‘Dance Moms’ Star Abby Lee Miller On Being Compared To JoJo Siwa

Abby Lee Miller
'Bad Moms' film premiere, Los Angeles, USA - 26 Jul 2016

EXCLUSIVE: Dance Moms star Abby Lee Miller doesn’t flinch as a gymnast SOMERSAULTS over her during an outing to an LA beach. The reality TV star, 55, bravely lay back in her wheelchair as the muscular shirtless performer ran towards her then vaulted above her. Miller, who shot to fame as the star of hit show Dance Moms, has been using a wheelchair after undergoing surgery to remove a tumor from her spinal cord after reportedly being diagnosed with a form of cancer called Burkitt Lymphoma. Miller’s visit to the beach in Santa Monica, CA, saw her talking to a man and a woman dressed in workout gear before giving him a series of dance lessons. An onlooker said: “Abby was in great form and started giving the guy dance lessons. "She was teaching him to move and how and when to move his feet and it seemed he was struggling to get the hang of it. It was like she was back on the show Dance Moms and was shouting orders at him to ‘move to the side’ or ‘back right’. She appeared to be trying to teach him ballet just like she did to kids on the series. “It looked the guy had some gymnastic training and so afterwards they did a stunt where he ran at her and somersaulted directly above her.” Miller spent eight seasons on Dance Mom and previously taught Joelle Joanie “Jojo” Siwa. In 2017 she was sentenced to 366 days in prison for bankruptcy fraud. 31 Aug 2021 Pictured: Abbey Lee Miller. Photo credit: KAT/MEGA TheMegaAgency.com +1 888 505 6342 (Mega Agency TagID: MEGA782922_021.jpg) [Photo via Mega Agency]

Dance Moms star Abby Lee Miller, 53, sees a lot of herself in former student JoJo Siwa, 16! “I have a very outgoing personality. When I walk in the room, everyone knows I’m in the room. Same thing with JoJo — except with sparkles every time,” Abby shared in a new EXCLUSIVE interview with HollywoodLife. Comparisons between the two have been swirling online ever since Abby shared a throwback photo of herself at just 14-years-old rocking JoJo’s signature hair-do: the side ponytail!

“I teased her about the side ponytail but I rocked the side ponytail, even [in] my high school graduation picture. I wore a side ponytail [when] everyone had their hair pretty down,” Abby continued. “And I always had a bow. It wasn’t like a big giant JoJo bow but it was like a ribbon tied bow. But that was my go to and I always wore a ponytail my dad used to make my ponytail so tight, like he’d pull my eyebrows up for dance class,” the cancer survivor hilariously added. We haven’t seen Abby rocking a side pony anytime recently, but we would love to see her bring back her classic look decades later.

Despite fans comparing Abby and JoJo, the reality star shared she doesn’t think they actually look alike. “No, I think it’s just the side part ponytail and the big personality,” Abby continued when asked if she thought there was a resemblance. Of course, JoJo is one of Abby’s best known protege’s and went on to become a total social media sensation! The pair have kept in touch over the years — particularly through Abby’s scary battle with cancer — which Abby opened up about on Dr. Oz.

Abby’s ’70s pic was epic, and we were loving her whole throwback vibe! “Is this still a thing? Childhood pics? I was 14!” Abby captioned pic, posted on Mar. 30. The then-teen confidently poses in a bright yellow t-shirt reading Sassoon — perhaps referencing the iconic line by Vidal Sassoon — alongside a fellow student. “My student, Lisa was 8/9. She was the first kid I trained that booked a professional dance job right out of high school when @tokyodisneyresort_official first opened!” Abby continued. “This truly was just the beginning – My students have done 17+ different contracts in Japan! BTW her mother was nuttier than any #dancemom you’ve ever seen on TV!” she also wrote.