinogenic toxin,” an Instagram user commented beneath the video.
The same user stated that she believed Lopez’s nonalcoholic beverage line would have fared better. “It’s just another celebrity alcohol brand now,” she explained.
Others called the decision “opportunistic” and a “money grab.”
“She doesn’t drink alcohol, so it just goes to show what she’ll do for money,” another Instagram user commented.
Delola’s spokesperson declined to comment on the backlash.
“I’ve never been a big drinker in my life.” “I didn’t drink for a long time,” Lopez said in a recent Food and Wine interview. “But I’m picky, and I wanted [Delola] to be something simple to pour over ice and drink.”
Lopez’s drinking habits were clarified by a source close to her, who stated that while she has been photographed drinking at events throughout her career, she has chosen to limit her drinking in order to improve both her health and appearance.
Other celebrities have launched alcohol brands with varying degrees of success, including actor George Clooney, who sold his Casamigos tequila business to global beverage company Diageo for $1 billion in 2017.
