JoJo Siwa's Turbulent Year: From 'Bad Girl' Era to Finding Love

At just 22 years old, JoJo Siwa has lived more lives than most people experience in a lifetime. The former child star who became a household name through Dance Moms and built a billion-dollar merchandise empire has spent the past year navigating one of the most scrutinized transitions in recent pop culture history—and the public reaction has been, to put it mildly, polarizing.

As CNN put it bluntly in their recent profile: "Everyone hates JoJo Siwa." But the reality, as with most things involving the young entertainer, is far more complicated.

The 'Bad Girl' Era That Wasn't

Last year, Siwa attempted what she envisioned as her own version of Miley Cyrus's Bangerz transformation. Trading her signature bows and bright colors for spiky hair, Kiss-inspired face paint, and a more provocative stage presence, she declared the arrival of a "new genre of music" called "gay pop"—a statement that immediately sparked backlash.

The rebrand included taking swigs of Fireball onstage at Pride concerts, wearing decapitated teddy bears on her head, and gyrating through performances of songs about lesbian heartbreak. She released an EP of new music that even a polite Rolling Stone review likened to an "identity crisis."

"It's hard, because some stuff I look back at and I'm like, 'JoJo, what were you doing?'" Siwa admitted in her CNN interview, conducted in her bare-bones Burbank dance studio. The transformation she'd hoped would help people take her seriously as an adult artist instead became fodder for mockery and concern.

Looking back, even Siwa acknowledges the inauthenticity of it all. "It wasn't authentic," she told The Guardian. She even confessed that the Fireball she downed onstage was actually apple juice and Diet Coke. "I think I just wanted to be so far away from being a child star, and I look back at that like, 'You're an idiot—being a child star was so fun.'"

A Relationship That Changed Everything

Enter Celebrity Big Brother UK, a reality show that would prove to be a turning point. Before entering the house, Siwa had a premonition. "Something feels different," she told her mother and manager, Jessalynn. "I don't think I'm gonna win, but I think I'm gonna change."

She was right, though not in the way she expected. On just the second day of production, 72-year-old actor Mickey Rourke targeted Siwa with homophobic remarks, telling her: "If I stay longer than four days, you won't be gay anymore." The uncomfortable exchange, which saw Rourke announcing his intention to "vote the lesbian out," was broadcast to millions.

But out of that difficult moment came something unexpected: a connection with fellow contestant Chris Hughes, a Love Island UK alum who stood up for Siwa and comforted her through the ordeal. Their chemistry was immediate and obvious, surprising both housemates and viewers alike.

The complication? Siwa was in a relationship with non-binary actor Kath Ebbs and had long identified as a lesbian. When she broke up with Ebbs shortly after production wrapped and began spending significant time with Hughes, tabloid speculation exploded.

For months, both Siwa and Hughes insisted they were just "platonic soulmates." But in a candid interview with The Guardian, Siwa finally set the record straight—or rather, acknowledged that things weren't so straight after all.

"It's not platonic any more," she confirmed, smiling from ear to ear. "I'm absolutely head over heels for him and he's the same way." She described being "in pain from smiling so much," a stark contrast to the manufactured edginess of her previous year.

Identity, Backlash, and the LGBTQ+ Community

Perhaps the most painful aspect of Siwa's evolution has been the response from some members of the LGBTQ+ community she once championed so visibly. After coming out at 17 by lip-syncing to Lady Gaga's "Born This Way" on TikTok—a move that earned her a congratulatory phone call from Elton John—Siwa became a powerful symbol of queer visibility for young people.

She was honored by LGBTQ+ organizations like GLSEN, named West Hollywood's "Next Gen Pride Icon," and regularly performed at Pride celebrations. Earlier this year, she wore a bedazzled jacket to the GLAAD Awards reading "trans rights are human rights" and "protect trans kids."

But as her advocacy quieted and her relationship with Hughes became public, some fans felt betrayed. Conservative commentators gleefully claimed victory, with Michael Knowles announcing to cheers at a Turning Point USA event: "JoJo Siwa is no longer a lesbian. Nature is healing!"

Siwa's response? She now identifies as "queer" rather than lesbian, a term she says better "encompasses how I am, and who I am" while reserving her right to remain fluid. "There's a lot of different sexual identities," she told The Guardian. "I think there's nothing more beautiful than somebody discovering themselves."

She pushed back against critics who suggest she's abandoned the LGBTQ+ community: "I will fight for the queer community until it's over. It's my people... So what, I'm in love with a man? That doesn't discredit my past at all."

The Cost of Growing Up in Public

What often gets lost in the discourse around Siwa is just how young she is—and how long she's been famous. By age 15, she was running what she describes as a "billion-dollar business." She'd sold 90 million hair bows alone, plus countless other products. "Anything I did got turned into a doll," she recalls.

The pressure was immense. A stage manager once told her during her 2019 world tour: "You can do the show without anybody; we can't do the show without you." She was 16 years old.

"I think the hardest thing was feeling like you weren't in control of yourself," Siwa reflected. "I do live this very, very big public life that has so many eyeballs on it, and it can get really hard to navigate. But I'm also living a human life. You can't help who you love."

Making Her Red Carpet Debut

On October 22, Siwa and Hughes finally made their relationship official with a red carpet debut at the Dancers Against Cancer's 2025 Gala of the Stars in Beverly Hills. Photos show Hughes kissing Siwa on the cheek, both beaming. It was, Siwa acknowledged to Us Weekly, "a big deal."

Hughes presented his girlfriend with the Humanitarian Award that night, calling it "an easy flight to come over to see JoJo, to see the family and everyone here." The "wonderful, wonderful situation," as he described it, represents a new chapter for both of them.

Finding Authenticity After the Chaos

These days, Siwa says she's "cleaned house," paring back her team after last year's failed rebrand. She postponed a planned US tour but has continued performing in Europe. Her new single "I'm Still Dancing" is a survivor's anthem, while another track, "Raspy," doubles as both a self-diss and an acknowledgment that it's "a fucking blast" to hate her.

"People grew up watching me get bullied by my peers or get harsh critiques," Siwa observed. "In a weird way, people know how to hate me. People are conditioned because they've seen it."

But she's no longer trying to win over the haters or force herself into an image that doesn't fit. "I think I finally have the right mentality again," she says, crediting her time on Celebrity Big Brother with helping her rediscover herself.

Whether or not the public is ready to accept this version of JoJo Siwa—authentically herself, unapologetically in love, and still figuring out who she is at 22—remains to be seen. But for the first time in years, she's not performing for anyone's approval but her own.

"It's the first time in my life that it feels like I'm switched off," she told The Guardian, describing mornings waking up to Hughes singing her songs. After a decade of living her life on camera, always "on," always performing, Siwa has finally found something that feels real—and she's not apologizing for it.