JoJo Siwa’s love life has been one of the main talking points of this year’s series of Celebrity Big Brother, thanks to the American singer being subjected to homophobic comments from Mickey Rourke and forming a close friendship with Love Island star Chris Hughes.
The former Dance Moms star, 21, admitted she was going to miss her partner before she entered the house last week. “For sure (I will miss) my girlfriend; absolutely my girlfriend,” she confessed.
“Tied for first place though – my puppy. I have this joke, we always say ‘who do you love more – girlfriend or puppy?’, and every other day there’s a new favourite, it depends on who’s the better behaved.”
But who is JoJo’s girlfriend and why is everyone trolling them on social media? JoJo confirmed earlier this year that she was dating Kath Ebbs, a 27-year-old Australian actor, presenter and content creator. Kath, who identifies as non-binary and uses she/they pronouns, made their red carpet debut with JoJo in February.
The following month, the pair packed on the PDA as they attended the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Awards and the 36th Annual GLAAD Media Awards together. Chatting to People about their romance, JoJo gushed: “I am so happy. I am in a very mature relationship, and it’s beautiful. It’s taught me so much about life.
“It’s taught me so much about love and respect, and it’s a beautiful thing. It’s different in more ways than I can count. I wouldn’t even know what to say the biggest is ‘cause just everything is so different and special.”
JoJo, who has previously appeared on Dancing With The Stars, the American version of Strictly Come Dancing and The Masked Singer, as well as being a judge on So You Think You Can Dance, has raised a few eyebrows during her time in the Celebrity Big Brother house thanks to her close bond with housemate Chris.
On Monday, JoJo nominated TOWIE star Ella Rae Wise for seemingly commenting about her touchy-feely friendship with the Love Island star. Speaking in the Diary Room, the Karma hitmaker told Big Brother: “My second nomination is for Ella. Conversations with Ella I feel are very forced and I feel I really have to try to come up with something that we can talk about.”
She continued, expressing her discomfort: “I also feel like I’m really on eggshells and I feel like… I kind of overheard her say something today when I was in the garden with Chris – something about me and Chris whispering at night – so that got me thinking ‘would I expect drama in a way’. I feel it’s an interesting dynamic.”
JoJo then made her stance on gossip clear: “I don’t like gossip. I like silly little gossip like ‘Oh my God this happened. That was hilarious’ but real gossip that is catty behind people’s backs? I don’t think it’s for me and I don’t think it’s for this house – it can kill the vibes.”
Many Celebrity Big Brother fans reckon ITV producers are nudging towards a love triangle plot with the Dance Moms celeb, Ella and Chris. “Did Jojo and Ella get their scripts mixed up cos what is happening #CBBUK,” one tweeted on Sunday night as JoJo’s bond with ex-Love Island hunk Chris grew.
“The producers wanted to drive a Chris and Ella love story, but we’re gonna get a Chris and Jojo bromance story instead #CBBUK,” another fan chimed in, while a third joked: “The editing is killing me, cause why they making it look like Ella is jealous of Chris and JoJo ? ? ?”.
TOWIE’s Ella, fresh from her split with co-star Dan Edgar just before joining Celebrity Big Brother, opened up about the non-existent romance with Chris on Sunday’s episode. “Nah I don’t care like at all, it’s whatever, I don’t fancy him so I ain’t bothered. Do you know what I mean? But it’s just a bit strange,” she confessed in a heart-to-heart with Angelica Bell.
Kath is yet to comment on their girlfriend sharing a bed with Chris but did speak out last week when Mickey Rourke subjected JoJo to homophobia. Rourke asked if JoJo “likes girls or boys” during Wednesday’s episode of the ITV series, and when JoJo replied by telling him she likes girls, adding that her partner is non-binary, he responded with: “If I stay longer than four days, you won’t be gay any more.”
She said: “I can guarantee I’ll still be gay and I’ll still be in a very happy relationship.” Later in the garden, Rourke asked Chris if the contestants had to vote their fellow housemates out, adding that he would “vote the lesbian out real quick”.
JoJo overheard and replied: “That’s homophobic, if that was your reasoning.” Chris warned Rourke that he “can’t do that”. The former boxer then said “I need a fag”, and gestured to JoJo saying “I’m not talking to you”.
Chris then warned him again and said that he “can’t say that”. Rourke added: “I know. I was talking about a cigarette.” JoJo was visibly upset by the exchange and Chris comforted her, before Rourke was summoned to the diary room.
After the uncomfortable scenes aired, JoJo’s partner Kath branded Rourke “a dangerous person” on social media. In a video shared on their Instagram page, Kath told their followers: “Firstly, he asks her if she is into boys or girls, she answers that she is gay. He then proceeds to tell her that he is going to turn her straight if she is in the house long enough. She shuts it down.”
“Once she shuts it down, he says he’s going to tie her up. That is a rape joke, that’s what that is, call it what is is.” They added: “[JoJo] shuts him down over and over again, he then goes, ‘Actually I’m going to get rid of you’. Which is rooted in misogyny.
“He deemed her unf***able in that moment and then went if the male gaze is not apart of this situation and I have no power over you sexually…Then he’s like oh, well then, ‘I’m going to bully you… If you are not going to play into my creepy jokes then okay I’m going to bully you and I don’t want you here’ and then he proceeds to call her a fag.”