Let's all just cut CBB's JoJo Siwa some slack

I’ll be honest, I don’t know loads about JoJo Siwa, the 21-year old singer and TikToker who's just joined this years line-up of celebrities in the Big Brother house. But I’ve noticed when I scroll through social media, whenever she comes up, the comments section never passes the vibe check.

For the uninitiated, the American entertainer, grew up in the public eye as a child dancer on Dance Moms from the age of 9. She joined Nickelodeon at age 14 as a singer and actress. She competed in Dancing With the Stars in 2021, the same year she revealed she identifies as pansexual, and last year, she launched her adult singing career with her first single, Karma, which saw her rebrand and significantly switch up her image.

Since then, she’s been ruffling feathers and people are not happy with JoJo 2.0. Case in point: a recent Instagram post announcing her arrival on Big Brother. In the promotional video, JoJo reveals “the fans have dubbed me CEO of gay pop,” before confessing "I don’t think there’s any hiding me in the Big Brother house. When people first meet me they’re like, ‘Who is this 21-year-old? Oh my god, she’s gonna be so annoying.’ And then they get to know me and they’re like, ‘Wait, this b*tch is funny!’”⁠

The reaction? Not so good… A brief scroll through the comments served up endless vitriol. “Does she have no one in her life who tells her the actual truth? It’s so cringe I can barely take it” one post read. “God she’s a bellend,” said another, while a third read “what.. fans??”

It's a similar story on repeat whenever she's mentioned on social. Another post announcing her stint on Big Brother was met with similar contempt. “Oh good, now she can annoy a whole other country. Please please keep her,” one commenter wrote. “GO AWAY!!!” said another.

And last year while promoting her music, JoJo was met with a similar reaction. An instagram post that shows her dancing alongside E News host, Keltie Knight, dressed in a hi-vis jacket, cargo trousers and worker boots really got people going. "Please gurl go home” one post read. The comment picked up over 800 likes. “Can jojo just go away” said another, with over 1400 likes. “Why is she holding her head like that” “Can somebody send this kid back to the trailer park?” “Cringe every time she’s present.” “Jojo thinks everything she does is so hard” “Why [does] she dress like she[‘s] working in construction lmao”.

It’s not just these posts. The topic “Why are people hating on JoJo Siwa?” has over 235.3 million hits on TikTok. Criticism levelled against her has ranged from her “overconfidence” to her styling choices, her “masculinity,” and her sexuality, among other jabs.

Truthfully, her interviews, clothes, performances and music videos are provocative. She previously declared “I want to start a new genre of music … it’s called ‘gay pop’”. Her videos are heavy on groin thrusts, kisses, trysts with boys and girls and frantic dance moves. Her outfits are out-there with face studs, mask-like face paint and BDSM-inspired costumes. It’s explicitly sexual, it’s audacious, it’s in your face…It’s not for everyone and that’s fine.

But why are people sooooooooo angry? There’s no denying that JoJo has deviated off the pop princess path that perhaps people expected from her. And, granted, there’s a lot of confidence and self-belief there, especially in hyping herself up in a space others have also trodden before (gay pop has existed for decades). But guess what? Tearing down a 21-year old – who has the audacity to explore her identity and sexuality as a public figure, who wants to be original and dares to experiment with concepts that feel new and exciting to her, and who openly admits to feeling proud and comfortable in herself – all feels really mean.

One video, posted by @sarapoptarts, destroying the singer notes: “everyone hates her, but it’s not because of her sexuality, it’s because of who she is as a person, which I think is progress. Ten years ago, that music video of her kissing another woman would have been so controversial and now nobody even cares about that. They’re like ‘yeah, kiss a lady, that’s fine, just quit doing this shit [mocking her dance moves].’ You look weird. Why are you wearing bedazzled board shorts? Nothing brings people together like a common enemy and she has done that.” The video has over half a million likes.

Others have castigated her for comparing herself to Miley Cyrus. A video shows a woman falling about laughing in response to JoJo calling Miley her “number one idol,” and explaining “I want to do what she did with Bangerz.” In the video the woman asks “how hard do you think Miley Cyrus laughed when somebody sent her that clip,” before wheezing “she [JoJo] looks like a tarantula.” The comments section was equally savage. “I think all those bows she used to wear caused some brain damage. She’s so delusional,” one said. “She will NEVER do what Miley did lol” said another.

The thing is, Miley walked a similar path. She was berated for switching up her image from wholesome Disney star, to Bangerz provocateur when she hit roughly the same age. She shaved her head, straddled a wrecking ball, wore little to no clothing, twerked with Robin Thicke and riled a lot of people up along the way. At the time, haters weaponised Miley’s age, arguing that it was a phase that she’d look back on with embarrassment. And while Miley Cyrus has been open about the fact that she’s grown plenty in the decade or so since, she remains loyal to her Bangerz era.

In an interview last year, Miley admitted: “I was creating attention for myself because I was dividing myself from a character I had played. Anyone, when you’re 20 or 21, you have more to prove." She revealed how the hate had affected her, noting “I carried some guilt and shame around myself for years because of how much controversy and upset I really caused.” But, she acknowledged the lack of compassion and understanding was unacceptable. “Now that I’m an adult, I realise how harshly I was judged. I was harshly judged as a child by adults and now, as an adult, I realise that I would never harshly judge a child.”

On releasing her single Used To Be Young, last August, which ruminates on her life so far, she tweeted: “This song is about honoring who we’ve been, loving who we are & celebrating who we will become. I feel proud when reflecting on my past and joyful when thinking about the future.”

The takeaway? Who are we to tell someone else how to be. If something or someone is not for us, look elsewhere. We don't have to squash young girls who are following their dream and discovering who they are along the way.

Perhaps, appearing on Big Brother will open JoJo up to more abuse and criticism, or perhaps it will allow her the chance to be seen and understood by the people who have judged her and trashed her on face value. Already, there's been a thawing on comments underneath clips of her undertaking challenges and interacting with other contestants. “She’s carrying the show 😍😍,” one commenter wrote. “Thought I'd hate her, absolutely love her,” said another, while a third wrote “I'm really liking JoJo!”

At the end of the day, this is a person navigating the journey into adulthood in front of the world, albeit loudly and confidently. So for all the JoJo trolls whose heads fall off every time she reminds you she exists, you probably just need to calm down and let her live.

For more from GLAMOUR's Senior Beauty Editor, Elle Turner, follow her on Instagram @elleturneruk

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