Japanese Breakfast learned to “appreciate” her late mother’s lack of support

14 March, 2023

Japanese Breakfast's Michelle Zauner

Japanese Breakfast’s Michelle Zauner has said that she has grown to “appreciate” her late mother’s lack of support throughout her career – crediting it with making her into the artist she is today.

The alt-pop singer discussed her tumultuous relationship with her parent in a new interview on Conan O’Brien’s podcast, Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend – explaining how she believes the backlash she received ultimately led to her success with Japanese Breakfast.

 Asked if her complicated relationship with her mother acted as a catalyst for her creativity, Zauner replied: “I think, if anything, […] it really affirmed how badly I wanted it. It’s almost like, if your parents are like, ‘Oh great, yeah, go be an artist’, you almost don’t want it anymore. Her being so adverse to me following that path […] made me so much more drawn to it.”

She continued, adding that although these opposing attitudes continued throughout her first decade as a musician, she believes this made her into the artist she is today.

“That’s a big reason why I’m still doing it, in a way. I was told no many many times, for many years,” she added.

“I had a very embarrassing career for like 10 years, sleeping on floors strewn with cat poop… Now that I look back at that, it’s like ‘that’s exactly why you are the way that you are’. I guess she was setting me up for the rest of the world to do that too… I kind of appreciate that now.”

The comedy and talk show legend O’Brien Tweeted to share his love of the artist, telling his followers on social media: “I saw Japanese Breakfast perform at Coachella last year and have been obsessed with them ever since.”

Zauner first opened up about her childhood and elaborated on how her relationship with her parents fuelled her creativity back in 2021, with her published memoir, Crying In H Mart.

Last month, the artist also took to social media to share her controversial view on The Beatles’ 1996 album, ‘Revolver’ – claiming that anyone who claims that the album is their favourite is “wrong”.

Japanese Breakfast is set to perform at several shows next month in North America as part of Beck and Phoenix’s co-headline ‘Summer Odyssey’ tour. The stint will take place between August 1 and September 10, with Zaunder’s band joining them for dates in California, Arizona, Nevada and Colorado.

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