JoJo Siwa says the younger version of herself — with all those colorful bows — is gone.
“She will never come back, but I will never hate her,” Siwa, 20, exclusively told Us Weekly at the Dance Moms: The Reunion New York premiere on Thursday, April 25. “I’m always going to be proud of her. That kid got through some s–t.”
After appearing on two seasons of Dance Moms from 2015 to 2016, Siwa signed to Nickelodeon. Under the network, the TV personality won over fans with her big personality and colorful hair bows as she starred in various shows and released several children’s songs.
Now, Siwa is older, wiser and celebrating the launch of her adult music career with more mature songs and music videos.
“People have made dramatic changes, absolutely,” Siwa explained when referencing her previous Billboard interview on shifting from child star to serious artist. “But nobody has made — in my generation — this dramatic of a change. I’m trying to think if I need to correct myself, but nobody has gone from zero to 100, that is, within my generation and my age range.”
Earlier this month, Siwa turned heads when she showed up to the 2024 iHeartRadio Music Awards in Los Angeles in a silvery-black look. Many compared the ensemble to something Kiss would have worn during the band’s heyday.
The look was also featured in the music video for her new single “Karma,” which features lyrical content not suitable for children. According to Siwa, she put her own money into the project to make sure it came out just as she wanted.
“I enjoy funding it because it is 100 percent my creative say,” she explained to Us. “We have two more coming up and I plan on funding them. If the team chips in, awesome. If not, awesome. I’m chilling.”
As Siwa looks towards the future with her music career, she’s also celebrating the past by reuniting with her Dance Moms costars.
In Lifetime’s upcoming special Dance Moms: The Reunion, Siwa will sit down with Kendall Vertes, Paige Hyland, Chloé Lukasiak, Kalani Hilliker and Brooke Hyland to discuss the good and bad about the series. Their moms are also expected to participate.
“The original Dance Moms cast discusses some of the most controversial headlines since the show aired,” Lifetime said in a previous release, “catches fans up on what they are doing now and provides some shocking revelations as the Dance Moms drama comes full circle.”
Dance Moms: The Reunion premieres on Lifetime Wednesday, May 1 at 8 p.m.
With reporting by Aileen Bergin
