JoJo Siwa has broken fans' hearts after reacting to a resurfaced clip from her time on Dance Moms.
The singer, dancer, and YouTuber is a household name these days, with a double-platinum single, sold-out stadium tours, and a spot on Time's list of the 100 Most Influential People - but it wasn't an easy way to the top. Check this out:
JoJo first got acquainted with controversial dance coach Abby Lee Miller when she was just nine-years-old, after competing in Abby's Ultimate Dance Competition.
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After making it to the finals of the competition, JoJo and her mum Jessalynn started appearing on the cult-favourite reality series Dance Moms.
Despite quickly becoming one of the show's stand-out stars, JoJo struggled desperately to gain Abby's approval.
By now, it's no secret that Abby has a pretty intense coaching method - whether it's screaming at the kids on her team, lashing out at them for not meeting her standards, or just generally diminishing their self-esteem.
After two seasons of taking Abby's brutal classes, JoJo parted ways with Dance Moms and launched her own YouTube channel.
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From there, it was plain sailing for JoJo, who released the hit song 'Boomerang' in 2016, went on her first major concert tour in 2019, and currently has a whopping 12.3 million YouTube subscribers.
She has had partnerships with major brands like Claire's Accessories and J.C. Penney, signed with Nickelodeon in 2017, and competed in series like Dancing With The Stars and The Masked Singer.
The happy-go-lucky teen star, now 19, took to TikTok recently to take a look at how far she has come since her Dance Mom's days.
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Sharing a video compilation that another account had made of her heartbreaking time on the reality show, JoJo joked: "When people hate [and] tried to hurt me but this was my childhood..."
The compilation includes the moment Abby asked the other girls to tell JoJo what her worst traits were, a number of times that Abby drove JoJo to tears, and clips of the other dancers and their mums talking about her behind her back.
Looking back, it's hard to believe that adults were allowed to speak to children like this - and that parents let it happen.
"I never understood how the mothers just stood there!" commented one viewer. "I’d have ripped her hair out."
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"The fact that any mom allowed a child to go through this... blows my mind," agreed another.
"As a mom this makes me so angry… adults picking on children for what?!" asked a third.
Others congratulated JoJo on making it through that torturous time in her life and coming out the other side as arguably the most famous Dance Moms alum.
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"The manipulation and hate that all of you went through is horrific! So happy to see you on top and thriving! You are so strong!" raved one follower.
"They tried so hard to break you yet you refused to be broken. JoJo you deserve the world," wrote another.
"Use this sound as a transition to you selling out stadiums," suggested a third.
That's the kind of petty behaviour we need, JoJo!
Topics: Film and TV, Celebrity
Ali Condon