JoJo Siwa just made history on “Dancing With the Stars” as the first contestant to compete with a partner of the same sex.
The “J Team” star, 18, danced a lively quickstep with pro partner Jenna Johnson, 27, during Monday night’s season 30 premiere, performing the upbeat routine to “Are You Gonna Be My Girl” by Jet.
“You. Betta. WINK!!! That was THE BEST ever!!!!” Siwa wrote on Instagram after the show. “I can’t even believe that week 1 is over!!! @jennajohnson I couldn’t ask for a better partner! Thank you for taking me through this process while making it the most fun ever.”
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Siwa, sporting a neon orange crop top embellished with one of her trademark, sparkly bows, nailed the intricate footwork of the routine. She and Johnson earned the top score of the night, 29 out of 40.
“Making history and Top score of the night was literally a dream come true for me,” Siwa continued. “Chase every dream you have and believe in yourself. Know that I love you all and I am smiling so big right now because of you, we did this !!!”
Johnson also honored Siwa in her own Instagram post, celebrating “history made.”
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“JoJo Siwa. There aren’t enough words to express my absolute admiration for you,” Johnson wrote. “The moment I met you, I knew that you were going to change my life. You are full of love, laughter, positivity, and GLITTER!!!”
Johnson also thanked Siwa for helping her when she made a slight slip during their routine.
“Thank you for an epic night… (and saving me from falling flat on my face 😵),” she wrote. “FIRST EVER SAME SEX COUPLE!!!! And I’m proud to say it. Night one down and (hopefully) many more to go! … And I’m sorry but can we check out her frame?!?!?!!!! Ok I’m done :).”
Versions of "DWTS" in other countries have included same-sex couples, but this is the first time same-sex partners have competed for the Mirrorball Trophy on the American show.
Siwa came out as part of the LGBTQ community earlier this year and revealed she has a girlfriend, Kylie Prew.
She said when “Dancing With the Stars” gave her the opportunity to dance with a woman instead of a man, she didn’t hesitate.
“When I got the email to be on ‘Dancing With the Stars,’ I didn’t even read the whole email, I just replied yes,” she told E! News’ “Daily Pop” earlier this month. “And then when I read it, they asked me, they said, ‘We want to give JoJo the chance if she wants to, to dance with a female instead of a male, but if she wants to dance with a male and keep it traditional, we want her to be as comfortable and have the best experience ever.’ And immediately I was like, ‘That is so groundbreaking.’ (It’s) history, never been done before, and it needs to be done.”
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