Dance Moms fans praise “under appreciated” Nia Sioux for not attending reunion special

Nia Sioux appeared on the first seven seasons of Dance Moms but was noticeably absent from the reunion special that aired on Lifetime on May 1.

On May 1, Lifetime aired a two-hour reunion special for the 8-season series Dance Moms. Though popular faces like JoJo Siwa, Kendall Vertes, Chloe Lukasiak, and more were in attendance, there was one dancer missing that fans took notice of — Nia Sioux.

After being asked several times why she didn’t join her former castmates, Nia explained to her 9.2M TikTok followers why she didn’t attend the reunion. 

Firstly, Nia said she initially had no plan to explain her absence because she didn’t want to “start drama,” but after many fans asked, she felt obliged to answer. Nia also didn’t want the extra attention but ended up receiving more than expected by not offering details.

Though fans questioned if it was because she had plans with her sorority or college courses, Nia said with a smile on her face, “The reason is quite simple, I just really didn’t want to do it… it wouldn’t have been an issue, I just didn’t want to do it, and that’s a good enough answer.”

Despite not attending the reunion special, Nia wanted to explain how “grateful” she was for being on Dance Moms. “It’s [Dance Moms] the reason why I have such an amazing life now. Truly, I love my life.”

She then gave her support to the former Dance Moms dancers who attended the reunion. “I love the girls and I’m really happy for them, I’m really happy they get to share how they felt or their experiences.”

After hearing her side, fans of Nia shared their support in the comments of her TikTok, which has over 8 million views. “She said ‘I’m protecting my peace’ and we love it,” said one fan.

“Respect your decision no matter what, you’re such a queen!” wrote another. “No is a full sentence. And we love that you’re doing what you want and loving it,” added someone else.

Though Nia appeared in the first seven seasons of Dance Moms, it’s likely she wouldn’t return for any sort of special regarding the series, as she left because she wanted to “move on” and entertain other opportunities.