JoJo Siwa Says Social Media Helped Her Come Out: ‘It Gave Me a Safe Space’

JoJo Siwa is a child of the Internet. From her reality TV roots to her booming TikTok career, the two-time Emmy-nominated composer and choreographer has ridden social media to staggering new heights. Now, Jojo is opening up about how social media helped her with her coming out journey.

“Just getting social media for me, it actually gave me a safe space when I came out,” Jojo reflected in a recent interview with E! News. “I knew that even if everyone around me didn’t support, me that there was gonna be people online that did.”

In January 2021, after a series of videos in which she lip-synched to Lady Gaga’s Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 single “Born This Way” and chronicled hangouts with TikTok collective Pride House LA, Siwa subtly came out by wearing a “Best Gay Cousin Ever” T-shirt in a TikTok. The 20-year-old Dance Moms alum identifies as pansexual.

The four-time Kids’ Choice Award winner added, “And I knew that I was gonna find those people and I was really excited about that. I always told myself it was gonna be easier to come out online than it was in person. And I do believe that’s very true.”

Her TikTok account has since become a space for her to bond with fans, forge a sense of community between her and her queer followers and reconcile her child-star past with her present as an out-and-proud creator. “It’s been fun to be able to figure out what ways I get to be a part of that,” she said.

Siwa has landed three titles on Billboard’s Kid Album chart: a pair of 2019 EPs titled D.R.E.A.M. The Music (No. 22) and Celebrate (No. 12), as well as 2020’s Jojo’s Rockin’ Christmas (No. 17).