An integral part of my childhood, and I’m sure yours, was Dance Moms. I loved dance and also reality TV, so, naturally Dance Moms was a go to of mine. I’ll never forget seeing Jojo Siwa for the first time — a vivacious little blonde girl with sparkly bows and a dream. She had her iconic moments and scenes (my personal favorite being “JOJO HAVE YOU LEARNED NOTHING?!”), and transitioned into being every eight year old’s idol. Between wrapping her Tesla in pictures of her face, and her song “Boomerang,” I genuinely thought this would be all JoJo Siwa could give. Boy, was I wrong.
After coming out as a gay on TikTok, imploding several relationships (also on Tiktok,) JoJo had announced a new song. Siwa is no stranger to music — but as an artist, she mainly did pop children’s songs. Hearing the opening line “I was a bad girl,” was a shock to many of us.
This isn’t the first time we’ve seen a child star try to rebrand themselves — in fact, it’s incredibly apparent JoJo has taken heavy inspiration from some of the greats like Britney Spears and Miley Cyrus. However, Siwa’s audience skewed significantly younger compared to the child celebrities who had gained fame in the preceding years. With T.V. shows like Hannah Montana, Victorious, and Austin and Ally, along with boy bands such as One Direction that primarily attracted preteens, JoJo’s content resonated more with the kindergarten demographic. This younger audience proudly embraced her bedazzled bows and clothing adorned with vibrant rainbows.
Siwa’s affinity for the flamboyant suggests that she would naturally gravitate towards an exaggerated and highly referential portrayal of her career’s coming-of-age moment. She hasn’t been shy about expressing her desire for a moment similar to Bangerz, gushing over how Miley Cyrus is one of her biggest inspirations.
Finally the moment we had all been waiting for: the full song drop and music video had been released. After being tormented with her cringy dance for weeks, and the thousands of memes already created, the internet got to see firsthand how far JoJo had actually gone. With a KISS-inspired costume and lots of humping on a random island, the public had mixed reactions to say the least. Many agreed and stressed it seemed she was trying too hard to shed her old Disney life, while others protested over her apparent lack of knowing LGBTQIA+ history in the music world.
JoJo famously came out in 2021, and recently did an interview with Billboard about how she wanted to create a new genre of music called “Gay Pop.” There’s just one problem: “gay pop” already exists! People were not shy with reminding her of this fact, and defending some of the greats and their contribution to the queer music industry. With singers and artists like Chappell Roan, Lady Gaga, Hayley Kiyoko, and even Barbra Streisand already existing, there is no creation of a genre already there. Many thought Siwa should be more sensitive to this and instead express how she wanted to be welcomed and added to this intense part of queer identity in the music industry, not take over it.
While the internet was imploding over “Karma” the music video, some delved deeper into its origins. Fans are now flocking to social media platforms to piece together the song’s history, which seems to trace back to Brit Smith’s rendition recorded in 2011. Smith’s demo of the track gained traction on X, a.k.a. Twitter, on Wednesday, April 10, with one user sharing a clip of Smith’s video along with the caption, “JOJO SIWA STOLE KARMA HELP.” Fans did come to her defense, elaborating that Siwa bought the rights for the song and never technically claimed she wrote it (although she did imply it), but the internet never rests with calling out young influencers.
However, I believe a strong component of why the internet is going wild for this whole ordeal is the marketing. Say whatever you want about JoJo Siwa — but you have to admit that the song and dance is stuck in your head. This doesn’t necessarily mean it’s good, but as the saying goes, no publicity is bad publicity. Millions are streaming her song and video, and there are already so many interviews about it coming out with millions of views.
You don’t have to agree with the song or even like it, but the fact is you or someone you know is talking about it. It was a brilliant play by her or her marketing team, and while some may argue that she is gaining no real fans that will keep up with her music, to that I say yes they will. People love to troll and hate on things, and as long as JoJo is making headlines, she will have millions of fans defending her and millions of haters trying to tear her down. And as JoJo Siwa says herself, “Like it or not.. what has been in your head the last few days?”