Rihanna. Beyonce. Lady Gaga. Ariana Grande. When it comes to talented women who are revolutionizing the entertainment industry, the list goes on and on. But today, I’m here to tell you that we have been tragically excluding one particular person from this list who wholeheartedly deserves her spot at the top: Jojo Siwa.
Just like every other fresh, female artist, Siwa was relentlessly bashed at the start of her music career. While the reason behind all the mocking varies for each woman, in Siwa’s case, it stemmed from what her haters deemed an inability to grow up. They spammed her social media accounts with taunts and gave her cruel nicknames, such as “overgrown toddler”. With the sassy Dance Moms star’s preference for rainbows, glitter, and colorful bows, it seemed impossible for her to ever be taken seriously by the industry and the media, despite her massive success with the younger demographic.
But what people didn’t take into consideration was how much tenacity it took on Siwa’s behalf to be able to remain true to herself, no matter how it would impact her reputation and personal brand, and no matter how it made others perceive her.
Siwa’s primary target audience is preteens and younger, so when she came out as part of the LGBTQ+ community over one year ago, her courage to make this decision didn’t go unnoticed. Regardless of the countless parents who sent threats her way and refused to let their children support Siwa any longer, the singer and dancer did her best to remain unbothered, and praise and support overwhelmed the negative attention.
Because of this brave move, millions of young LGBTQ+ who looked up to the star were likely able to feel less alone in their identity. What’s more, by coming out as a gay, teen pop star, Siwa inspired children, and even those older, everywhere and taught that there is nothing wrong with being who you are, whatever that is. Siwa never labeled her sexuality, proving even further that you don’t need to fit into any particular mold to be true to yourself. After constant questioning of whether she was lesbian, bisexual, pansexual, or another, the star decided to speak her truth, saying, “I still don’t know what I am … My human is my human” (abcnews.com).
Jojo Siwa built her huge franchise on her love of glitter and rainbows, but her most popular attribute had always been her signature hair bow. A side pony, pulled tight, with a big, colorful bow to finish off the hairstyle.
As always, her haters had something to say about it, claiming that she would no longer have a career once she grew older unless she stopped donning her signature style. But as always, Siwa refused to listen to anybody but herself. And surprisingly, in a move that she claimed to be more difficult than coming out to her own mother, Siwa eventually ditched her signature hair bows when she turned 18. Just because she wanted to. And while she began letting her hair down in a more mature fashion, Siwa never fully ditched the sparkles and glitter. She liked her wardrobe, and she was going to continue wearing it.
With such tremendous success in her career that has, for the most part, built off her persona of being “kid-friendly” and able to appeal to young demographics, Siwa has never seemed to feel the pressure of conforming to a single identity, whether for her career or anyone. Whether it’s being open about her sexuality or removing her signature bow, Jojo Siwa remains unapologetically herself. And we love and admire her all the more for it.