Innocence is fleeting.
Just watch any music video with former DisneyChannel or Nickelodeon stars and you’d understand that pretty quickly.
But in this case, we’re not talking about those stars. We’re talking about YouTube sensation JoJo Siwa.
Siwa started out as a dancer on the second season of Abby’s Ultimate Dance Competition and, when she was eliminated in week nine, she took to YouTube, where she became a star.
Siwa took fans around her mansion, unboxed sparkly gifts, did her makeup, had many a heart-to-heart with viewers and even came out with dance videos and music videos.
And her videos received millions of views. Meaning, she is no small influencer.
That makes her latest hit, “Karma,” quite the shocker.
This song, and its accompanying video, is a billboard for anyone who wants to watch a good-girl-gone-bad-gone-lesbian sort of video.
Of course, this was Siwa’s intent. She said in an interview with Billboard that her desire was to be as “bold” and as “b-llsy” as possible. She also said that she wants to create a new musical style, which she wants to call “gay pop.”
And this profane song about the effects of karma has helped her to accomplish that mission on all fronts.
The saving grace here is that Siwa quotes a part of the Ten Commandments: “Thou shall not lie, thou shall not cheat,” Siwa parrots.
Siwa admits that she cheated on her girlfriend, but that she is sorry for what she did (“This lonely room feels so empty, just me and my regrets/And cold blue eyes look back at me, the mirror has no sympathy/My guilts become a symphony that won’t let me forget”).
Siwa is telling listeners that she’s been cheated on, but that it’s because she also has cheated and lied in the past.
And so she tells the story of her infidelity. “I was a bad girl, I did some bad things/I swear I did it all for fun and it meant nothing.”
She intended to keep her tryst a secret (“It never happened, it was a secret”) and didn’t think about how her actions would hurt her girlfriend (“Another late night, another crazy mood/And I didn’t think twice what it would do to you”).
Until, of course, her girlfriend cheated on her (“When I saw the pics of you and her, I fеlt the knife twist/…It still kills me you hooked up with her”) and she realized that “the universe is giving me what I deserve.”
Which perfectly sets the stage for the chorus, which repeats: “Karma’s a “b–ch/I should’ve known better/If I had a wish, I would’ve never effed around.”
There’s also a double entendre in the chorus that says not only is Karma the worst, but so is the girl that’s now with Siwa’s former girlfriend (“Karma’s a b–ch, and she’s with you right now”).
There are a lot of ways to rebrand oneself. But this is one of the most problematic.
This song, and subsequent music video, feels like Siwa is trying too hard to give herself a new name and distance herself from her YouTube personality of sparkles, bows and all things girly.
I’m sure she’s grown up and changed in many ways. I just wish she would have expressed that differently. Especially because the young girls that have grown up with her may watch this shocking transformation and feel that they should do the same.
This is nothing new. Miley Cyrus spiraled out on Bangerz, Demi Lovato went wild on Confident and Taylor Swift promised revenge on Reputation.
Unfortunately, this seems to be the natural progression for young stars who never really had a childhood. Or for those whose entire childhood was put on display and scrutinized at every turn.
It makes me sad for the slow, unbothered childhood that they never got to have. And for the unhinged personalities they feel they need to take on afterward.
But if you’re a parent of a JoJo Siwa fan, you should know that this new turn she’s taking is laced with profanity and glorifies her own lesbian lifestyle.
Kristin Smith joined the Plugged In team in 2017. Formerly a Spanish and English teacher, Kristin loves reading literature and eating authentic Mexican tacos. She and her husband, Eddy, love raising their children Judah and Selah. Kristin also has a deep affection for coffee, music, her dog (Cali) and cat (Aslan).
