Two months before separating last July, Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony announced they’d be appearing in Q’Viva, a genre-defying reality show in which the pair (along with live-show director Jamie King) travel to more than a dozen Latin countries to discover the best singers, dancers, and musicians. Fifty-two acts are then brought to Los Angeles to audition for a chance to perform in an upcoming Las Vegas show. I visited the downtown Los Angeles set during the audition rounds earlier this month and talked to Lopez, Anthony, and King about what makes Q’Viva different, how American Idol prepared Lopez for this new venture, and what it’s like for Lopez and Anthony to work together as exes.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: It sounds to me like one of the things that makes Q’Viva unique is that you guys don’t give screen time to untalented people like Idol and X Factor do.

MARC ANTHONY: That’s absolutely right.

JENNIFER LOPEZ: I don’t know that there is another show like this. There’s no winner. This is about creating a live visual experience about Latin culture, rhythm, dance — the likes of which have never been seen. So there is no show to compare it to. We’re casting a show, and you’re on the journey with us.
MA: It’s a callback — the only thing is that we’re rolling cameras on it. This is very, very serious business.
How has the filming gone so far?

JL: We went to these countries and we ate the food, walked the streets, and came upon people we didn’t know we were going to meet. Some people we knew we were going to meet that we saw on video. But some people ran up to the car and were like, “Can I audition?” And I was like, “Okay.” And they were amazing.

JAMIE KING: It makes it harder, because the talent is all so strong. There’s not a lot of weak people in there.

JL: The question is what’s going to work for the show, what’s going to represent Latin America in a way that we, being of Latino heritage, can be proud of. It’s a big responsibility.
Are there specific acts with whom you’ve really connected?

JL: There’s one little boy, Lucciano from Argentina, that can’t get his visa to come here. That’s part of the show too: We do find this amazing talent and sometimes we can’t get them over here to the States to give them this opportunity. But I’m still going to fight for him. We’ll see!

MA: I met this extraordinary dance troupe from Mexico City that did a little bit of everything, they were street performers, and there was one who I kept wondering, Why isn’t he performing? And they said, “He can’t because he doesn’t know who he is.” He had no identity, no name. They left him in a park when he was young. I was not ready for that. But the world needs to know about this talent.

JK: There’s also some people that we found, like this tango couple from Argentina, who are already at a high level, but it’s like, Where can they go? Can they be seen outside of Argentina? How far can we help them grow?

Jennifer, how would you say a year and a half on Idol has prepared you for this?

JL: It’s such a different experience. The traveling is nothing like Idol. And then actually putting together the live show will be a mess! But amazing at the same time. But it’s helped me in being able to spot talent really quickly. So what’s the level of ribbing that goes on among the judges panel?

MA: You have no idea.

JL: Well, we’re friends. We know each other. I don’t know if people know that Marc and I know each other. So we have a lot of fun.

MA: I’m just getting to know her. She’s a little difficult, but she’s actually not as bad as I thought she’d be. I was really nervous coming into today, because I had heard nightmare!

JL: He, on the other hand? Everything is true. All a nightmare.

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Jennifer thinks this year's round of contestants is better than ever. "I think the stakes each year get better and better. There's so many amazingly talented artists this year."

While Randy told In Touch to expect "a lot of soulful [contestants]. A lot of Adele's", Steven gave some insight as to why she's become such a popular singer for the contestants. "Adele is a good example of singing from the heart. It's from the heart, it's from the spirit. That's why that sold. She's so soulful and the kids today that have these vocal gymnastics, it's just astounding, and the ones that we have this year are just over the top."

Even Jennifer thinks this year they've found the total package. "Not only the voices, but they also seem to have the whole package, they understand that there's a performance that needs to be there, they're gonna have to dress a certain way. They're like little pop stars in a box!"

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Steven Tyler caused his fellow “American Idol” judge Jennifer Lopez to scream in shock after discovering the rocker taking a dip in a Las Vegas swimming pool completely naked.

The talent show personalities headed to the Wynn Las Vegas resort last week to film an upcoming episode of “Idol” and they took time out of the shoot to catch a performance of the venue’s in-house show “Le Reve – The Dream,” which features artists dancing underwater.

The show prompted Tyler to later shed his clothes and go skinny-dipping in the hotel pool – but his nude swim caught Lopez by surprise.

During a joint appearance on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” on Friday, “Idol” host Seacrest explained, “We flew back from Vegas last night, we were shooting an episode there of ‘Idol’… and at the end of a final performance from a contestant, I heard this scream from Jennifer Lopez and I looked up and she was standing over the Le Reve pool. It’s a water show, so she’s standing over the edge and screaming, looking down at a naked body in the water!”

The nude culprit was identified on the talk show as Tyler and he laughed off the incident with a quip about trying to shock Lopez with his saucy stunt. Tyler joked, “Hey, I’m from Boston! I love water… Well I sat at La Reve all week and I just thought, I’ve watched the show all week and I’m a water guy and… I just wanted a good excuse to take my clothes off in front of J.Lo.”

Asked what he expected Lopez to do, he burst into song, singing the chorus of Frank Sinatra’s High Hopes: “‘Cause we had, high hopes…!”But Tyler insisted he wasn’t embarrassed by the incident – because he loves teasing Lopez. He added, “I live to try to make her blush, I live for it, oh yeah!”

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San Diego's a noisy place. Joanne Childers gets interrupted by the blast of a boat horn right in the middle of her song. Another singer's response to a question gets drowned out by a jet airplane. "It's like plans, trains, automobiles, boats and birds," says Randy. But back to more serious things. Jane Carrey is a mom first and sometimes a waitress. When she's not doing either of those, she sings some.

Did we mention that she's Jim Carrey's daughter?

"I remember you when you were little!" Jennifer exclaims. She remembers her from the days of In Living Color, when Jane was about 2. She hopes American Idol will help her make her place in the world. She needs to work on her performance appearance, but her version of Bonnie Raitt's Something to Talk About gets her through to Hollywood. So do a lot of other unnamed girls.

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Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony are going to let cameras capture their candid conversations about their marriage falling apart during the first episode of their new show, ¡Q'Viva The Chosen! airing on Jan. 28 on Univision and later on an English-language version of the program on Fox.

During a preview of the first episode at the Soho House in West Hollywood, Lopez, Anthony and show director Jamie King are seen traveling to countries such as Argentina, Colombia, Mexico and Puerto Rico in search of talent for their new reality show. In some of the segments, the former power couple openly discuss their relationship. Anthony says that they're "going to be in each other's lives" for a long time. The conversations between Anthony and Lopez are seen as they travel to their destinations in Latin America.

Lopez and Anthony, who began traveling last year to find talent, also showed up the Television Critics Association press tour on Jan. 14 as part of Univision's upfront session which included discussion about the show and what it took to create a "new genre" in English, Spanish and Portuguese. There will be four versions of the show and it will be sub-titled for each viewing audience.

Lopez, Anthony, XIX Entertainment's Simon Fuller (creator of American Idol), and show director Jamie King are executive producers of "Q'Viva" featuring Latin music, artistry and dance from the U.S. and Latin America. Dutch reality TV show producer Endemol (Big Brother/Fear Factor) is a production partner with XIX Entertainment and will globally distribute Q'Viva across all platforms globally. At the end of the show in April, a live spectacle with those featured on the the program will begin touring.

In an interview with Billboard to promote Q'Viva, King said that this is one of the biggest projects he has ever worked on in a career as a choreographer and show director for some of music's biggest names including Madonna, Rihanna and Britney Spears.

King conceded that the Lopez-Anthony split never took away from the production of the show which also features King traveling in search of talent for the program that will end with a 90-minute talent show that he will direct.

"Jennifer and Marc are respectful to each other," King says. "Although they are not together anymore, they still share this love ... and it still bonds them and they still love the show so much to continue even though they're separated and to me that's such a great and beautiful story."

Q'Viva will air in 21 countries and it will launch across major TV networks in North, Central and South America. Anthony announced on Jan. 14 that the show will air here in the U.S. on Fox. Other deals include Televisa in Mexico and Caracol TV in Colombia. Televisa is the biggest media company in the Spanish-speaking world.

Filming started in July and the show's stars also visited Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Venezuela, Uruguay, and the U.S.

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Jennifer Lopez's boy toy Casper Smart recently tweeted about the vast age difference between the two of them. There are 18 years separating Marc Anthony's soon to be ex and her new man.

According to a report from Popsugar, it seems enough has been said (either in person or via the media) about the May-December romance that Casper Smart felt a rather strong need to defend his stance on his relationship with J-Lo.

"Our ages are mere reminders of the hours logged on this earth and the precious time remaining. . . We should all honor our time here by indulging our passion and dreams. So, close your ears and open your hearts; Love and be happy!" Smart tweeted.

Did Jennifer Lopez agree with his sentimental and somewhat philosophical tweet? Even though she didn't directly say she did, she retweeted the message to all of her many Twitter followers, which is a pretty good indication of her approval.

So what do you think of Casper Smart's idea of the 18-year age span between him and Jennifer Lopez? Is he on to something or is this just another example of a cougar romance with a younger cat--for which he is trying to make intelligent-sounding excuses?

Some have hinted at the fact that Smart is using J-Lo for the many luxuries she has and continues to provide for him--apparently lots of things he would likely never be able to afford. What do you think about this?

Is Jennifer Lopez trying somehow to get back at Marc Anthony by having this relationship with Casper Smart or do you really think she is in love? How long do you give this relationship before it comes to blows or simply fizzles out?

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For JLO and her new man Casper Smart, age is nothing but a number. The two lovebirds took to Twitter to say they are happy and living their lives to the fullest. “Age, status, n opinions of others are irrelevant," Smart tweeted on Wednesday. "Our hearts are endless and our souls infinite.""Our ages are mere reminders of the hours logged on this earth and the precious time remaining," he said.

Lopez, 42, showed her support for her new man, who is 24, by re-tweeting all of his posts. Also on Wednesday, photos of Casper and Lopez making out lustfully on the set of her new music video surfaced as well. Smart, who wasn’t there to dance but to see his lady, hugged and kissed Lopez with a satisfied grin. Talk about PDA!  “We should all honor our time here by indulging our passion and dreams,” Smart continued on Twitter.  “Close your ears and open your hearts; Love and be happy!”

Lopez appeared to be in the moment as she beamed on American Idol, which debuted its 11th season Wednesday evening. The Puerto Rican diva glowed on the hit show as she talked about finding that special someone. "You always have high hopes that today will be the day when you will find the one," said Lopez. "You never know."

The first auditions were held in Savannah, Georgia, where 10,000 hopefuls showed up to convince Lopez and her fellow judges, rock icon Steven Tyler and music producer Randy Jackson, that their musical abilities are worth being sent to Hollywood.

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JLO and American Idol are back! It's been a decade since Texas native Kelly Clarkson was plucked from obscurity and turned into the nation's first American Idol. Now the TV show that has spawned dozens of other pop stars and talent competitions is opening its 11th season Wednesday under a cloud of uncertainty. Will fans return after new judges Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler embraced flattery over criticism during their debut season last year?

Does America still want pop stars invented by a TV show?
Is this Ryan Seacrest's last year hosting the nation's most popular show?

Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony Through The Years
The return of the superstar competition will provide some, but not all of the answers fans want to know as "American Idol" heads into its second post-Simon Cowell season. Lopez and Tyler were brought on to revamp the show last year after Cowell's departure.
Despite the shake-up, "Idol" maintained its spot as the nation's most-watched TV show, making it No. 1 for the eighth-straight season.

What's Jennifer Lopez Up To?
But some critics complained that the new format lacked bite. Lopez, Tyler and lone original judge Randy Jackson seemed reluctant to point out contestants' shortcomings last year in the same blunt manner that helped make "Idol" must-see entertainment. No major changes have been announced for the show's 11th season. Finalists will once again compete in Las Vegas midway through the competition. Veteran music producer Jimmy Iovine, chairman of Interscope-Geffen-A&M, will return as the in-house mentor for the contestants. Seacrest has said he would like to stay on as the show's host past 2012. His contract ends this year. There have been several reports that Seacrest could replace Matt Lauer, should he decide to leave the "Today" show on NBC.

Seacrest, Lopez, Tyler and Jackson were poised to usher in the new season with a press conference on the Las Vegas Strip Wednesday before the show's season premier, which will focus on Savannah, Ga., auditions. Thursday's show will feature tryouts in Pittsburgh. "Idol's" new season opens in a different era from when the show launched in 2002.

Jennifer Lopez is Human Too!
Then, former judge Cowell helped turn the competition into a national phenomenon with his harsh feedback for the show's less-than-stellar contestants. It was the only singing competition of its kind at the time.

Now, "Idol" remains the nation's TV ratings leader, but faces challenges from NBC's competition
"The Voice," and Fox's "The X Factor," which stars Cowell. "'Idol' is still the best TV show of its kind anywhere," Jackson told an audience of TV critics recently. "We are the original. We kind of invented this whole game that everybody is now copying."The show has helped launched the careers of pop stars Clarkson, Jennifer Hudson, Chris Daughtry and
Carrie Underwood. Scotty McCreery, last season's winner, became the first "Idol" to start his post-show career with a No. 1 album since Ruben Studdard in 2003.

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They’ve been fairly reserved when it comes to explicitly stating their feelings in a public arena, but now Jennifer Lopez and Casper Smart are all about letting everyone know they’re in love. The “On The Floor” songstress’ boyfriend/backup dancer took to his Twitter page to communicate a romantic message to his lady.

Casper tweeted, “Age, status, n opinions of others are irrelevant. Our hearts are endless and our souls infinite.”He added, "Our ages are mere reminders of the hours logged on this earth and the precious time remaining. We should all honor our time here by indulging our passion and dreams. So, close your ears and open your hearts; Love and be happy!”

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JLO from the block and her FIAT endorsement are once again causing controversy. And it sure isn’t pretty. This time, a foreign policy advocacy group dedicated to prevent the development of a nuclear weapon in Iran, “United Against Nuclear Iran” (UANI) is urging Jennifer Lopez to end her deal with FIAT because they claim the Italian car company continues to do business with Iran.

“We’ve contacted FIAT several times about their business in Iran,” Nathan Carleton, UANI’s Communications Director told FOX News Latino. “Giving the high profile endorsement contract that Ms. Lopez has with FIAT we’ve decided to contact her and seek her help in pressuring FIAT to end their business in Iran.”Carleton says that the campaign against FIAT began around March of last year. After not hearing back, despite the “hundreds of people  [who]have written to FIAT,” UANI wrote Lopez a letter describing the repercussions of her endorsement deal.

“In our letter we made her aware of the work FIAT does in Iran including the trucks that they’ve even sold to the regime in Iran that have been used to hang Iranian citizens and transport missiles around the country,” said Carleton. “Given that business that FIAT does in Iran she should speak out against FIAT or end her endorsement,” he added.

Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony Through The Years
In the letter, the foreign policy activist group expresses to Lopez that her endorsement with FIAT is supporting the development of “an illegal nuclear weapons program, financing and sponsoring terrorist groups including al-Qaeda, [that]has killed American and NATO soldiers and is recognized as one of the world's leading human rights violators.”

Neither Lopez or FIAT’s reps got back to FOX News Latino when contacted for comment. According to a report from The New York Times report on companies which profited from business in Iran over the last decade, FIAT began manufacturing their four-door sedan in 2004, "under a licensing agreement with Pars Industrial Development Foundation."

Their spokesman Richard Gadeselli told the publication that over 2000 vehicles have been manufactured to date. UANI is giving JLO until Wednesday to respond. If not they plan to escalate the pressure. “She should respond, Carleton said. “If she doesn’t we will continue to highlight her involvement with FIAT.”

“We think her fans will appreciate such a prominent person take a stand against these human rights violations that FIAT is contributing to,” he added. “It would be nice to see an entertainer who doesn’t just say whoever gives me money I will take it, but actually has standards for who she is endorsing.”

Contrary to reports from Primera Hora and Israeli news website InfoLivetv.com the members of UANI are not lawyers, but are “individuals committed to preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.”Founded in 2008 by several former American diplomats, including the late US Ambassador to the United Nations Richard Holbrooke, the group is sustained by donations from supporters.

What's Jennifer Lopez Up To?
“U.S. car makers are not allowed to do business in Iran,” Carleton said. “The problem is when some of these companies like FIAT do business in Iran enabling the regime to stay in power. This is not the first tiff involving JLO and the FIAT endorsement deal. In November, Bronx muralists TATS Crue threatened to sue Fiat.

The graffiti artists said they were enraged when they saw their "I Love the Bronx" mural in Lopez's car commercial, without their permission. After discussions, the artists and reached a settlement with the automaker and are planning to work with them after decided to give them a car to paint and then auction off to a charity of their choice.

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