A.K.A. (an acronym for Also Known As) is the eighth studio album by American singer Jennifer Lopez. It was released on June 13, 2014, by Capitol Records and was her only release on the label. Lopez started working on the album in February 2013, after the end of her first worldwide tour, the Dance Again World Tour. Originally scheduled to be released in November 2013, Lopez postponed the album release to 2014. Undecided between Same Girl and A.K.A. as the album's title, Lopez eventually chose the latter as the title.
Initially, A.K.A. was to be executively produced by RedOne, with the producer claiming the album was going to mix many styles, having a blend of her previous musical background: urban pop, dance-pop and Latin. However, Cory Rooney and Benny Medina, her longtime collaborators, later became the album's executive producers, along with herself, bringing a more pop, EDM and R&B sound to the album. In early 2014, Lopez released two urban-infused tracks as the album's promotional singles: "Girls" and "Same Girl". Besides frequent contributor and personal friend Pitbull, the album also features collaborations with French Montana, T.I., Iggy Azalea, Rick Ross, Nas, Jack Mizrahi and Tyga.
Upon its release, A.K.A. received generally mixed reviews from music critics, who spoke unfavorably of the album's mixed styles, although some songs were singled out for praise. Commercially, A.K.A. made minor impact on the charts, becoming one of her lowest-charting studio albums and becoming her lowest-selling album at the time, having sold 71,000 copies in 2014 in US. A.K.A. was preceded by the release of two singles, "I Luh Ya Papi" and "First Love", which both had minor impact on the charts, as well as a third single "Booty" which was remixed to feature Azalea. The latter would go on to become the most successful single from the album, peaking at number 18 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and becoming Lopez's most recent top 20 hit on the chart.
Background After the decision to publish the seventh studio album Love? with Island Records in 2010, Lopez said that she had to release a greatest hits album to fulfill her contractual agreement with Epic Records, her former label: "I owe a greatest hits [album] to the record company...or I can go ahead and start a new album. I just haven't decided yet." In 2012, following the release of the collaboration "Dance Again" with Pitbull and the track "Goin' In", which was featured on the soundtrack for the film Step Up Revolution, Lopez published her first greatest hits album Dance Again... the Hits. The release coincided with Lopez's first headlining world tour, the Dance Again World Tour which would last until the end of 2012.
Lopez subsequently left her position as judge on the reality television competition American Idol to focus on her tour and film career, a platform which had rejuvenated her career the previous year after a relatively unsuccessful period.
Recording
In November 2012, RedOne confirmed that he was the executive producer of the album. He told MTV News: "We already have songs that are just incredible. It's just amazing. It's mixed [styles]. It's everything about Jennifer Lopez." He described the album as special, "It's not one thing; it's everything you experience [...] It's a very special album. It feels like this album, to us, has to have everything about her, not just one thing. You're going to have all the sides, kind of urban/hip-hop and the commercial, like the way she did with Ja Rule. It's everything you love about her [including] the dance, the rhythmic, the Latin." That December, Lopez confirmed that she was about to begin recording her eighth studio album after her Dance Again World Tour ended. The following month, Lopez told USA Today that her primary focus was films, however, she was slowly putting together her album, stating: "I'm never not working on music". During an interview with People, she revealed that she had written a song entitled "We Loved" about her break-up with husband Marc Anthony, that caused her to cry while recording. Briefly commenting on the type of music she was recording for the album, Lopez stated "I'm doing everything that I think people expect of me." In 2013 Jennifer Lopez signed a contract with RedOne's 2101 Records and Capitol Records.
A.K.A. saw Lopez reunite with producer Cory Rooney, a long-time collaborator of hers whom she had not worked with since 2007. Other producers known to have worked with Lopez on the album are Da Internz and Max Martin. In late February 2013, Lopez began working with American rapper Future, who was confirmed to be featured and have production credits on the album. The next month, Lopez began working with Chris Brown, who said he was writing "fun stuff" and "party music" for her. Lopez commented that her collaboration with Brown would evoke the "flavor" of her signature hit "Jenny from the Block", and they would be "sonically time-traveling back to 2002 for this release". Of working with Brown, Lopez said, "We talked for a little while about just life and stuff and then he would just jump into the booth and start writing." In May 2013, RedOne revealed that the album was almost complete, and that it has "at least four or five bangers, incredible hits" on it. He further revealed that: "We're doing an album that has everything. She's an incredible A&R herself, so she loves music, she knows what she wants, and I'm just helping her to do that album."
By June 2013, Lopez stated that she had recorded up to 20 songs for the album. In August, it was revealed that she worked with producer Steve Mostyn and Australian singer-songwriter Sia on material for the album. Of working with Lopez, Sia stated "she can really SING!" and it was "super fun". In September, Lopez was pictured working in the studio with singer Robin Thicke and rapper Big Sean. Lopez spoke to Rap-Up about the collaboration with Thicke, saying that "[she] actually played him a couple of different songs so he could see what [she] was doing and he was really excited about it. He picked the song he wanted to do." The song entitled "Love Line" was produced by Da Internz. Thicke also suggested asking Wiz Khalifa to join the duo on the track. Lopez also recorded a duet with singer Maxwell, with whom she had wanted to work with for ten years. Neither song appeared on the final tracklist for the album. In January 2014, she returned to the studio, working with French Montana and DJ Mustard. During an interview with Vibe magazine, Lopez said that she originally asked Montana to feature on the song "Same Girl", but when she told Montana she was filming a video for another song called "I Luh Ya Papi" in the Bronx, he wanted to hear the song and subsequently recorded guest vocals for that song as well. In the same interview, Lopez had stated that she wanted to work with The-Dream and Tricky Stewart again, after working with them both previously on Love?; she managed to finish recording one song with Stewart for the new album. It was also confirmed that Australian artist Iggy Azalea features on one song on the album. Speaking about collaborating with Lopez, Azalea said "I definitely used to sit in my bedroom as a young girl and lip-sync Jennifer Lopez songs, so it's very cool to have a song with her on her album." Later in January, Lopez stated that the album was being finalized, and on April 28, the studio records were handed over for mastering, two days later than anticipated by the label.
Music and lyrics Speaking of the album's sound and lyricism, Lopez stated, "It's gonna be a different sound, I think a lot has happened to me in the past year or two, I've changed a little bit, my ideas about love has changed...you grow", referring to her divorce from singer Marc Anthony, which inspired lyrics for the album. However, she maintained that her topic is still love, "It's my motivation. It's what I think about. That's who I am at the essence." Speaking further about the album's concept, she said "if you listen to my albums, they were always about love. I've always sung about love. It was always love in a certain way: A fairytale type of way; I was hoping, praying, and wishing for that."
Musical genres explored on the album according to Lopez are R&B, hip hop, dance, pop, Latin, and funk. She said, "My roots are hip-hop, my roots are R&B, my roots are pop, my roots are Latin" and "This album is right back to that for me." Amaya Mendizabal of Billboard described the album as "An eclectic mix of sounds [...] as she opts for a mix of urban tilting songs, pop ballads, and dance inducing knockouts. Caroline Sullivan of The Guardian pointed out that "Lopez has moved on from the generic party bangers of her 2011 LP, Love?, veer[ing] from power balladry to squawking hip-hop to an EDM track. Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine agreed, writing that Lopez has switched hats, "this time from disco diva back to urban songstress." Jim Farber of New York Daily News noted that "There's a bit of dubstep (the title track), Latin pop, hip-hop ("Acting Like That"), R&B ("Worry No More") and even several ill-advised ballads.
Songs The album starts with "A.K.A.", a RoccStar-produced hip hop track that features rapper T.I. and was considered a "bass heavy banger". Lyrically, "A.K.A." is a declaration of self-identity and a presumed ex's inability to realize what they had before it was too late. "It took too long to find out what you want right now/ I'm too gone to stay around/ switching up my style," Lopez sings. The second track and second single "First Love" was produced by Max Martin and is an upbeat, bass-heavy track, in which Lopez sings: "I wish you were my first love, cuz if you were first, baby there would have been no second, third, or fourth love." Of the producer, she said: "Max Martin [is a] genius, man. He's a super producer, maker of great pop hits. I've always wanted to work with him but our paths [hadn't] crossed. I sought him out." The mid-tempo "Never Satisfied" was first premiered at a concert in Dubai and was considered a "guitar-driven" track. However, A.K.A.'s version is more R&B-infused, with hypnotic beats. "I'm never satisfied/ honey my appetite is keeping me up at night/ I'm going crazy for more of your love," Lopez pleads with a partner for everlasting affection. The album's first single and fourth track "I Luh Ya Papi" features French Montana and was named "an unashamed ode to sex", featuring "squeaky electronica and provocative rhetoric". The fifth track "Acting Like That" is a slow hip hop track with an urban groove, where Jennifer talks about a relationship on the rocks and warning of its demise. "Don't let the tables turn/ don't let the bridges burn/ been down for you don't get it confused/ boy you could lose your turn," she sings. The song features Australian rapper Iggy Azalea, who raps about "everything from Mary J. Blige to Lopez's 2001 hit 'Ain't It Funny'". The sixth track, the mid-tempo ballad "Emotions", was written by Chantal Kreviazuk and Chris Brown. Lopez passionately sings of anguish, guided by trickling keys: "Someone took my emotions, I feel good cuz I don't feel bad... I tried to give you all my love but that never meant a thing to you," she sings over squiggly synths and piano.