Did JoJo Siwa Rip Off 'Karma' From Brit Smith's 2012 Unreleased Song?

JoJo Siwa's transformation raised eyebrows. From becoming a child and teenage star on "Dance Moms" to embracing a gothic rock look to celebrate her foray toward adulthood, Siwa is heading toward a new, rebranded image.

Siwa's recent media appearances are bolstered by the promotion of her newest single, "Karma," which she has claimed to have birthed "gay pop," a subgenre of pop music she also claims to have started.

However, netizens have uncovered that "Karma," wasn't exactly Siwa's-a stark contrast to her rather wild claims in the press.

JoJo Siwa Claims She Created 'Gay Pop'

Siwa has been very confident in her rebranding from a child star to a loud and proud queer person. Speaking to Billboard about her foray into music, she revealed that she intends to create a new subgenre of pop music.

"I want to start a new genre of music ... it's called 'gay pop,'" she told Billboard's Tetris Kelly.

Siwa's comment spread like wildfire on social media, triggering many netizens who said that Siwa doesn't seem to know that the said subgenre has already existed.

When TMZ got a hold of her, Siwa walked back on her claims of creating a new genre.

"I think I just want to make it more clear that gay pop is a genre," she told the outlet. "I am not the inventor of gay pop, for sure not. But I do want to be a piece of making it bigger than it already is. I Want to bring more attention to it."

She even tried to simplify her statement, saying: "I'm not the president [of gay pop], but I might be the CEO, or the CMO. I can be the CMO, the chief marketing officer, and use my marketing tactics whether people like it or not."

Did JoJo Siwa Rip Off 'Karma' From Brit Smith?

As backlash for Siwa grew on social media. Several TikTokers have unearthed a 2012 unreleased song from Brit Smith.

More commonly known as Matisse, Brit Smith is part of the pop duo Brit & Alex, a music group composed of Brit and her identical twin sister Alex Smith.

On Apr. 10, 2024, a video of a 2012 song, "Karma's A Bitch" was uploaded on YouTube, and it was revealed to have been an unreleased song by Brit Smith and Timbaland.

The song, which is a complete copycat of Siwa's new song "Karma," was apparently recorded in 2012 and was supposed to be a single for her debut album before getting scrapped.

The uploader noted that the song was originally recorded by Miley Cyrus in 2011, but it was given to Smith and was re-worked by Timbaland.

As of this writing, it is not known who wrote "Karma's A Bitch," but on Apple Music, Siwa's "Karma" was written by Antonia Armato, Desmond Child, and Tim James.