JoJo Siwa has been candid about her sexuality since coming out as queer in January 2021.
The Dance Moms alum uploaded a photo to social media at the time in which she was wearing a shirt that read, “Best. Gay. Cousin. Ever.”
After receiving widespread support from her online community, Siwa told followers that she had “never, ever, ever been this happy before” in an Instagram Live. Since then, Siwa has experienced some ups and downs in her love life, but has always stayed true to herself.
Keep scrolling to read Siwa’s honest quotes about her sexuality:
Putting a Label on It
In her January 2021 Instagram Live, Siwa noted that he wasn’t going to put a label on her sexuality. She’s since confirmed that she identifies as queer during an April 2025 appearance on Celebrity Big Brother.
JoJo Siwa’s personal life has been a hot topic since she rose to fame on Dance Moms. Siwa’s first-ever public relationship was with Mark Bontempo, which she hard-launched in August 2020. Months later, the former Dancing With the Stars contestant confirmed the pair had split. “I am single as a Pringle right now. But Mark […]
“I’ve always told myself I’m a lesbian, but I think you — I think being here, I’ve realized, ‘Oh no, I’m not a lesbian, I’m queer,’” she said at the time. “I think that’s really cool. I’m switching letters.”
Icon Status
Fans called Siwa a “gay icon” after she came out. She called that “the biggest honor” while chatting with Entertainment Weekly in June 2021.
“About a year ago, I started having all these music meetings just for fun, just getting my head where I want to go,” she recalled. “And I told the producers, ‘I want to create gay pop, and I want to have a concert for the girls and for the gays.’ Turns out a year later, I am very much so gay.”
She also addressed the moniker on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in November of that same year.
“I am so happy with the outcome of me coming out,” Siwa said at the time. “The world has taken it so positively, and it’s impacted so many young kids in such a way that hearing adults say, ‘I wish I had someone like you when I was little,’ that makes me know the kids that are little have someone like me, too.”
Reflecting on Her Journey
In January 2022, the teen star reflected on how her life has changed since coming out publicly one year prior.
“In the last 365 days I’ve felt more love than ever. A year ago today I posted this picture and shared with the world that I was gay,” she wrote at the time, “I get asked a lot ‘was coming out scary for you’ … and the answer is yes of course, anything that’s different about you is scary, however … it’s what makes me … me. so I had no fear with sharing it with the world.”
Her ‘Gay Awakening’
In October 2022, the former Nickelodeon star recalled her “gay awakening” via the TikTok trend “One Thing About Me.”
In the clip, Siwa opened up about loving Demi Lovato’s 2015 hit “Cool for the Summer,” putting Jenna Dewan’s Magic Mike performance on Lip Sync Battle on repeat and a first date with a man.
“A couple years later, a man was my first date and he wanted to have sex with me and I did not want to — never wanted to, grossed out by the thought of it,” she explained. “Immediately knew men are not my thing. Women are my gig. Gotta go.”
2 Years and Counting!
Siwa wrote in a January 2023 Instagram post that when “looking back on everything … I’m SO proud of 17 year old JoJo.”
Sharing Her Feelings
“Essentially, you have female and you have male. I’ve met a lot of females, love them, [but] don’t feel like I’m them,” Siwa said during an April 2025 episode of Celebrity Big Brother. “Met a lot of males, love them [but] definitely not one. Met a lot of people in my life who are non-binary, and these beautiful non-binary people are who I feel the most like. It’s not something that I want to say about myself yet, but it’s something that is confusing.”
Clarifying Her Sexuality
“First of all, let’s clarify a couple of different things here,” Siwa said during an episode of “The Viall Files” podcast in April 2025. “Sexuality is fluid, gender identity are fluid. It could be one thing today and one thing tomorrow.”
She continued: “When I came out, I came out as pansexual, then I came out as lesbian, then I was like, maybe I am pansexual, then maybe I was like, no, maybe I am a lesbian, then I was like, maybe I’m bisexual, then I was like, you know what? I think I’m just gay, don’t know what that means. Then I was like, no, maybe I’m a lesbian. Now I’m like, you know what? I think I’m just queer.”
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