718: Zero Gay PR

Welcome back to Lez Hang Out, the podcast where you could qualify for reward points every time you get your gay card stamped.

This week Leigh (@lshfoster) and Ellie (@elliebrigida) hang out to talk about the absolute PR disaster that is JoJo Siwa’s pivot into so-called “Gay Pop” (which apparently didn’t exist before her). If you’ve been a listener for a while, you’re likely aware of how much Leigh in particular was really rooting for JoJo Siwa. But even Leigh can’t excuse the complete mess that JoJo has created for herself. Honestly, every mistake JoJo has made in her press appearances should have been so easy to avoid that we are convinced her PR team must actually consist of 6 dopey dogs in a trench coat rather than actual trained media professionals (and certainly zero queer elders). Whether you think JoJo’s team is simply failing her or you believe the disappointing PR around her career pivot and latest song, Karma, is a very intentionally done psyop (as Ellie does), it is very clear that regardless of the intentions, it’s just not working for the gay community. 

If you are not chronically online like we are you may be surprised to find out that 20 year old JoJo Siwa has gone from being a beloved icon for queer youth to a laughing stock in a really short amount of time for reasons that just seem so completely unnecessary. She maybe could have walked back a few concerning statements like being the creator of a “brand new genre” of music (gay pop), if she wasn’t made to look like a complete fool in every subsequent interview. Yet, she just keeps doubling down on being massively uninformed about queer history and music in general. Between her team choosing to dress her up as Gene Simmons (while actively teaching her exactly zero facts about KISS), creating a bizarrely sanitized ‘bad girl’ music video that feels more straight pageant than gay camp, and failing to broaden her exposure to actual pre-existing gay pop (aside from 40-year-old songs by Madonna), we can’t quite wrap our heads around what her PR team is thinking. 

We currently live in a golden era of gay music and there is honestly zero excuse to not at least be aware of what is going on within the industry, especially if you are literally trying to pivot into that genre. As someone who grew up super-sheltered and always in the spotlight, we aren’t that surprised about JoJo’s overall lack of experience with queer history and the community as a whole. The problem is that someone at her level of fame should really have a more well-informed PR team supporting her through this. If she had spoken to literally any older gay people beforehand, JoJo could have avoided putting her foot in her mouth so many times. 

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