JoJo Siwa is often all smiles, but the entertainer admits that she has insecurities that sometimes affect her self-image.
On Friday, PEOPLE got an exclusive peek at the 20-year-old social media sensation’s upcoming interview on Comfort Food with Kelly Rizzo podcast airing this Sunday.
As the ladies chatted in a wide-ranging interview, the host praised Siwa for exuding confidence before the “Kid In a Candy Store” artist made a surprise confession.
“I’m very insecure about my body,” she said. “I’m so insecure about my body.”
ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” stars JoJo Siwa.
Maarten de Boer/ABC via Getty
“It used to be very bad. Ago Dancing with the stars.” Siwa said if you look at the videos when she was “18 and under,” she would always be dressed “in long sleeves, always covered [with] long pants, [and] long, long, long sleeves.”
Rizzo added that she could only imagine the criticism the then-teenager faced as she was put under the microscope while on national television.
Siwa recalled a time early in the series when she started feeling self-conscious.
JoJo Siwa Shows Off Toned Body After Focusing on ‘Physical Health’ in 2022: ‘She Sweated and Sweated’
The entertainer said she reached around 130 pounds at age 18 and claimed that DWTS co-star Jenna Johnson asked her to take off her “big black tank top” to reveal her body.
“And I just started sobbing and she immediately realized what was going on. And this was literally the second day,” said Siwa.
She said Johnson asked her to go to the mirror and look at her body while wearing a sports bra, but Siwa was hesitant.
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JoJo Siwa.
Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty
“I was like, ‘Jen, I can’t… like [that’s] I’m going to open a can of worms I’ve been suppressing for years. I’m fine the way I am. Like, I can’t, I can’t open this can of worms. Not today, not here, not now, not this year,’ said Siwa.
But Johnson remained persistent and managed to help Siwi see himself in a positive light.
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“We looked in the mirror and said some affirmations and she said, ‘I’ll help you,'” the “Boomerang” artist told Rizzo.
“She made me work out. She is the one who made me feel good about myself. I strengthened my body confidence,” Siwa said of her DWTS partner, although she admitted that sometimes it can be a challenge to maintain that feeling.
She added that although she has never had an “extreme problem”, she hopes that her “experience can help others”.
And this is not the first time Siwa has spoken openly about her respect for Johnson.
In an Instagram post from September 2021, Special forces: the toughest test in the world the alum praised her former costar.
“I couldn’t have asked for a better partner! Thank you for walking me through this process and making it the most fun ever,” she captioned the two dancing together. Siwa and Johnson finished in second place on season 30 of the dance competition.
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Source: HIS Education