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A review by katies_bibliotherapy
Over the Influence by Joanna "JoJo" Levesque
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
I was a year younger than Joanna "JoJo" Levesque when she burst onto the pop music scene at 13 with her debut single Leave (Get Out). Her success and talent at such a young age was inspiring.
In this candid, honest, raw, and vulnerable memoir, JoJo details her early years growing up in poverty, a fact I knew about from her songs and early interviews. I wasn't aware of her parents' battles with addiction, or that they met at an AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) meeting. She details her experiences with bullying from her school peers due to her talent, and as someone who was also bullied through middle school and high school, I related to her when she said she blamed herself for the bullying, referring to herself as the "common denominator" when she transitioned from elementary school to middle school.
I moved on from pop and R&B music not long after JoJo released her sophomore album The High Road, but in the years that followed I did notice her apparent radio silence and wondered what happened to her. I had no idea about all the issues she had with her record label, of which she shares the details in this book.
I did grow frustrated when she mentioned times where it was clear she was r__ed and s__ually as___lted but she makes it seem like her a__sers "wouldn't take no for an answer" and made her feel like she was "begging for it." She admits to being blackout drunk but that her a__ser "didn't know." She sort of brushes this off as cheating on her partner, when in reality it was a much more serious issue than cheating.
She knows she's a flawed individual and she owns it, something many probably wouldn't have the courage to do if they were in her shoes. I thoroughly enjoyed the audiobook. JoJo is a charismatic and articulate storyteller.
In this candid, honest, raw, and vulnerable memoir, JoJo details her early years growing up in poverty, a fact I knew about from her songs and early interviews. I wasn't aware of her parents' battles with addiction, or that they met at an AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) meeting. She details her experiences with bullying from her school peers due to her talent, and as someone who was also bullied through middle school and high school, I related to her when she said she blamed herself for the bullying, referring to herself as the "common denominator" when she transitioned from elementary school to middle school.
I moved on from pop and R&B music not long after JoJo released her sophomore album The High Road, but in the years that followed I did notice her apparent radio silence and wondered what happened to her. I had no idea about all the issues she had with her record label, of which she shares the details in this book.
I did grow frustrated when she mentioned times where it was clear she was r__ed and s__ually as___lted but she makes it seem like her a__sers "wouldn't take no for an answer" and made her feel like she was "begging for it." She admits to being blackout drunk but that her a__ser "didn't know." She sort of brushes this off as cheating on her partner, when in reality it was a much more serious issue than cheating.
She knows she's a flawed individual and she owns it, something many probably wouldn't have the courage to do if they were in her shoes. I thoroughly enjoyed the audiobook. JoJo is a charismatic and articulate storyteller.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Bullying, Drug abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, Pandemic/Epidemic