Teen pop sensation JoJo Siwa and dancer Jenna Johnson got perfect scores for both of their performances in the finals of season 30 of Dancing With the Stars, and Siwa reflected on how dancing with Johnson helped her feel like a woman.
“Even though I am only 18, it feels like I’ve transitioned into an adult, a woman,” Siwa said in the lead-in to their performance. She and Johnson are the first same-sex pairing on the popular ABC reality show that’s in its 30th season. “Jenna singlehandedly has changed my life.”
Related: JoJo Siwa and Ellen talk about what it’s like being gay icons
Siwa was explaining how much her friendship with Johnson, who is straight, has helped her grow.
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“I definitely feel like I am JoJo’s older sister,” Johnson said. “And I know that we’re going to have this friendship and this bond forever.”
Siwa and Johnson first performed a sexy tango/cha-cha-cha fusion to Icona Pop’s “I love it.”
After getting a perfect score from the judges on that performance, Siwa and Johnson danced like pop stars in sparkly outfits to Lady Gaga’s Pride anthem “Born This Way.”
“I am so excited that for our freestyle we’re dancing to ‘Born This Way’ by Lady Gaga,” Siwa said. “I feel like, for me, personally, listening to that song and hearing what Lady Gaga is one thing that made me feel comfortable with being gay.”
The women earned another perfect 40 out of 40 for their freestyle performance, but two perfect scores in the finals wasn’t enough to win the season. NBA player Iman Shumpert and dancer Daniella Karagach also got perfect scores for both performances and won, and Siwa and Johnson ended up as runners-up.
“You know coming here and being the first-ever same-sex couple I think people didn’t know what to expect,” Siwa said. “Winning the Mirrorball is not just winning it for me… it’s winning it for so many people around the world that maybe are afraid to be themselves.”
Earlier in the week, Siwa wrote a thank you message for Johnson on Instagram.
“Trusting you has opened my eyes and fixed my brain,” Siwa wrote. “We have been through it all together in these last 86 days. We have died, survived, and thrived.”
“I am forever going to cherish the memories that we’ve created in these last 10 weeks and hold on to them for dear life.”
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