Ojani Noa was a waiter when he first met Jennifer Lopez in 1996. A year after they first met, they got married. They were divorced a little more than a year later, in 1998, when J.Lo was first becoming the superstar we know now. Even after their divorce, they stayed friends for a while before they had a dramatic falling out circa 2005-ish. Ojani is now a personal trainer. He gave an exclusive interview to the Daily Mail to talk about J.Lo’s first marriage and offer his thoughts on her marriage to Ben Affleck. This has the feel of a paid interview, and Ojani has been paid to talk about J.Lo before. He honestly pops up every few years to get paid, and at one point I’m pretty sure he was trying to sell some intimate photos he had of his ex-wife. The guy is a dirtbag, but his new comments are making news, so here we are. Some highlights from this Mail interview:
Ojani understands J.Lo: He, too, was told by J Lo that he was the man she wanted to spend ‘forever’ with – and that, he says with a shrug, ‘was three husbands and five engagements’ ago. ‘I wish her and Ben the best, but I’m not convinced it will last,’ Ojani says now. ‘Jen loves being in love but she’s been engaged six times. Ben is husband number four. I was husband number one and she told me I was the love of her life. When we lay in bed on our wedding night, she said we would be together forever.’
In the beginning: ‘There were many times I felt like Mr Cinderella. She was the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen. In the beginning, I had no idea who she was. We fell in love when she was already famous. But during our marriage she became a megastar. For years it was too painful to talk about. I wanted to lie low and live my life. But when I saw she got married to Ben, who is a good guy, the feelings came flooding back. There has been so much written about Jen and I, especially in the past couple of weeks, most of it wrong. I want people to know the real story.’
First premiere: ‘She was coming to Miami for the premiere of Blood And Wine and wanted me to be her date. I rented a cheap suit. We got to the red carpet, there were all these flashing lights and fans screaming. I started to feel sick. I walked down the carpet holding her hand then stood to the side while she gave interviews. I heard her say, “Jack, I want you to meet my date, Ojani.” I turned around and she was introducing me to Jack Nicholson. Then she said, “This is Michael” – and it was Michael Caine. I felt like I was in a movie. A few years earlier I was on a dinghy in the ocean running away from Fidel Castro, and now I’m on a red carpet. Michael Caine was lovely. He said, “Don’t worry, you will get used to it.” After the premiere we went back to her hotel. That was the first time we made love. It was perfect. She was perfect. We lay there afterwards and she said, “I want you to always be in my life. I love you.” I felt like Mr Cinderella.’
He wasn’t starstruck. ‘She’s a traditional girl. She comes from a humble Puerto Rican family. She wanted someone to protect her, someone who would stand up for her. We fell totally in love.
The divorce settlement: The couple eventually split in 1998 and J Lo went on to publicly date P. Diddy shortly after their divorce was finalised. Ojani received a reported $50,000 in the settlement and the couple remained close. Ojani even continued to wear his wedding ring. ‘There were times she told me she wanted to get back together. In quiet moments she would say, “I need you in my life. I don’t want to lose you.”’
The 2002 Madres opening: ‘Madres had a grand opening. She walked the red carpet with Cris but Ben was waiting round the back with a bunch of red roses. Cris and Ben are both good guys. That night I sat on the patio with Ben and he told me what an amazing woman Jen is. I said, “I know.”
He doesn’t think this marriage to Ben will last: ‘I’m happy she has gone back to Ben but I have a feeling this won’t last. I think she’s someone who will be married seven or eight times. I can’t see her ever settling down with one person. She pushes herself to constantly go forward in her professional life, which is why she’s had a three-decade career, but she also moves on in her private life.’
If past is prologue, I understand why people believe Bennifer will end in tears. But I’ll say this: I think out of all J.Lo’s relationships and marriages, this one has the best chance at being “forever.” One, they already had one round, 18 years ago, and they arguably learned a lot from it. Two, they’re a hell of a lot older now and more experienced in how they both need to adapt to be with one another. The wildcard here is Ben, not Jennifer though. Ojani makes it sound like J.Lo is Ms. Love ‘Em and Leave ‘Em, but she’s honestly going to stay with Ben until the wheels fall off, or until HE sabotages her or their marriage.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.
- Ojani Noa on the set of “Politically Naughty with Mary Carey,” TradioV Studios, Los Angeles, CA 10-07-13,Image: 537948054, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: WORLD RIGHTS – Fee Payable Upon Reproduction – For queries contact Photoshot – sales@photoshot.com London: +44 (0) 20 7421 6000 Florida: +1 239 689 1883 Berlin: +49 (0) 30 76 212 251, Model Release: no, Credit line: Martin Sloan / Avalon
- JENNIFER LOPEZ AND FIRST HUSBAND OJANI NOA. 1997. / UGR***MANDATORY CREDIT FAILURE TO DO SO WILL INCUR DOUBLE FEES***,Image: 546340928, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: WORLD RIGHTS – Fee Payable Upon Reproduction – For queries contact Photoshot sales@photoshot.com London: +44 (0) 20 7421 6000 Florida: +1 646 717 6785 Berlin: +49 (0) 30 76 212 251, Model Release: no, Credit line: Axel Groussett / Avalon
- JENNIFER LOPEZ AND EX HUSBAND OJANI NOA AT THE GOLDEN GLOBES. 1998. PICTURES / URW,Image: 547434181, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: WORLD RIGHTS – Fee Payable Upon Reproduction – For queries contact Photoshot – sales@photoshot.com London: +44 (0) 20 7421 6000 Florida: +1 239 689 1883 Berlin: +49 (0) 30 76 212 251, Model Release: no, Credit line: Ron Wolfson / Avalon
I love Jen. I do. But her taste in men has always been awful.
I mean, so say we all, but the rest of us don’t get paid by (or at least get free advertising from?) the Daily Mail to say so.
Most Hollywood relationships don’t last forever. I think this will last longer than some of these two’s others. I’ll give them maybe eight years before he stats screwing up in a way that’s public enough that she can’t ignore it and then maybe another two before she finally calls it quits. But I don’t think Jen’s first husband has much more insight than anyone else.
Right?! I mean, we all know this to be true, but we’re too polite to scream it into the megaphone of a racist publication. She is likely to be the next Elizabeth Taylor in terms of jewel and husband collecting. But I ain’t mad at her.
I think it’ll be a good 7-8 years too maybe, I hope I’m wrong. I hope they make it but “gravity always wins”… in the words of Thom York. I just don’t see Ben ever being mature enough to handle a woman nearing 60 years of age or showing any signs of ageing. I still think he’s the type who would rather drink and chase younger models than accept his own mortality and develop the capacity to grow with someone emotionally or truly be there for them in older age.
@Justjj, I know Ben is a mess, but in fairness to him, chasing young models has never been his thing. He’s not Leo. Every woman he has had a serious relationship with has been around his age. And JLo is older.
His last serious relationship was with Ana de Armas and she was 32-33,I think at the time and before,it was Shookus and I think she was in her late thirties so I was shocked that he went after Jlo.I don’t think he is that shallow(J Garner is a beautiful woman but never cared about her apparence and Shookus is n’ont some great beauty ).I think he just likes women (and sure admires beauty as any man)
They’ve been divorced longer than my adult son has been alive. I don’t think he has any credibility on this issue than any other random gossiping stranger.
They actually had a working relationship for years after she cheated on him with diddy and they split romantically. He was dependent on her financially during that time because she put him in charge of various restaurants/bars she invested in. When she fired him around 2005 he tried to sell a tell all and photos and he still pops up now and then after she’s in the news with a new guy.
@Lens: From what you write, it sounds like they did divorce amicably at first; otherwise, why would JLo put him in charge of her restaurants, except to boost him financially? He now sounds really resentful of her fame, success, and romantic life. It’s really sad that he feels the need to go to the Dail Fail (of all racist places) to malign someone he once also pledged to love. The one thing I know is that when someone is relaying personal conversations they had with someone IN BED, they’ll sell anything.
@HeatherC: I completely agree with your take, and he has the nerve to pronounce that a Hollywood marriage will likely not last, like that makes him some kind of oracle or something. What can I say: avarice.
This guy tried to make money off of Jen when it all ended in the worst way possible. He says he felt on the red carpet but then that he wasn’t star struck. He’s full of sh*t and needs to go away. What Jen does with Ben is not his business.
God, this woman has had the worst picker. Cris Judd and Ben are the only two who don’t make me shudder.
I really hope Bennifer make it work. They’re at an age and point in their careers where I think it’s doable. Also lol at that story about a Ben arriving with roses while she was with Cris
There is even a video:Ben was wilding😅 back then…he passed the flowers to one of his friends to give to her and she was posing with her then-husband Chris.It was a super bold move.
I remember Ben taking out some huge ad in a paper raving about her too. He was so obvious, and for sure broke up her marriage with Cris, who seems to be the nicest of all the her guys.
This guy, who has been divorced from her for over 20 years, is pretty gross for getting money and attention off their past relationship. that said… He’s probably right.
The thoughts that an ex from over 25 years ago may be able to speak on the outcomes of my current relationship is just plain disturbing and pretty gd presumptuous. This guy is a definite loser
Exactly this! Sometimes when you compare what is going on in a celeb’s life to your own, it really hits home how wacky something is. If I just walked down the aisle and my ex of 25 years ago was in the news speaking on whether my current marriage would last while simultaneously talking about the first time we had sex and how I said I wanted to be with them forever, I would want to hide under my bed for a few years. SO GROSS.
I don’t think he’s wrong, but because Ben is a self-sabotager. Not because of her.
It won’t end because of her but I believe him when he says she loves the high of a new relationship and has a hard time when it becomes mundane and everyday.
“There has been so much written about Jen and I, especially in the past couple of weeks”
What? Did miss that? This guy sure knows how to tell a story. Does he think this makes him look good? Because it doesn’t.
LOL right? Nobody’s mentioned him at all.
Right…….he hasn’t been mentioned for decades and now he is coming out of the woodwork to slam her, when they haven’t spoken in 17 years? This guy has no idea what he is talking about. Sounds like someone is still pissed about being dumped. Get over it! JLo certainly has.
The fact that hubby #1 got $50,000 in the divorce says it all. He would have gotten more money if HIS marriage to JLo lasted longer.
If this Bennifer marriage doesnt work then i might just believe that yeah she truly has a need to be in lurve Lol But if this lasts at least a decade then i think all those filler marriages was because her heart was yearning for Ben.
And water is wet . Plus, who is this guy anymore?
He sucks and this is so gross. I’m no fan of JLo’s (though I love her movies) and I don’t have faith in this marriage, but this guy coming out with his useless criticisms is just gross.
He says he’s not starstruck but calls himself mr Cinderella. Says he fell in love and then later he knew who she was. Um, so he’s saying he fell in love with her looks and star power and now wants to judge her for having them.
I do feel for his dinghy story, absolutely horrifying. But his take, including “she’s a traditional girl” – ewww. She’s a megastar.
Oh boy those words are not going to make Ben feel special lol “i was her first husband” “ben is her fourth” “when I laid with her in our wedding night” “she told me she wanted me forever” I give bennifer a whole 4 years. Things like these are just triggers for Ben to get an excuse to be benafflicking again. This is going to end up in tears, as many as the niagara falls.
The stuff he said about her relationship with her mom was really interesting. I remember an interview Jlo did after she divorced Mark Anthony and was single for a bit, she talked about someone overhearing her on the phone with a boyfriend early in her career and asking her about her low self-esteem. I guess it comes from her childhood and her mom really pushing her in a certain direction. I’ve seen other videos where she talks about not having the support of her parents when she wanted to pursue dancing/acting – it sounds like a really rough time in her life to be cut off from her family.
I agree with you,her mom seems to be very harsh on her:why do you have to make your daughter cry for a venue or her wedding ?! I wanted her to explore that more on Halftime ,she just said :my mom used to beat the s*** of me like it’s something normal..
I just think it’s so tacky and unkind for anyone who’s ever known/interacted with either of them to put these negative feelings on blast in the public sphere. It’s one thing for persons on a gossip site to kinda scoff and side eye (and even then, let’s face it, it’s a little mean) but it’s so unnecessary for her ex to go public with this. Just gross.
ITA to put all this stuff out there. I mean as interesting as I find some of his comments it must really really suck to have someone do that to you. I can’t even imagine how hurtful that could be and damaging to someone’s psyche to have someone sell stories about you, let alone keep popping up every few years for their take on your latest relationship. Ugh
I think you’re right and I wonder why someone in his line of work as a personal trainer would want to be known as someone who tells tales out of school – for money. I’ve never had a personal trainer myself, but I would imagine that it would involve having a great deal of trust in the person that they wouldn’t report everything about the person they work with.
Whatever Ojani. I hope the DM paid you well.
This guy is such a loser you can see he still hurt. I am the first husband he is the 4 how embarrassing. Just stfup low class in this Jennifer won. He is so jealous why he still single after all this years. Go get some therapy.
Probably why he keeps coming back to tell tales. His personal training biz ain’t doing so hot.
If she will tolerate all of Casper What’s His Name’s didn’t even marry him nonsense, she will absolutely go ride or die no matter what disrespect Ben throws her way.
Jen was trying to teach him how to network when she took him to that premiere and he learned nothing. Jen doesn’t want the men in her life not to have a work ethic. I believe that is why it ended sooner rather than later.
I cant help to think he looks like a latino Simon Cowell.
On Topic: I am not the same person I was 10 years ago, so I find it hard to believe that J-Fleck is the same person as 25 years ago. A lot happens between age 20 and 30 and those years are pretty formative and her life situation changed a lot right after they got married. And he said it himself that he wasn’t comfortable with the lifestyle. Maybe she liked him but they just weren’t a good fit practically. I’ve also heard that A-Rod wasn’t that smart, and cheated on her and who would want to stay with someone like that? I think her problem is that she made bad choices and not that she just wants to be in love.
I’m rooting for them. Good luck!
If it does end, it will be because of Ben, not Jennifer. I think he’s the true love of her life. But that man has issues for days and I don’t know if she’s going to be able to put up with the kind of stuff J Garner was putting up with. Who wants to deal with that at 53?
Bro STFU
“We can say it (here on CB) but you can’t” applies to Ojani. Such a d!ck move on his part to do this.
After he allegedly got $50,000 from the divorce settlement, why didn’t she have him sign a NDA? Problem solved.
I would surely hope that she is not the same person that she was 25!
Ojani newsflash babe: No one sees this lasting. Let alone Bennie
Despite his thirstiness to return to the public eye, he isn’t saying anything we already knew: she’s a narcissist and her new husband isn’t far behind. Sadly, Ojani and Cris were the type of men she needed: a yin to her yang. This is why Alpha males like Diddy, Marc, and A-Rod didn’t work out and Affleck is no different. He likes the spotlight as much as she does.
She’s 53. Even though she keeps her self in great shape and is still beautiful, time is not on her side, only because she’s married to a man 4 years younger and the entertainment industry is not kind to women over 50. I think this marriage to Ben will be her last and she will go down trying whatever it takes to make it work. I just wonder if Ben is as committed as she is. He’s 49 and male ; in Hollywood he’s still in his prime
It’s sad to think that way: women over 50,in the industry, have no chance to find love?and in general ? Are we damaged goods after a certain age? Do we have an expiration date? Gwyneth found love with Brad Falchuck and they are both the same age,Kyra Sedgwick and Kevin Bacon(my favorite celebrity couple):not all men are interested in younger women.It must be comfortable to know someone who is in the same business than you,has the same level of fame than you,has kids like you,is as rich than you and who is attracted to you and not at your status or your money.
Before returning to Jlo,Ben was with Ana who is 20 years younger than Jlo (and lot of other women younger than Jlo) so he clearly has no problem with the age thing or is not as shallow.Is it projection that women of a certain age are no more desirable or no more F****?
And even though Ben is younger,Jlo seems to have more stamina and seems much younger than him.
What I think can be a problem is more the fame/celebrity thing:Jlo seems to embrace(and be ok with it) and Ben seems always uncomfortable.Or maybe you’re right and the age thing can be a problem…
I don’t know if they will last or not(I hope they do), but I am rooting for them🤷♀️I am a hopeless romantic
As soon as the pap walks stop bringing the money and attention they’re bringing now, she’ll be bored and out the door. Jenny from the Block loves the attention her relationships bring, and settled-down contentment only sells when it’s new.
Ick.