If you are a fan of Sia's music, or even have a little knowledge of her, you are far more likely to know the face of Maddie Ziegler than the artist's own look.
is famously private when it comes to her identity, spending years now keeping her face hidden during public appearances.
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Since stepping away from the public eye in 2013, she often wears an oversized wig to hide her face in public appearances, music videos and concerts. In her stead, we often see Maddie Ziegler, the
who was formerly on Dance Moms. Ziegler is 15 now, but has been a part of Sia's music since 2014, when she was only 12 years old.
The Guardian recently ran an article about Sia and Maddie, who first worked together on Sia's music video Chandelier.
The article, written by Bonnie Malkin, was titled "The Sia conundrum: If fame is so damaging, why pass it on to a child?"
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The article questions the singer's choice to use Ziegler as the face of her music at such a young age, especially as she chooses to shy away from the spotlight herself. Malkin recently attended Sia's recent concert in Sydney, Australia, and uses what she saw there to criticise the dynamic between the two:
"Up on the stage in Sydney on Saturday, with Furler [Sia's surname] concealed and Maddie in the spotlight, it seemed that the superstar was deploying a child in a way that she herself refuses to be."
"Where Furler was hidden, Maddie was exposed. Where Furler was still, Maddie was moving. Where the singer was in darkness, the child was in the spotlight. Where Furler’s face and body was carefully hidden from the eyes of a stadium full of strangers, Maddie’s face and body was offered up instead."
While you might expect the artist to react defensively in some manner, she instead explained that she has asked herself the same questions, opening up about how she feels about the situation.
"This article poses a question I have asked myself often," she posted on Twitter. "I do check in with Maddie weekly about whether she wants this, and assure her if she ever wants it to stop it stops. It's a conversation we should all be having. Not just myself but all directors, stage parents and agents."
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She then goes to explain that while Maddie was already famous for her television appearances before she met Sia, she is aware her level of exposure is something she is now responsible for:
"I feel very protective of her and my goal is to empower her in whatever choices she makes."
"Some would argue a teenager can't or shouldn't be charged with making sound choices for themselves and so I do try to choose the best for her always. But I think this is an important conversation."
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She then linked to the original article by Malkin, with the hope that this conversation continues. Her fans reacted with support for her calm and measured response to the article, which is quite surprising given it was critical of her choices.
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Hopefully hitting the big time at such an early age hasn't had a negative impact on Maddie's life, which it too often does for
, and she and Sia both know when to call it off if it gets too much.
