Jennifer Lopez tops Forbes' most powerful celebs list
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By Tim HerreraJennifer Lopez tops Forbes' most powerful celebs list
Photo credit: Jennifer Lopez attends the Los Angeles premiere of "What To Expect When You're Expecting" (Getty)
The most powerful celebrity in the world is a born-and-bred New Yorker.
Jennifer Lopez, famous for her Bronx roots, topped Forbes' annual list of the 100 most powerful celebrities, joining other iconic city celebs this year including Lady Gaga (last year's No. 1, now No. 5), Donald Trump (No. 14), Jay-Z (No. 38), Alec Baldwin (78) and Tina Fey (93), among others.
Lopez, 42, raked in a reported $52 million over the past 12 months, with a judging gig on "American Idol" (which she reportedly is leaving), a new clothing line, top-selling fragrances and giant social media presence that put her in the top spot.
Dorothy Pomerantz, the Forbes reporter who compiles the annual list based on a factors including earnings, media attention and magazine covers, said she was initially surprised that J.Lo topped the list - but, upon review, it all made sense.
"People talk about her all of the time," Pomerantz said. "She sells magazines [when she's on the cover], her music's doing really well, she's done a ton of endorsements...She really embodies everything about modern celebrity and fame."
Other surprises this year, Pomerantz said, were Kim and Khloe Kardashian (Nos. 7 and 73, respectively), who represent a new type of celebrity.
"When you think about, it makes sense. We're measuring money and fame, and who does that better than the Kardashians?" she said. "There's no industry anymore where you're g! oing to make a ton of money from just doing one thing. If you really want to make big money and be one of the biggest names around, you have to diversify."
New Yorkers nabbed 14 spots on the list, up from 13 last year.
"Obviously, New York and L.A. are the places to be for celebrities," said Robert Thompson, director of the Bleier Center for Television and Popular Culture at Syracuse University. "Most of fame happens in one of those two cities, so by being born in the belly of the celebrity beast, you're already sort of in the scene."
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NYers that made the list
Here are the top 10 most powerful New York celebs, according to Forbes. (Their overall ranking on the list is in parentheses.)
Jennifer Lopez (1)
Lady Gaga (5)
Donald Trump (14)
Beyonc (16)
Howard Stern (30)
Jay-Z (38)
David Letterman (41)
Sean "Diddy" Combs (42)
Alex Rodriguez (63)
Jerry Seinfeld (64)
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J.Lo out of "Idol"?
Jennifer Lopez, the world's newly crowned most powerful celebrity, is leaving "American Idol," according to reports.
Lopez has been a judge on the show since 2010, but she is too busy to stay on, reports said.
"There is just too much going on for her right now," a source told E! News, which first reported the story. "She regrets she can't stay on."
Lopez's rep didn't return a request for comment.
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