Jojo Todynho was one year old when Tim Maia died, in March 1998. Carmelo Maia, the singer’s son, used to say that his father and the singer would be “best friends” if they had had time to get to know each other. “Carmelo says that a lot, because Tim was ‘sincere’, right? He wasn’t afraid to reverberate what he felt”, she says.
“And I have a lot of his personality on some occasions. I’m not afraid to expose my opinion. If I think I should, I’ll go there and talk”, says Jojo, who talked to the column, by video, for about of an hour.
It was this spontaneity that led the singer to be the public’s favorite to win the R$ 1.5 million prize for the reality show A Fazenda 12, by Record, in 2020. And it is this same authentic way that led her to be hired by Globo as one of the hosts of Central da Copa, a program that the broadcaster will air from Monday (21).
Jojo will be alongside presenter Alex Escobar, former player Fred and comedian Marcelo Adnet in an attraction that promises to address the main events of the Qatar tournament in a light and relaxed way.
“I speak the language of the people, so I’m going to bring this thing from the street, people’s doubts to the program”, he details. A fanatical Flamengo fan, Jojo says that the World Cup is the moment when Brazil has to be united to “vibrate and cheer” for the sixth.
The “sincere” way of the singer born and raised in Bangu, on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro, like Jordana Gleise de Jesus Menezes, also usually makes the gossip websites and magazines party. Recently, she made the news when she published a video on her social networks, going personally to take satisfaction with a neighbor of her grandmother who made a post defining her as “ridiculous fat”.
For Jojo, being a well-known person is not an endorsement to be attacked on social media. “You don’t like me, that’s your right. Now, if I didn’t disrespect you, why would you weave prejudiced words against me? Just because I’m a public figure, do I have to be the puppet of others?” , asks.
“That doesn’t exist, people. I have a problem like everyone else. I pay a ticket, I feel pain like everyone else. My life is no different from anyone else’s. The difference is that I’m in the media”, he says.
“Today I am a millionaire woman, but I came from the slums and money has not changed my speech. I continue to be who I am. I am the woman who tomorrow may be in Paris, next to Jean Paul Gaultier [ela é contratada pela grife do estilista francês]and I am the woman who will be in Bangu, having a beer with my friends”, she adds, in a tone of relief.
After becoming famous, Jojo claims that racist and fatphobic offenses have gotten worse. “Before I was anonymous, and I didn’t go through these things,” she says. “But I pass with my head held high, because that says more about who does it than about me”, she adds.
With 24 million followers on Instagram, the singer says she is aware of her power to influence people. So she decided to take racial literacy classes. “As a black woman, I have to have the foundation and property to speak to other women in the favela who, in some way, can see me as an inspiration of what they are capable of, how they can get there”, she explains.
“We, unfortunately, live in a prejudiced and racist society. I need to study because I can’t give someone the opportunity to correct me when I’m talking about my people, about my origin”, he reinforces.
It is by the same logic of reasoning that she says she decided not to declare her vote for president in this year’s elections. “People ask me a lot to make a political statement. I don’t, because I don’t know about the subject. I know the basics. I have 24 million followers. I can’t influence people with my opinions”, he replies.
“Today, we live in a way that we are walking on eggshells. And I have a lot of power on the internet, I have a very strong credibility. I have to know what to say, when to say it, how to express myself”, he continues. . He also claims that politics is not a subject of his interest.
On the other hand, she usually gives advice to other women who feel insecure about their appearance. She says she talked about it the other day with a follower who had just had a child and said she had low self-esteem. “Body is just matter. Your weight, the way you are, doesn’t change your character, the person you are,” she says.
“I told her: ‘If you have any way to improve what bothers you, fine. But don’t reject yourself, don’t put yourself down, don’t compare yourself to another woman'”, she reports.
Jojo, who recently announced that she will undergo bariatric surgery, says that her good self-esteem comes from the family example —she was raised by her paternal grandmother, Rita Maria. “In my family there’s everything: fat, skinny, tall, short. And never had a different look or criticism”, she says. “I’ve never seen an aunt say to the other: ‘Oh, you’re too fat’ or ‘you’re too thin’. I never had that in my house,'” she points out.
Talkative most of the time, Jojo is only laconic when asked about the crisis in her relationship with Lucas Souza —the two got married in January of this year, and he announced their separation at the end of October.
The interview with the column was held days before the end. At the time, she said that everything was fine and that the problem they had experienced — when he came to publicize the end of the relationship, but they later resumed it — was over. Sought again to talk about the new single phase, Jojo said she would not speak out.
If in love life the moment is not the best, in the professional area the singer and presenter is full of projects. In addition to Central da Copa, a new season has already been confirmed for 2023 on Jojo Nove e Meia, the talk show she runs on Multishow.
She will also show her acting version in the Globoplay series “Os Parças”, which has already been recorded and should also be released next year. “It was something totally different from anything I’ve ever done. A very big challenge, but I went with everything and I’m very happy”, she says.
There is also the possibility of her having a painting in Mais Você —an invitation that came from Ana Maria Braga herself. The singer is mysterious about it. “I can’t say anything. I’m forbidden. But calm down, surprises are coming”, she says.
In music, after breaking out with the funk “Que Tiro foi Esse” in 2017, Jojo has invested in pagode. He released a first album in August this year, and is already planning a second. About the project, it does not give details. He only adds that he wants to include a song by Tim Maia. “I’m in love with him,” he concludes.
I am Frederick Tuttle, who works in 247 News Agency as an author and mostly cover entertainment news. I have worked in this industry for 10 years and have gained a lot of experience. I am a very hard worker and always strive to get the best out of my work. I am also very passionate about my work and always try to keep up with the latest news and trends.
