Thou shall not lie. Thou shall not cheat. Thou shall not get caught, or you’ll end up with a bad song. JoJo Siwa’s new explicit single “Karma” was released on April 5th and its repetitive publicity and abnormal music video left the public in shock.
JoJo Siwa’s carefully crafted persona consisted of sunshine, rainbows, and colorful bows until it broke apart when she turned 20 years old. Although this method of rebranding by releasing songs that are uncommon to one’s nature is popular and mostly successful for artists like Miley Cyrus, Siwa’s attempt feels juvenile, inadvertently reminding listeners of Siwa’s bubblegum past rather than demonstrating maturity.
Although Siwa stated in interviews that she wrote the song herself two years ago, a shocking truth was uncovered after the media found a version recorded by Brit Smith in 2012, that was never formally released. This pitching process is common in the songwriting industry and is not something for artists to be ashamed of, yet Siwa tried to market herself as a pioneer for creating “Karma,”, coming off as inauthentic.
When Siwa initially teased snippets of the song, fans were bewildered at its absurd lyrics and choreography. The song was described as “explicit,” though its mature themes barely scratch the surface with one curse word and a laughable “effing.” Although Siwa incorporates her queer identity in a depiction of a toxic sapphic relationship, the lyrics lack a cohesive structure and strangely describe cheating and karma getting back at Siwa, creating dissonance with the song’s remorseful meaning and Siwa’s oddly upbeat delivery.
The choreography was also ridiculed online, as Siwa appeared to be dancing “too hard” and looked overly stiff. However, this is not because she is a bad dancer, considering her competitive dance background and being on the show “Dance Moms.” Siwa naturally overexerts her moves rather than controlling them to execute the dance more smoothly due to the expressive nature of competitive dance. Nonetheless, the fact that she couldn’t incorporate simple textures within “Karma” was disappointing since dance is what she is known for.
The music video epitomized Siwa’s persona shift with overwhelmingly sexual elements and “gay pop” styling. The song itself was confusing to understand, the questionable sets and costumes that seemed to have no context behind them made it even harder. In some parts, Siwa wears a black rhinestone outfit with elaborative black makeup, supposedly a projection of the drastic change that Siwa was going through but instead is comparable to a Loch Ness monster. Although there are no more vibrant bows or neons, the glitter, rhinestones, and loud production doesn’t convey much of the promised drastic change and doesn’t show the maturity that a genuine rebrand would have.
The bubbly, bright, and colorful Siwa once said “Imma come back like a boomerang.” However, this rebrand shows that Siwa clearly did not “come back like a boomerang” and is only earning more criticism by the day. Despite the disapproving judgments others make, Siwa keeps her head high, excited to show the world her new era.
