Jennifer Lopez Ends Relationship With Casper Smart

Jennifer Lopez with Casper Smart (Getty Images)
Jennifer Lopez with Casper Smart (Getty Images)

Jennifer Lopez may be the "Same Girl," but she's also a single girl.

The 44-year-old singer and actress has ended her relationship with backup dancer Casper Smart, The Insider With Yahoo has learned. The split took place fairly recently, but the pair — who started dating in October 2011 — had been trying to keep things as private as possible while they hashed everything out.

But keeping things private has been hard to do. In recent weeks, rumors have been swirling that they were living separate lives after Smart, 27, reportedly sent Instagram photos and steamy messages to someone else. However, that all took place after Lopez broke up with him, says a source. And the exes are said to be on friendly terms.

Lopez, who has been married three times and has 6-year-old twins, jumped into a relationship with Smart just months after her marriage to her children's father, Marc Anthony, ended. Soon after, her manager, Benny Medina, said he didn't think the rebound relationship was a great idea.

"The thing that I always sort of wished is that she would give herself time to just naturally meet someone, instead of having obsessive guys pursue her," Medina told Vogue in 2012. "The ease which that obsession becomes a relationship I think sometimes works against her ability to have a real meaningful relationship."

Throughout J.Lo and Casper's relationship, they were often the target of rumors and speculation that it wouldn't last, many pointing to their age difference as a big factor. However, they stuck together and even adopted a dog in 2013, naming it Bear, the nickname the couple used for each other.

In January while doing an American Idol panel, she talked relationships and admitted, "I'm one of those people who does not like to be alone. I have no shame saying that at this point in my life. I think we have to own who we are."

The split comes at a difficult time for Lopez, who recently launched a three-week media blitz to promote her 10th album, A.K.A., which drops June 17. In other words, she'll be doing lots of media promotion — and she'll be dealing with lots of questions about Casper. However, while performing in her native Bronx earlier this week, she looked better than ever, rocking a stage-friendly version of her famed green Versace dress. Check it out: