Jenny from the Block Says You Need to Be Born There to Claim It

There’s a New York state of mind, and then there’s Jennifer Lopez’s take on who actually gets to claim it. During a Thursday, June 4 appearance on the TikTok account“Subway Takes,”the 56-year-old entertainer drew a line in the sand: you have to be born in New York—specifically in one of the five boroughs—to earn the title of New Yorker. No exceptions, no loopholes, no matter how long you’ve lived there or how many taxes you’ve paid.

Lopez, who was born and raised in the Bronx, doubled down when host Kareem Rahma pushed back with what he called an established rule: a decade of residency qualifies someone as a New Yorker.“When I moved here in 2012, everyone was like,‘In 10 years, you can call yourself a New Yorker,'”Rahma explained. Lopez’s response?“That’s a rule? I didn’t get the memo. I did not sign the petition.”She acknowledged that longtime residents might develop New York sensibility and pay New York taxes, but for her, birth in the city remained non-negotiable.

The comment landed differently on social media. While some supporters rallied behind Lopez—pointing out that she’s legitimately from the Bronx—critics weren’t shy about the irony. One TikTok commenter noted that Lopez has lived outside New York longer than she lived in it, currently residing in Los Angeles. Others invoked a higher authority: Carrie Bradshaw from“Sex and the City,”who famously subscribed to the 10-year rule, with one user declaring 40 years in the city qualifies them as a New Yorker by any reasonable standard.

The exchange raises a question that’s probably been debated over countless coffees in bodegas and bars across all five boroughs: Is New York identity something you’re born with, or something you earn? Lopez seems to believe it’s in your DNA—a birthright that can’t be acquired through time, dedication, or cultural absorption. But for millions who’ve moved to New York, fallen in love with it, and built their lives there, that definition feels unnecessarily gatekeeping. The fact that Lopez herself has spent the majority of her adult life in Los Angeles only adds another layer of complexity to her stance. She hasn’t publicly addressed the backlash, but something tells this conversation is far from over.