Nia Sioux of Dance Moms has told The Independent why she chose to stay on the reality show for all seven seasons despite her alleged mistreatment.
Sioux, whose real name is Nia Sioux Frazier, starred on the Lifetime show from 2011 to 2017, between the ages of 9 to 15, alongside her mother, Holly Frazier. Throughout the show, she and fellow cast members, Maddie and Mackenzie Ziegler, Kendall Vertes, Chloe Lukasiak, JoJo Siwa, Brooke Hyland and Paige Hyland, Brynn Rumfallo and Kalani Hilliker would learn and compete new dance routines choreographed by their “tough love” dance teacher, Abby Lee Miller, while also dealing with the drama that ensued from their overbearing stage mothers.
After choosing not to attend the show’s 2024 reunion, Sioux details her experience on the show as the lone Black dancer and the longest-running original cast member in her new memoir, titled Bottom of the Pyramid.
Speaking to The Independent, the 24-year-old explained that she often gets asked why she stayed on Dance Moms for so many years despite the aggressive teaching and being typecast in roles, including a gang member and maid.
“I get a lot of pushback sometimes from people who are upset I stayed for seven seasons,” she said. “I can understand why they can be upset or outraged, but it's like I'm also outraged that I was there for seven seasons and things didn't turn out better, too.”
Sioux continued, saying that a lot of the blame gets put on her mother for not being the one to step up and pull her out of that kind of environment, but her mother was only following her lead and letting Sioux decide if she wanted to leave.
“I think a lot of people sometimes say things and say that my mom was a bad mom, or they're like, ‘a child shouldn't be making those types of decisions,’ which it's like, okay, whatever,” she said. “People are allowed to think whatever they think. We can have different opinions.”
Despite what happened to her on the show, Sioux emphasised that she does not regret anything and is grateful for her family’s support.
“I think it says a lot about my mom and my family to still go through all that, but then still have her be my rock and my support and the person I can rely on, and build me up when those other people try to push me down,” she added.
“I think that for me it was the right decision. For other people, it may not have been, but I can, I can wholeheartedly say that it was a good decision for me to stay. I have no regrets, and I feel like I was able to finish what I started.”
Although she may not regret being on the show for as long as she was, Sioux told The Independent that she has no plans to contact Miller, adding that she has “distanced herself” from anyone who still associates with her.
“It's hurtful 'cause she's done so much to me and said so many things about me. Anyone who was friends with her, if they were my friends, they couldn't also be her friends, because I know that's how she feels about me,” she said.
Bottom of the Pyramid is available to read on Tuesday.
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