JoJo Siwa started making a name for herself back in the early 2010s with her role as a dancer on Dance Moms. Then, she became more influential on platforms like Snapchat and TikTok while also creating music for young girls that were full of color and life and fun. 

More recently, JoJo has made a hard pivot into a new wave of music. Her new song “Karma” depicts ideas of identity change and perception. Fans (or even just bystanders to this change) have a universal reaction: the people are shocked. Now, let me clarify, no one is shocked at the change itself, as most child stars take a hard pivot in some fashion. Instead, people are shocked because of JoJo’s perception of her own rebranding. 

In a recent Billboard interview, she claims to have invented a new genre of music called “gay pop,” and took a turn  that “no one in her generation has yet.” This in itself is alarming, due to that statement ignoring the influence and impact of artists like Lady Gaga, Dove Cameron, Chappell Roan and others in recent years. I think this message would have been better received by the public if she was excited to be transitioning into this predetermined genre, rather than taking counterfeit credit for its creation. Equally, as interesting is the recent release of a video of Brit Smith originally recording the song, and then scrapping it, Miley Cyrus trying it out, then ultimately JoJo getting her hands on it. While it is not technically stealing since the rights to the song were purchased, claiming it as songwriting is unfair.

For her to be hyping up this song so much, to ultimately not have even written it, is intriguing. I am excited that queer musicians shed more light onto the music scene; I think it is a fabulous step forward for representation. I just think with JoJo’s arrogance around the whole situation, she either needs to take a step back, or is now playing into this character because she knows it is getting her lots of attention. I think that, as bad as this switch has been portrayed, that was JoJo’s plan all along. I think she knows to stay relevant she has to be doing and saying outrageous things. She did the same when in late March, she plastered her own face all over her car, then cut someone off in traffic. Whether or not you agree or disagree with the way this switch has been handled, she has a point about one thing: “Karma” has definitely been stuck in our heads for the last few weeks.

Image from JoJo Siwa via YouTube