Niamh Shackleton
It's not new information that some people will go above and beyond to uphold apparent 'beauty standards' - and for JoJo Siwa, this dates back to when she was just a child.
JoJo shot to fame on the popular Lifetime TV shows Abby's Ultimate Dance Competition and Dance Moms.
The now 21-year-old made her TV debut at the age of nine and she went on to become a YouTube sensation after launching her own channel that eventually amassed a staggering 12 million subscribers.
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JoJo has since deleted said channel and started another one after turning her attention to her music career.
She released her most recent song 'Karma' through Columbia Records on April 5, 2024.
Anyone who has followed JoJo's career over the years will know that the star has always been blond - but it turns out this isn't her natural color.
It's not uncommon for people who were blond has kids to eventually end up brunette, but JoJo's mom Jessalynn Siwa didn't want this to happen.
As a result, she has been dying her daughter's hair for many years and now a resurfaced clip from the second season of Abby’s Ultimate Dance Competition shows her dying a then nine-year-old JoJo's hair.
"Nothing if off limits when it comes to doing what I think will benefit JoJo," Jessalynn says in the clip.
Elsewhere she tells her young daughter: "You know, your hair is getting really dark. We're gonna' need to lighten this up."
While it was already shocking that a nine-year-old was having to dye her roots, JoJo then proceeded to allege that she'd been dying her hair since she was around the age of two.
With JoJo's age in mind, people have criticised Jessalynn for bleaching her child's hair.
"I found out today that jojo siwa isn’t a natural blonde and her mother has been bleaching her hair since she was 2 years old," one person tweeted back in April.
Someone replied: "Isn’t this like some form of abuse?"
"Can you imagine how damaging all that bleaching and wearing her hair in a high pony for years is," said another.
A third argued: "Y'all are talking about hair damage but uh.. I think it might be a bit more serious than that."
A general rule of thumb is for someone to wait until the age of 16 before dying their hair.
New York-based dermatological surgeon Sejal Shah, MD, explained that a child's hair is still developing until they hit puberty, which is why she advises against bleaching until 'at least 16'.
She told The Independent: "I really don’t think it’s safe to dye or bleach a child’s hair until after puberty, and ideally not until their late teens - at least 16."
UNILAD have approached JoJo's reps for comment.