JoJo Siwa, 21, opens up about how her dating philosophy has changed

Pop star JoJo Siwa has revealed how her dating philosophy has changed over the years - and what made her want to start letting people in on her relationship with new girlfriend Dakayla Wilson.

Siwa, 21, got her start on the hit reality show Dance Moms, and later turned into a viral sensation on social media, signing with Nickelodeon in 2017, when she was 14.

In January 2021, when she was 17 years old, she came out as part of the LGBTQ + community - and now, she's opening up about how she chooses to display her relationships.

'You know, it's interesting. My mom always used to tell me, "The whole world doesn't need to know everything, JoJo. You can keep some things a secret,"' Siwa recently said during a panel at Rhode Island Comic Con on Friday, according to People.

And at the time, Siwa agreed with her mom, but now seems to share a different sentiment about being a public figure.

'Secrets are hard to keep,' she admitted during the panel, per the outlet.

'It's so hard to keep. When you're so excited about something... I was kind of born to share my life with the world, and I'm okay with that and I enjoy that.'

She explained that when she first came out, she was in a 'great relationship' with then-girlfriend Kylie Prew, which ended in a breakup - something she credits to them both being young at the time.

However, it was her next relationship that affected how she chose to share her love with the world.

'But then after that, I had a public relationship with somebody else that wasn't the best — it kind of seemed like it was the best, but it really wasn't the best,' Siwa said.

'And then, after it ended, it was really not the best. And it just scared me from sharing relationships publicly.'

After that, the Karma singer said that she made a pledge to herself that she wouldn't openly share her romances anymore.

And, it turns out that it worked - Siwa revealed during the panel that before dating Wilson, she had two 'flings' and a serious relationship that no one knew about.

However, when she met Wilson, who was the runner-up on season 18 of So You Think You Can Dance, everything felt different.

'I was okay to go public with her,' the former Dance Moms star told People about her new relationship.

'She feels special and we're in a very comfortable place. I've never really been in this place that I'm at with her in a relationship before,' she continued.

'I'm also so young. I'm 21. She's also young. She's only 19. We're both still figuring life out and I think I accepted that. I've accepted we're both figuring life out. We're not perfect, but we have fun. I love the girl. She loves me and we're having a good time.'

Siwa first went public with Wilson last August, posting a photo of the two of them affectionately hugging and laughing on her Instagram stories.

Just a month later, the actress was seen kissing Wilson in Los Angeles.

Dressed in a casual white T-shirt and gray cargo pants, JoJo wrapped her arms around Dakayla, who matched her vibe in a black hoodie and sweatpants.

They looked genuinely happy as they kissed and laughed on the sidewalk, drawing the attention of passersby to their budding romance.