Image Credit - Creative Commons Liscense - Iheart Awards, Jojo Siwa
Why are Child Star Rebrands so Captivating?
Lily Pattison
09/04/24
Two pop culture commentators and a brand manager weigh in.
The echoes of Karma’s a Bitch (Siwas newest charting song) reveal a new era of the child star, bows are down the drain and metallica-esque makeup is in. The celebrity initially burst into stardom from the reality show Dance Moms, which Siwa left in 2016, and kicked off a hugely successful career not only as a child-friendly YouTuber but a toy production line. There was a period where you couldn't help but spot one of her bows from out the corner of your eye.
The somewhat raunchy song has found not only myself humming along to the words “karma’s a bitch I should have known better If I had a wish I would have never effed around” but the entirety of the internet. Clips of the music video and the dance routine are everywhere you look and just to pour gasoline on top of the burning flame of internet controversy Siwa has dubbed herself the “inventor of gay pop”.
Controversy and stardom have long since earned celebrities fame but why has Siwa entered this new era? The simple answer: she is having a Miley Cyrus moment. The more complex answer: a strategic PR move to get the world talking about Siwa again. But why are these arguable shitstorms so captivating to watch and why are the cheesy hits so difficult to get out of our heads?
We start with London-based Keisha, a pop culture commentator (ItzKeisha), to get our initial weigh-in on public opinion, “Let's be honest. Everything's weird, but its the only thing people are talking about on social media, we are all consumed by it”
“I know she wants to be seen as all grown up and she wants to be like Miley Cyrus with the whole bangers era. But I think with Miley The reason it worked is because we liked Miley's music and we followed her journey. It just felt more Effortless. Yeah, of course, she got backlash for it. But for the most part, everyone was down with it.”
“Whereas with Jojo Siwa we're looking at it like ‘what are you doing?’ The costume and the face paint, it's funny.”
On par Kayla (Kayla Says), a New York-based pop culture commentator explains, “Jojo Siwa's rebrand is a big miscalculation on her part. I think she and her mom were so used to being accepted by a fanbase of little girls with this sort of corny aesthetic, that she thought it would translate to a "bad girl" rebrand when that's not what teenagers and college kids are into.”
“There's no clear point of view with it so it comes off very disingenuous.”
The celebrity rebrand can be an easy cash grab or a true artist revival but they can be difficult to pull off successfully.
Kayla elaborates, “Rebrands are inherently a part of celebrity culture. In some ways they're viewed more charitably as "eras." People gravitate toward artists who can change up their sound or visuals while remaining authentic to themselves. It shows range and growth.”
“But it has to be done well, like Lil Nas X for example. His pivot from Old Town Road to Montero was true to who he was as a person and had a personal story behind it, and that's why people took to it more kindly than say, someone like Jojo.”
Mathieu, Influencer and Brand Manager at Vinted, explains the key points to hit to have a successful rebrand, “There needs to be this element of novelty and shock to a certain degree.”
“That really captivates people and their attention. But there's also an element of staying true to who you are as a person, this feeling of being a very genuine person.”
“Dakota Johnson, who's really outspoken and says whatever she feels is a great example, I think people connect well with that in general. As a brand, I feel like it also comes down with showing the cracks, showing the vulnerability that usually gets people's attention.”
Jojo Siwa certainly making a splash, we can't argue with her stats, currently sitting at thirty-three million views on YouTube and nine million streams on Spotify the song is clearly turning heads.
Keisha adds, “When it comes to making money and getting people talking about her she's doing pretty good at it.”
Kayla emanates, “I can't knock Jojo's business sense. She had a brand for a long time and it was effective in captivating her target audience. She has said in interviews that she doesn't think of herself as an exceptional singer or dancer. I think she knows that her whole "act" is a job, not a passion.”
Mathieu weighs in, “They're really making the big bucks and they're putting her everywhere and making her so overly present. But on the other side there's a sense of evil in it because when you look at a lot of these people that have had these rebrandings you hear from some of them that this was not such a comfortable time in their lives and that they were still searching for themselves.”
“I feel like by putting them so in the spotlight in such a transformative period of their life can be tough. I feel in the future there will be consequences on their mental health. But, It's giving them such a high in the moment.”
The captivating element may be the striking visuals or the straight-up cringe factor of the previously bowed-up Jojo Siwa humping. But, it's nothing we haven't seen before. So what direction should Jojo's team take?
Kiesha argues, “I think that she should just honestly dial it down. I hadn't even thought about her in years. So, I think she's done well in that part. She's gotten what she wanted in terms of us talking about her, even us here in the UK!”
Laughing she continues “I think she should use her real name it's something simple. She should go country. Why not? Everybody else is! We can have your name in our mouth for the right reasons.”
A more Jojo focus emanates from Kayla's comments, “I think she needs to listen to people in her life who aren't on her team. I feel bad for the kid because it seems like she never got a chance to grow up and figure out who she is outside of her brand as an entertainer.”
“You can't teach being genuine, so I think at least having exposure to different ideas and perspectives outside of her current bubble would be a solid start.”
Mathieu simply says, “No one's heard about Jojo Siwa as much as we've been hearing about her recently. So they are definitely doing something right there.”
So why do these child star-turned-crazy girl pipelines get everyone talking, it must be pure and simple entertainment. How are they done effectively? With an artist who believes in the work they are putting out. For Siwa, she may have snagged an extra five minutes of fame but if she wants us to keep paying attention a little bit more authenticity might go far.
Mathieu, Influencer and Brand Manager at Vinted, explains the key points to hit to have a successful rebrand, “There needs to be this element of novelty and shock to a certain degree.”
“That really captivates people and their attention. But there's also an element of staying true to who you are as a person, this feeling of being a very genuine person.”
“Dakota Johnson, who's really outspoken and says whatever she feels is a great example, I think people connect well with that in general. As a brand, I feel like it also comes down with showing the cracks, showing the vulnerability that usually gets people's attention.”
Jojo Siwa certainly making a splash, we can't argue with her stats, currently sitting at thirty-three million views on YouTube and nine million streams on Spotify the song is clearly turning heads.
Keisha adds, “When it comes to making money and getting people talking about her she's doing pretty good at it.”
Kayla emanates, “I can't knock Jojo's business sense. She had a brand for a long time and it was effective in captivating her target audience. She has said in interviews that she doesn't think of herself as an exceptional singer or dancer. I think she knows that her whole "act" is a job, not a passion.”
Mathieu weighs in, “They're really making the big bucks and they're putting her everywhere and making her so overly present. But on the other side there's a sense of evil in it because when you look at a lot of these people that have had these rebrandings you hear from some of them that this was not such a comfortable time in their lives and that they were still searching for themselves.”
“I feel like by putting them so in the spotlight in such a transformative period of their life can be tough. I feel in the future there will be consequences on their mental health. But, It's giving them such a high in the moment.”
The captivating element may be the striking visuals or the straight-up cringe factor of the previously bowed-up Jojo Siwa humping. But, it's nothing we haven't seen before. So what direction should Jojo's team take?
Kiesha argues, “I think that she should just honestly dial it down. I hadn't even thought about her in years. So, I think she's done well in that part. She's gotten what she wanted in terms of us talking about her, even us here in the UK!”
Laughing she continues “I think she should use her real name it's something simple. She should go country. Why not? Everybody else is! We can have your name in our mouth for the right reasons.”
A more Jojo focus emanates from Kayla's comments, “I think she needs to listen to people in her life who aren't on her team. I feel bad for the kid because it seems like she never got a chance to grow up and figure out who she is outside of her brand as an entertainer.”
“You can't teach being genuine, so I think at least having exposure to different ideas and perspectives outside of her current bubble would be a solid start.”
Mathieu simply says, “No one's heard about Jojo Siwa as much as we've been hearing about her recently. So they are definitely doing something right there.”
So why do these child star-turned-crazy girl pipelines get everyone talking, it must be pure and simple entertainment. How are they done effectively? With an artist who believes in the work they are putting out. For Siwa, she may have snagged an extra five minutes of fame but if she wants us to keep paying attention a little bit more authenticity might go far.