Dancing with the Stars made history in 2021 by pairing up its first same-sex couple to compete for the Mirrorball trophy.
It was a huge moment, with JoJo Siwa and Jenna Johnson turning in spectacular routines the entire season and making it to the finals before losing out to Iman Shumpert.
However, with the exception of one week, fans were routinely behind JoJo and Jenna as DWTS became a great showcase for the LGBTQ+ community.
The 2022 GLAAD Awards has recognized their work.
Dancing with the Stars earns GLAAD Awards nominations
Dancing with the Stars posted on Instagram that GLAAD recognized the show’s work during the season.
“We are so honored to receive the #GLAADawards Nomination for Outstanding Reality Program!”
The annual GLAAD Media Awards recognizes and honors the media who promotes fair, accurate, and inclusive representations for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities.
Not only did Dancing with the Stars have the first same-sex couple compete for the Mirrorball trophy, but they also added a same-sex dance routine to the 2022 DWTS tour.
Neither JoJo Siwa nor Jenna Johnson will be on the 2022 Dancing with the Stars tour, but their dance numbers will be part of the show.
In this case, it will be two men dancing the numbers together.
Gleb Savchenko and Alan Bersten confirmed in an interview with Entertainment Tonight that they would take on Jenna and JoJo’s recreated number.
JoJo Siwa says DWTS changed her life
JoJo Siwa said that appearing on Dancing with the Stars as part of a same-sex couple changed her life.
“I text Jenna every day about how much I miss it. I post everyday about how much I miss it. It was just such a good experience,” JoJo said.
“[I] had no idea what it was going to do for me, personally. I feel like I’m just more self-aware and I feel like I’m more confident. I feel like I’m less scared of myself.”
“It’s crazy how she just was able to get me to come out of my shell. I came out once again! Second time around.”
DWTS competition at GLAAD Awards
Dancing with the Stars has some quality competition for the award.
Here are the nominees for the GLAAD Awards for reality competition series.
- 12 Dates of Christmas (HBO Max)
- Dancing with the Stars (ABC)
- Family Karma (Bravo)
- I Am Jazz (TLC)
- Legendary (HBO Max)
- MTV’s Following: Bretman Rock (MTV)
- Queer Eye (Netflix)
- RuPaul’s Drag Race (VH1)
- The Voice (NBC)
- We’re Here (HBO)
Dancing with the Stars is on hiatus. The show should return to ABC later in 2022.