At
the age of 12, most girls are battling with their parents to get their
ears pierced, learning the ropes at senior school and preparing for life
as a teenager.
For Maddie Ziegler, from Pennsylvania, life couldn't be more different.
The
tween is a huge star with three million Instagram followers, whose
music videos with the popstar Sia have been viewed more than a billion
times on YouTube.
Maddie Ziegler, 12, from Pennsylvania,
is a global star thanks to her role on the reality TV show Dance Moms
and her parts in Australian pop star Sia's music videos
Until four years ago, Maddie was an unknown eight year old who enjoyed dancing and went to a local primary school.
Then in 2011, her mother Melissa was signed up to appeared as part of the Lifetime reality series Dance Moms.
The
programme focuses on the early careers of the children that are enrolled
in the Abby Lee Dance Company in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
As
the title suggests, the show also features the mothers of the pupils
and the way that they often pit their children against each other.
Maddie Ziegler and singer-songwriter Sia arrive at The 57th Annual GRAMMY Awards last February
The
Australian pop star Sia noticed Maddie on the programme and last year
she tweeted her to ask if she would appear in one of her videos... the
rest is history.
Maddie has now appeared in three of Sia's videos - Chandelier, Elastic Heart and Big Girls Cry.
Chandelier is the 17th most viewed music video on TouTube of all time and has racked up more than 712 million hits.
In
February, Maddie joined Sia and Kristen Wiig in a performance of the
track for the 2015 Grammy Awards as Kim Kardashian and Kanye West looked
on from the front row.
She has also performed on Jimmy Kimmel and The Ellen Show - not bad for someone who hasn't even hit adolescence.
Maddie
is so well recognised these days that a trip to Topshop results in her
being mobbed by screaming tween fans who all want a selfie with their
idol - something that has been tough to adjust to.
She is now so successful that her mother has hired a security team who monitor the star 24/7.
Maddie Ziegler with her mother Melissa and sister Mackenzie on the Hollywood Boulevard
She told The Telegraph's Stella
magazine: 'I don't feel that normal any more because I get recognised,
even when I'm just trying to have fun or going to get ice cream with my
friends.
'People go crazy and it gets overwhelming.'
Like many child stars, Maddie speaks of being old before her time.
Having
earned a living for the last four years while her contemporaries go to
school every day, she has been forced to mature quickly.
Unlike
many young girls who are starstruck by celebrities, Maddie claims that
she keeps a cool head at events like the Grammys because she sees
herself as a star, so needs to act accordingly.
Kristen Wiig and Maddie Ziegler dance
to Sia's 'Chandelier' as the artist stands with her back to the audience
while performing at the Grammys last February
She said: 'Mom is like, "Oh my God, let's go and meet Ariana Grande." I'm like, "Mom, for real?"
'I
just want to stay professional. I don't want them to think I'm a
fangirl. I'm one of the performers and I'm not just a background dancer,
I'm the dancer.'
Because of her success, she no longer lives anything resembling a normal life.
She
has modelled for numerous clothing companies including Glitzy Girl,
Sally Miller and Purple Pixies and featured in magazines including Teen
Vogue, Cosmopolitan, Elle and Seventeen.
She
is home-tutored alongside her younger sister Mackenzie, who also stars
in the Dance Moms series and with whom Maddie released a fashion line
called The Maddie & Mackenzie Collection through Mod Angel last
year.
Maddie attends the J Mendel Autumn/ Winter 2015 show last February
While
many young children try and avoid school work at all costs, the star
professes to be a keen student because she wants to avoid the trap of
becoming 'a stupid dancer.'
As
well as dancing, she has her eye on singing and acting - she has
already acted in the TV shows Drop Dead Diva and Austin & Ally.
Although
she has already reached astonishing levels of success for her age,
Maddie only gives herself a nine out of ten in terms of her career
achievements.
She
said: 'On a scale of one to 10, I feel I'm at a nine because there's
definitely room for improvement. I know I could go further.'
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