JoJo Siwa is reflecting on her own path as a child star while paying tribute to the trail that Britney Spears once blazed.
On Monday, Oct. 4, Dancing With the Stars celebrated "Britney Night," during which every contestant performed to a different Britney song. The special night coincides with the 39-year-old pop star's fans having recently rallied behind the so-called #FreeBritney movement in hopes of seeing her freed from her conservatorship that dates back to 2008.
"I love Britney," JoJo told the camera during a pre-recorded segment. "Britney is a legend. An icon. A ball of talent and glitter and energy. She is a genius. She just has a way of being herself, almost like nobody else does."
The 18-year-old Dance Moms alum went on to say that she connects with Britney "on a lot of different levels," given that they both started in the industry at young ages and have since tackled music and film projects. During the episode, JoJo danced the tango to "...Baby One More Time" with partner Jenna Johnson.
"I think I've had a really great support system around me, but being a child star is hard," recalled JoJo. "I was always homeschooled, and so I never had a person bullying, like it wasn't a thing for me. One night, I went to a Halloween theme park. People were shouting at me, 'JoJo Siwa, 'F' you.'"
She continued, "No 14-year-old wants to hear that. Every time that I go through something, it reminds me of the other side, of what's good."
There has been a surge of public attention paid toward Britney since the February launch of FX's documentary Framing Britney Spears, which focused on the pop star's conservatorship battle with father Jamie Spears. Last week, the singer got some good news when a judge suspended Jamie as the conservator of her estate during a Sept. 29 hearing.
In an Instagram post on Monday, Oct. 4, Britney thanked her fans for all their support, writing, "#FreeBritney movement … I have no words … because of you guys and your constant resilience in freeing me from my conservatorship … my life is now in that direction !!!!"
Dancing With the Stars airs Mondays at 8 p.m. on ABC.