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'Dance Moms' season 7 news: Melissa Gisoni explains why Maddie and Mackenzie left; Is JoJo Siwa the next Maddie?

Jackie Villegas June 20, 2016 01:13 PM EST

Promotional image for the Lifetime reality series \"Dance Moms\" | Facebook/Dance Moms

Earlier this year, it was announced that "Dance Moms" star Maddie Ziegler will be leaving the popular Lifetime reality series to focus on her acting career and other projects.

Maddie's mother, Melissa Gisoni, and her younger sister, Mackenzie, left the show with her. All three had been with "Dance Moms" since the beginning. They left during the season 6 finale, which aired in May.

Now, Melissa has spoken out about why her daughters decided to leave the reality series. In an interview with Cosmopolitan, Melissa said that while "Dance Moms" was a "great platform" for her children, it came to a point where Maddie and Mackenzie were both "pretty much done" with the whole thing.

"My kids told me they didn't want to do it anymore," she said. "When my kids aren't happy anymore, I don't care about anything else."

"It was also holding the kids back," Melissa added.

According to Maddie and Mackenzie's mom, Maddie's contract with "Dance Moms" prevented her from doing other jobs. Since exiting the series, the young dancer/actress has starred in a movie (Colin Trevorrow's "The Book of Henry"), voiced a character in an animated film ("Ballerina"), and has been cast as a judge on Fox's "So You Think You Can Dance: The Next Generation."

"My kids are very happy," Melissa said. "They miss the girls but they don't miss the drama."

Speaking of drama, "Dance Moms" star JoJo Siwa recently talked about "Dance Moms" head choreographer Abby Lee Miller and their working relationship.

"She makes me cry a lot, but you kind of just have to grab some tissues and go back in," she told People.

JoJo, the 13-year-old dancer who appears to be following in Maddie's steps, has racked up more than 27 million YouTube views for her new track "Boomerang." She has millions of Instagram followers and appears poised for her own Hollywood debut.

"This season will be a lot of fun," JoJo said about the upcoming "Dance Moms" season 7. While the season will be full of drama, as usual, she maintained that "It has been one of my faves."

"Dance Moms" season 7 will air in 2017.

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