Abby Lee Miller Says She Thought JoJo Siwa Had 'Star Quality' When She was on Dance Moms

Abby Lee Miller opened up about coaching JoJo Siwa when she was on Lifetime’s Dance Moms on the July 10 episode of the Unplanned podcast with Matt and Abby Howard.In the interview, Miller, 58, recounted that Siwa, 21, was originally on Abby’s Ultimate Dance Competition in 2013 first before the network brought her onto Dance Moms in 2015 for season 4.“I liked her,” she said. “I definitely thought she had star quality.”

Miller elaborated that she thought a person’s star quality came from their “passion” for what they do. “Whether you see it in a lyrical contemporary type of routine or that acting ability . . . you know how important it is to them."

The former Dance Moms choreographer said one of the major challenges she faced with training Siwa was coaching her to dance in a group setting. 

“I was always looking for a cohesive group, I wanted everyone to be the same height, I wanted everyone to turn on the same leg," Miller said. "That’s what I was always looking for."

“So when they would throw these random people in there like JoJo, I’m like ‘Oh my God, how am I gonna reign her in and get her to be part of this group?' Doing a solo; she was fabulous. But in the group... that was the struggle.”

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Miller also discussed being hard on Siwa while training her in the studio and said that she would “try to prove her wrong.” 

"My difficulty with JoJo was that she was homeschooled,” Miller explained. “So the standing in line, taking your turn, raising your hand skills you learn at school, she didn’t have.” 

"So she would just blurt out questions in the middle of a conversation and interrupt adults when they were speaking. That’s the kind of stuff I had to crack down on her, and she learned.” 

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Siwa previously told PEOPLE in an interview in April that she has a “great relationship” with Miller after her time on Dance Moms.

"I talk to her on a weekly basis,” Siwa said. “Great human in my life." 

The "Karma" singer attended the Dance Moms Reunion that took place in May. The reunion featured other Dance Moms alums likeChloé Lukasiak, Brooke Hyland, and Nia Sioux, but Miller was not invited to participate.

Siwa also told PEOPLE that she has no “bad blood” with the other dancers, referring to Maddie and McKenzie Ziegler.

"It’s not a bad thing, not a great thing,” she said. “We just don't really communicate... or see each other."

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