It was obvious that Dance Moms alum JoJo Siwa was destined for great things. In 2017, the 14-year-old wrote her memoir, and had three more books on the way.
When JoJo joined the cast for Season 30 of Dancing with the Stars, she made history. For the first time ever, JoJo was paired with a same-sex partner. Jenna Johnson was JoJo’s pro, and together they slayed every routine that they performed.
In a surprising twist, the duo came in second during the DWTS finale. NBA star Iman Shumpert and his partner, pro Daniella Karagach won the shiny mirror ball trophy.
JoJo and Jenna spoke with Entertainment Tonight right after the finale. “I will take second every single day if that means that I got to make it to the finale,” JoJo explained. “If it means I got to make the friend that I did in Jenna. It if means that I got to have the experiences and life changes that I’ve had in the last 10 weeks.” The pop star added, “It’s worth so much to me and I’m so grateful forever.”
The duo killed both of their routines for the DWTS finale. They danced a tango and cha-cha fusion to “I Love It” by Icona Pop feat. Charli XCX. The routine earned them a perfect score of 40 points.
Their freestyle number was positive and powerful. They danced to “Born This Way” by Lady Gaga. It also nabbed a perfect score. JoJo said that if Lady Gaga responded to her performance, it would be like “a dream has come true.”
JoJo commented, “Whether Gaga sees it or a little kid at home sees it, who thinks they might love someone who is the same gender as them, as long as someone in the world is seeing this and smiling, that’s all I want.” The duo’s freestyle performance elicited an emotional response from the judges.
“Honestly, I wish you were around when I was a kid. It would have made it so much better for all of us,” judge Bruno Tonioli stated. “When I watch you dance, all I can think of is that I feel safe with the future. Because you’re such an incredible role model,” judge Carrie Ann Inaba remarked. “With role models like you, we’re going to be OK.”
“Hearing those things like that never gets old, never gets unappreciated, never gets any less. It means more and more every time somebody says something like that to me,” JoJo explained. “Honestly, I just am so grateful that, with the younger generation, that I have a platform to be a voice for them and to be a person for them to look to, and to see, ‘She’s a girl, she was in a relationship with a girl, she’s not weird,'” JoJo added.
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Jenna also reflected on her bond with JoJo. “It was such an amazing season because I really got to dance to my fullest. I feel like most of the time on the show, you’re worried about your partner and you wanna make sure your whole focus is on them,” Jenna shared. “With JoJo, I didn’t have to worry. I just got to dance myself and it was one of the most fulfilling three months of my life.”
Jenna and JoJo had the highest combined points of all the couples on Season 30, and they were obviously the front-runners to take home the mirror ball. In the end, Iman and Daniella clinched the championship, and JoJo and Jenna were thrilled for them. Jenna revealed, “Iman, for some reason, has been like our big brother in this whole competition, so if there was anyone who we wanted to win, it was Iman and Daniella.”
Peloton instructor Cody Rigsby and pro Cheryl Burke took third place, while Amanda Kloots and her partner, Alan Bersten, finished in fourth.
TELL US- WHAT DID YOU THINK OF JOJO AND JENNA’S FREESTYLE ROUTINE? WHO DID YOU WANT TO SEE TAKE HOME THE MIRROR BALL?
[Photo Credit: ABC/Maarten de Boer]
