Early life

JoJo was born in Brattleboro, Vermont, and raised in Keene, New Hampshire and Foxborough, Massachusetts. She has English, Irish, Polish, French, Scottish, and Native American ancestry. She grew up in a one-bedroom apartment in Foxborough in a low-income family. Her father sings as a hobby, and her mother sang in a Catholic church choir and was trained in musical theater. JoJo's parents divorced when she was four years old, and she was raised as an only child by her mother. JoJo's stage name comes from a childhood nickname.

As a child, JoJo listened as her mother practiced hymns. She started singing when she was two years old by imitating everything from nursery rhymes to R&B, jazz, and soul tunes. On the A&E show Child Stars III: Teen Rockers, her mother claimed that JoJo had a borderline genius IQ. As a child, JoJo enjoyed attending Native American festivals and acted locally in professional theaters.

At age seven, JoJo appeared on the television show Kids Say the Darndest Things: On the Road in Boston with American comedian and actor Bill Cosby, and she sang a song from singer Cher. After auditioning in the television show Destination Stardom, JoJo sang Aretha Franklin's 1967 hit "Respect" and "Chain of Fools". Soon after, The Oprah Winfrey Show contacted her, inviting her to perform. She performed on Maury, on one of the "kids-with-talent" episodes, as well as many others. Reminiscing, she has stated that "when it came to performing, I just had no fear."

Career

1998-2005: Beginning and JoJo

Main article: JoJo (album)

At six years old, JoJo was offered a record deal, but her mother turned it down because she believed JoJo was too young for a music career. After appearing on various talk shows, the McDonald's Gospelfest, performing Whitney Houston's "I Believe in You and Me" and competing on the television show, America's Most Talented Kids (losing to Diana DeGarmo), record producer Vincent Herbert contacted her and asked her to audition for Blackground Records. During her audition for Barry Hankerson, Hankerson told her that the spirit of his niece, the late singer Aaliyah, had brought her to him. She was signed to the label, and had recording sessions with producers The Underdogs and Soulshock & Karlin. JoJo's live demo, Joanna Levesque, recorded in 2001, features covers of soul and R&B songs, including Wilson Pickett's 1966 "Mustang Sally", Etta James's 1989 "It Ain't Always What You Do (It's Who You Let See You Do It)", Aretha Franklin's 1968 "Chain of Fools" and 1969 "The House That Jack Built", The Moonglows' 1956 "See Saw", Stevie Wonder's 1972 "Superstition", and The Temptations' 1975 "Shakey Ground".

In 2003, at age 12, JoJo signed with Blackground Records and Da Family and began working with producers for her first album. JoJo's gold-certified debut single "Leave (Get Out)" was released in 2004. Before the album's release, JoJo embarked on her first ever tour, the Cingular Buddy Bash with pop rock singer Fefe Dobson, hip hop duo Young Gunz, alternative metal band Zebrahead, and teen pop stars Ryan Cabrera and Busted. Like debut tours by Tiffany and Britney Spears before her, it stopped at nine malls, starting at Atlanta's Northlake Mall and ending at South Shore Plaza near her hometown of Foxborough. When the single reached number one on the Top 40 Mainstream, she became, at age thirteen, the youngest solo artist to have a number-one single in America. The first single was nominated for Best New Artist at the 2004 MTV Video Music Awards, which made JoJo the youngest MTV Video Music Award nominee. Her first album, the platinum-selling JoJo, was released in 2004, peaking at number four on the U.S. Billboard 200 and number ten on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, selling 95,000 copies in its first week and reaching the top forty of the UK Albums Chart. In December 2004, she was nominated for Female New Artist of the Year and Mainstream Top 40 Single of the Year at the Billboard Music Awards. She is also the youngest artist to be nominated at the Billboard Music Awards. Her second single, the gold-selling "Baby It's You" - which features rapper Bow Wow - peaked at number twenty-two in the U.S. and number eight in the UK. The final single from the album, "Not That Kinda Girl," was released in 2005 and peaked at number eighty-five in Germany.

In 2005, JoJo participated in "Come Together Now", a charity single to benefit the victims of the 2004 Asian Tsunami and the 2005 Hurricane Katrina. That year, she was requested by First Lady Laura Bush to perform at the 2004 Christmas in Washington special, broadcast by TNT and hosted by Dr. Phil and his wife Robin McGraw. Despite performing at other events for the Republican Party, she has stated that she "does not agree with the things that President George W. Bush has done in office. I'll leave it at that." JoJo hosted and performed at the Hope Rocks Concert in 2005 to benefit City of Hope National Medical Center, and co-hosted the 2006 TV Guide Channel's countdown to the Grammy Awards. In 2005, she was offered a role as Zoe Stewart on the Disney Channel television series Hannah Montana, but she turned down the role because she was not interested in doing a television show. She was more concerned with being a legitimate artist, and a film career was not really what she saw for herself.

2006-09: The High Road, acting and label trouble

Main article: The High Road

In 2006 JoJo was cast opposite Emma Roberts and Sara Paxton in Aquamarine, playing Hailey. The film opened on March 3, 2006, opening at number five with $7.5 million. Her second major film, RV, a comedy starring Robin Williams, was released on April 28, 2006. It opened at number one and grossed $69.7 million. JoJo had to audition for the part five times, and eventually replaced an actress who had already been cast in the role. JoJo's second album, The High Road, was released on October 17, 2006. The album debuted at number three on the Billboard 200, selling 108,000 units. It was produced by Scott Storch, Swizz Beatz, J. R. Rotem, Corey Williams, Soulshock & Karlin and Ryan Leslie. It received mainly positive reviews. In the summer of 2006, the lead single from her second album, "Too Little Too Late", was released to radio stations. "Too Little Too Late" broke the record for the biggest jump into the top three on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, moving from number 66 to number three in one week; this record was previously held by Mariah Carey with her 2001 single "Loverboy", which went from number 60 to number two. The album's second official single, "How to Touch a Girl", experienced less success. It charted just outside the Billboard Hot 100 and peaked at number 76 on the Billboard Pop 100. "Anything", was released as a third single to little success. The album sold over 550,000 copies and was certified gold by the RIAA in December 2006.

On July 20, 2007, JoJo's version of "Beautiful Girls" by Sean Kingston leaked on the internet titled "Beautiful Girls Reply". It debuted at number thirty-nine on the Billboard Rhythmic Top 40 chart one month later. In late 2007, JoJo stated that she would be writing songs for her third album, to be released when she turned 18. She said she wanted her fans to "see growth" in her music.

In an April 2008 interview, JoJo stated that she was writing and producing an upcoming album in Boston and Atlanta. On August 30, 2008, JoJo posted her own version of the song "Can't Believe It", originally performed by T-Pain. On June 3, 2009, JoJo stated on her official YouTube account that she was waiting for her record label to sign a distribution deal to release her album. In a few months time, nearly 20 of her songs were leaked through a YouTube channel. In August 2009, it was reported that JoJo filed a lawsuit in New York against her record label Da Family Entertainment for putting her in musical limbo. She reportedly sought $500,000 for her troubles and to be released from her contract. JoJo was released from her contract in October 2009 and a deal was reached with Blackground Records to have JoJo's third album distributed by Interscope Records.

In late 2009, JoJo appeared on Timbaland's Shock Value II as a featuring artist on the song "Lose Control". She later appeared on "Timothy Where You Been" with the Australian band Jet as a background vocalist. On September 10, JoJo revealed that she would be traveling to Toronto to film a small screen adaptation of Lola Douglas' True Confessions of a Hollywood Starlet and play the role of Morgan Carter, with Valerie Bertinelli and Shenae Grimes. It was broadcast on Lifetime Television on August 9, 2008, and released on DVD on March 3, 2009.

2010-13: Can't Take That Away from Me and Agápē

Main articles: Can't Take That Away from Me and Agápē (mixtape)

Can't Take That Away from Me was released as JoJo's first mixtape in September 2010 and spawned the single "In the Dark". In late 2010, JoJo made cameo appearances in music videos for Keri Hilson and Clinton Sparks. In February 2011, JoJo uploaded a video to YouTube announcing that she was shooting a video for a new song, titled "Disaster" and that she had changed the title of the album from All I Want Is Everything to Jumping Trains, stating that she had desires to "represent something different; something fresh." In June 2011, she released a remix of rapper Drake's song "Marvin's Room," renamed "Marvin's Room (Can't Do Better)" through Rap-Up's YouTube channel. JoJo rewrote the song from a female perspective to express a frustration towards an ex-lover and his supposed new girlfriend. Drake himself expressed his appreciation for her interpretation.

In January 2011, JoJo was cast in an episode of CBS's Hawaii Five-0 as Courtney Russell, the daughter of a Tsunami Warning Center scientist who goes missing on the eve of a big storm hitting the Honolulu coast. On August 29, 2011, "Disaster" was released to U.S. radio. The song saw her continue in a similar style to her previous hits, which was praised by critics for not "jumping on the synthpop bandwagon," but also criticized for not showing much progression after a five-year hiatus. "Disaster" debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at number 87, but fell off the chart the next week. This gave JoJo her first charting single since "Too Little Too Late" in 2006. The single failed to impact any chart internationally. In support of the single, she opened for the Joe Jonas & Jay Sean Tour. JoJo gave her first televised performance of the song on Good Day Dallas on September 29, and later performed on a small promotional tour for "Pinktober" in order to raise money for breast cancer research during the month of October. A music video for the song premiered on JoJo's official website in November 2011.

In October 2012, JoJo was cast and began working on the film G.B.F. JoJo was cast as Soledad Braunstein who is the President of the Gay Straight Alliance. The film was shot in Los Angeles over 18 days by director Darren Stein. In early 2012, JoJo toured with Big Time Rush for 5 dates of their Better With You Tour. A promotional single, "Sexy to Me," was made available for purchase on February 28, 2012 on iTunes and Amazon. JoJo, wanting to go in a new direction with the album, released "Demonstrate", produced by Noah "40" Shebib, on July 17, 2012. Its release as an official single was eventually scrapped for reasons unknown despite a music video already having been filmed.

After Blackground Records lost their distribution deal through Interscope Records in late 2012, resulting once again in the delay of the release of an album, JoJo began recording new material specifically for a new mixtape to be released by the end of the year, as she "didn't want to keep the fans waiting for new music any longer". On November 15, 2012, she announced the release of a mixtape, titled Agápē, which means "unconditional love" in Greek. The project was released for free through digital download on her 22nd birthday on December 20, 2012. In support of the mixtape, JoJo embarked on her first headlining North American tour, The Agápē Tour. "We Get By", was released as the lead single from the mixtape on November 15, 2012. "André" was released as the second single from the mixtape on November 30, 2012, with the music video for the song premiering on March 21, 2013 through Complex magazine.

2014-present: Label change, #LoveJo series, III. and third studio album

Main articles: LoveJo and III (JoJo EP)

On July 30, 2013, it was reported that JoJo had filed a lawsuit against her labels Blackground Records and Da Family for "irreparable damages to her professional career". Minors cannot sign contracts that last more than seven years under New York State law and thus she claims that as her contract was signed in 2004, her deal should have expired in 2011. In December 2013 both of JoJo's and Blackground's attorneys agreed to drop the case as both parties came to an agreement outside court. On January 14, 2014, it was officially announced that JoJo was released from her multi-year battle with the label and signed a new recording contract with Atlantic Records. On February 14, she released an extended play, titled #LoveJo, featuring covers of three classic songs. On March 16, 2014, she performed at SXSW.

On August 5, 2015, JoJo's website under Atlantic was relaunched. Five promotional dates across the United States were scheduled to preview music from her upcoming album, beginning August 12, 2015, in Boston. On August 20, 2015, JoJo released three singles simultaneously on the III. extended play, which she referred to as a "tringle", as a preview of her third studio album.

On December 18, 2015 JoJo released the sequel to "#LoveJo," titled #LoveJo2.

Other ventures

In August 2011, JoJo had signed a promotional deal with HeartSoul clothing to become the new face for their Fall/Winter collection. In December 2011, JoJo signed another deal, this time with skin care brand Clearasil to become the new spokeswoman for Clearasil's newest product, PerfectaWash.

Artistry

Musically, JoJo is considered to be primarily a pop and R&B artist; however, the majority of her singles tend to lean more-so towards the former as a marketing tool. Prefix's Norman Meyers observed that "As an adolescent white girl singing mainstream R&B, her singles have leaned toward pop to snag sales ... But the list of producers on The High Road ... shows that Jojo is more concerned with harder beats and soulful sounds." Her singing voice has been widely acclaimed by music critics, one of whom ranked it among "the best in the game", while her R&B recordings have been compared to the likes of R&B singers Brandy and Monica. Describing her as a "vocal phenom", Entertainment Weekly's Leah Greenblatt enthused that JoJo is "capable of Mariah Carey-style upper-register flourishes". Vocally, critics frequently draw comparisons between JoJo and singers Kelly Clarkson and Beyoncé, while Slant Magazine's Sal Cinquemani remarked that the singer "could very well be the next Teena Marie."

At times some of her material and use of melisma has been criticized for being overproduced and overused, respectively. Emma Morgan of Yahoo! Music dismissed JoJo as "mercilessly multi-tracked à la J. Lo, her voice encoded flatteringly as she too-many-notes her way through a succession of R'n'B beats and hooks that owe everything to studio wizardry and little to simple songwriting", lacking experience and soul. While admitting that JoJo is "surprisingly adept at frenzied, sexually possessed hollering", Alex Macpherson of The Guardian believes that the singer "is, however, at her best when compulsively dissecting emotional situations straight out of high-school movies via the medium of big, heartfelt choruses". Pegging JoJo as "a teen-pop star with an R&B singer's voice", Kelefa Sanneh of The New York Times continued, "she can outsing much of the competition, but it also means more ballads ... and more not-quite-credible lovesick lyrics." JoJo's earliest memories of singing are performing songs by Etta James, Ella Fitzgerald, Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston for customers in hair salons. Her mixtape, Agápē, was influenced by musicians Joni Mitchell and James Taylor.

Upon making her mainstream debut in 2004, critics immediately noticed that JoJo's vocal prowess and material exceeded her age. When she released her single "Demonstrate" in 2012, critics observed that both the singer's voice and lyrics had matured alongside her. Subsequently, JoJo's second mixtape Agápē drew attention from both critics and the singer's own family due to its mature content; Agápē features lyrical references to drinking, drug abuse and sex, which were absent from her previous "G-rated" releases. The mixtape also addresses her conflict with her record label. JoJo's public image and appearance have frequently been commented upon by the media. JoJo's early image followed popular trends related to hip hop culture at the time. The cover of JoJo's first album features the singer donning a T-shirt and cap, which Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine dismissed as "contrived and calculated." Matt Collar of AllMusic wrote, "Jojo is an assured and likeable performer who can somehow embody the yin-yang persona of a suburban cheerleader slinging hip-hop attitude." According to Jenny Eliscu of Rolling Stone, the singer "has become a role model to suburban adolescents who talk gangsta but still carpool to school in mom's Kia Sorento."The Guardian's Alex Macpherson commented that "In an era of boozy Amys, gobby Lilys and flashing Britneys, a pop star as wholesome as JoJo seems almost quaint." Writing for Prefix, Norman Meyers believes that JoJo "could have been a Mean Girls extra, but she has talent" and "comes off more like a pint-size Mariah Carey or Christina Aguilera than a hip-shaking Britney clone."

Personal life

JoJo lived in Edgewater, New Jersey with her mother, until age 18, when she moved out on her own to Boston for a year. She now resides in Los Angeles.

JoJo dated American soccer player Freddy Adu from May 2005 until September 2006. Both met on the MTV show Fake ID Club while she was hosting it. JoJo made an appearance in the commentary box at a New England Revolution home game when they were playing D.C. United. Freddy Adu registered an assist in that game. In November 2006, The Washington Post reported that the couple had split after one year. JoJo mentioned on American Top 40 with Ryan Seacrest that she and Adu were still good friends.

In August 2009, she confirmed that she graduated from high school and would focus very hard on her future projects. JoJo was accepted to Northeastern University but did not attend; she considered majoring in cultural anthropology.

Aside from singing and acting, JoJo is also a supporter of various charitable organizations such as Boys and Girls Club of America, World Vision, She's the First, Make A Wish Foundation, and many more.

Discography

Main article: JoJo discography

Album:

• JoJo (2004)
• The High Road (2006)

Mixtapes:

• Can't Take That Away From Me (2010)
• Agápē (2012)

EP:

• #LoveJo (2014)
• III. (2015)
• #LoveJo2 (2015)

Filmography

Films and television films

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2002	Developing Sheldon	Young Elizabeth
2004	Shark Tale	Herself
2006	Aquamarine	Hailey Rogers
2006	RV	Cassie Munroe
2006	JoJo: The Pop Princess	Herself	Documentary
2013	G.B.F.	Soledad Braunstein

Television shows and appearances

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1998	Kids Say the Darndest Things	Herself / Contestant	Season 1
1999-2000	Destination Stardom	Herself / Contestant	"6 November 1999" (Season 1, Episode 12) "1 January 2000" (Season 1, Episode 18)
2002	The Bernie Mac Show	Michelle Cooper	"Bernie Mac Dance Party" (Season 2, Episode 6)
2003	America's Most Talented Kid	Herself / Contestant	1 episode
2004	American Dreams	Linda Ronstadt	"Tidings of Comfort and Joy" (Season 3, Episode 9)
2006	Romeo!	Herself	"Ro' Trip - Part 2" (Season 3, Episode 13)
2007	Punk'd	Herself	"8.6" (Season 8, Episode 6)
2008	True Confessions of a Hollywood Starlet	Morgan Carter / Claudia Miller	Lifetime television film
2010	House of Glam	Herself	"La La Land" (Season 1, Episode 4)
2011	Hawaii Five-0	Courtney Russell	"Kai e'e" (Season 1, Episode 15)
2011	The Dance Scene	Herself

Tours

Main article: List of JoJo concert tours

Headlining 2007: The High Road Tour 2010: Then & Now Concert Tour 2011: Pinktober 2013: The Agápē Tour 2015-16: I Am JoJo Tour

As a special guest 2010: Timbaland - Shock Value II Tour As an Opening act 2004: Usher - The Truth World Tour 2011: Joe Jonas & Jay Sean Tour 2012: Better With You Tour

Awards and nominations

Year	Presenter	Awards	Result
2004	MTV Video Music Award	Best New Artist with Leave (Get Out)	Nominated
	Billboard Music Awards	Female New Artist of the Year	Nominated
		Mainstream Top 40 Single of the Year with Leave (Get Out)	Nominated
	Radio Disney Music Awards	Best Female Artist Leave (Get Out)	Nominated
		Best Video That Rocks Leave (Get Out)	Won
2005	Radio Disney Music Awards	Best Female Artist	Nominated
2006	Teen Choice Award	Female Choice Breakout with Aquamarine	Nominated
	Radio Disney Music Awards	Best Artist Or Song Your Teacher Likes Too Little Too Late	Won
		Favorite Karaoke Song Too Little Too Late	Won
		Best True Ringer Ring Tone Too Little Too Late	Nominated
		Best Song to Wake Up To Too Little Too Late	Nominated
		Best Song You've Heard a Million Times and Still Love Too Little Too Late	Nominated
2007	Boston Music Awards	National Female of The Year with Too Little, Too Late	Won
	Hollywood Life 9th Annual Young Hollywood Awards	Breakthrough performance	Won
	Young Artist Awards	Best Performance in a Feature Film with Aquamarine	Nominated
2008	Yahoo Music Awards	for over 10,000,000 downloads for Too Little, Too Late	Won
	Boston Music Awards	Outstanding Pop/R&B Act of the Year	Nominated
2009	Poptastic Award	Best TV Movie with True Confessions of a Hollywood Starlet	Nominated

[ Source: Wikipedia ]