When former child star JoJo Siwa came out of the closet in January 2021, many in the LGBTQ+ community accused her of queerbaiting, also known as gay for pay.
Queerbaiting and gay for pay are pejorative terms for a heterosexual celebrity who uses the LGBTQ+ community for marketing and PR.
In a new interview with the Daily Mail’s YOU Magazine, JoJo said she was “pressured” to come out as a lesbian.
“I kind of boxed myself in and I said: ‘I’m a lesbian.’ And I think I did that because of pressure,” she explained.
JoJo said that she felt the pressure came “in a weird way” from “inside the [LGBTQ] community at times.” She finally admitted that she wasn’t a lesbian on an episode of Celebrity Big Brother UK earlier this year.
JoJo, 22, began dating her fellow CBB cast member Chris Hughes, 32.
“I’ve dropped the L and I’ve gone to the Q baby! That’s what I love about sexuality,” said Siwa, referring to sexuality as “fluid.”
JoJo’s fans on Reddit.com were furious. They felt betrayed and used by her.
In an Instagram post in Jan. 2021, the then-17-year-old YouTube star told her pre-teen fans:
“Personally, I have never, ever, ever been this happy before and it feels really awesome. I’ve been happy for a little bit now. It’s just so, so, so awesome. You guys probably haven’t seen me this happy since I was on tour.”
JoJo stopped short of saying she was a member of the LGBTQ+ community. “The reason I’m not going to say this answer is because I don’t really know this answer,” JoJo said, while dodging the question.
Sandrarose.com‘s readers weren’t fooled by her coming out announcement in 2021.
Reader Geezy wrote in the comments: “Shes not GAY! It’s part of the agenda cause these kids LOVE her so much. Manipulate and brainwash kids with the people they love.”
Another SR reader wrote: “The GAG was “promoting hair bows and sequins to little girls , when the REAL AGENDA was to promote that LBQGTH life.”
