YouTube star JoJo Siwa has sparked outrage online after defending controversial creator Colleen Ballinger amid accusations that Ballinger allegedly groomed young fans.
JoJo Siwa is a bonafide internet icon who rose to fame in the late 2010s after first appearing on the reality TV show Dance Moms.
Siwa has garnered a huge audience thanks to her bubbly personality and love for all things sparkly, glittery, and rainbow. In the years since going viral, Siwa has released her own music, gone on tour, and also came out as part of the LGBTQ+ community in 2021.
Siwa has cemented herself as an icon for young people all over the world — but now, the YouTuber is coming under fire for her latest comments about one of her colleagues.
JoJo Siwa speaks out on friendship with Miranda Sings
On a September 12 episode of Howie Mandel’s podcast, Siwa opened up about her friendship with now-disgraced YouTuber Colleen Ballinger. The two have collaborated many times in the past and, according to Siwa, have known each other since she was just twelve years old.
This fact sparked shock from listeners, given that Ballinger is currently under scrutiny for allegedly grooming several of her young fans. As a result of these allegations, Ballinger’s tour was stopped short, and the influencer hasn’t spoken out since releasing an apology video that was slammed by the internet over the summer.
But Siwa went to bat for Ballinger, saying “the internet can take a lie and run so far with it, so far, to the point where you just can’t do anything about it.”
“I know Colleen very, very, very well, and I think the work that Colleen has done for the internet is incredible,” she continued. “I think her creativity is incredible. Miranda Sings is a character, is a comedian. And I think that it’s very hard to be a character where people are also looking at you as a real human behind that character.”
“She’s cool, you know? And the problem is, I think the internet was able to capitalize off of her cancellation, and they still are… and it’s not okay, because a lot of it is based off of lies. And it hurts me to see.”
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Since speaking out about the issue, Siwa has faced a wave of backlash from commenters angry that she stuck up for such a controversial figure.
“So Jojo is saying children lied?” one commenter wrote. “Really? She’s now victim shaming.”
“Colleen is a disgusting person and she doesn’t need you to defend her Jojo,” another said. “Do you think she really is innocent and sitting in silence after making an a**out of herself waiting for you to defend her because what, you’re ‘friends?’ Embarrassing.”
However, others are taking a gentler approach, with many commenters saying Jojo is “naive” and likely still attached to a longtime friend she made when she was just kid.
Even the likes of YouTube star Trisha Paytas commented on the situation, saying that although Siwa “should have opted to not talk about it,” she “has respect for Jojo for navigating everything she’s been through.”
“In no way am I placing blame on Jojo for these words she’s saying. I think in this particular case she feels an attachment, she feels a loyalty to Colleen,” Paytas said.
Thus far, Siwa has yet to publicly speak out regarding the backlash she received after discussing Colleen — but we’ll make sure to keep you updated right here on Dexerto if she does.
