JoJo Siwa explains herself after stirring lesbian controversy

A “lesbian” misunderstanding rocked dancer JoJo Siwa’s world over the weekend when some fans took issue with the out entertainer’s dislike for the word.

Last week, Siwa was interviewed by Yahoo! News for their Unapologetically series about people living “out loud and in living color, without fear or regret.”

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay up-to-date with the latest LGBTQ news

Siwa may have regretted some of her word choices in the story, along with the two series authors, who teed up the controversy like this: “Siwa’s confidence extends to owning her sexuality as well. After coming out last year, the teen has been called a ‘gay icon’ by many of her adoring queer fans. While she embraces the title with open arms, Siwa acknowledges that she stands on the shoulders of other LGBTQ giants who came before her.”

AdBridg.cmd.push(function() { AdBridg.display("div-gpt-ad-inarticle1"); });

A pair of ill-advised parentheses only made matters worse.

After Siwa explained that she’s truly honored with the “gay icon” honorific, the authors added parenthetically, and maybe provocatively: “Just don’t call her a lesbian.”

Siwa goes on, “joking” according to the authors, that she doesn’t “like the word itself. It’s just like a lot. But I mean, at the end of the day, that’s what I am…. It’s like the word moist. It’s just like… ugh!”

In another context, Siwa’s comments may have come off differently.

Either way, the Dance Moms vet and newest So You Think You Can Dance judge wasn’t happy with the reaction and took to TikTok for a clarification, addressing this comment from one fan specifically: “She called it a dirty word. she did nothing but insult us. My sexuality is not a dirty word.”

@itsjojosiwa

Replying to @