Music is a place where people share their life experiences and the emotions they feel at a certain time and place. Music is one of the many fields that a Third Culture Kid (TCK) can use to express their life story and journey. Yoko Ono is one of the most well-known artists in music, who also is a TCK.
Ono is an artist, singer, songwriter most-known for marrying John Lennon from musical group, The Beatles. She is Lennon’s widow.
Yoko Ono’s turbulent childhood
The childhood of Ono is a very interesting one and full of global mobility. She was born in Tokyo, Japan in 1933 and at the age of two moved to San Fransisco. Following this, Ono moved back to Tokyo before quickly being shuffled back to New York City.
During the World War II time period, Ono and her family moved back to Japan while her father moved to Hanoi, Vietnam.
Ono was a part of the Japanese population that had to shelter during the fire-bombing of Tokyo. Furthermore, during this time her father was placed in a concentration camp in Hanoi, he was later released.
Molding the woman she is today
Ono is vocal about the challenges of her childhood. “I’ve led a very outlandish life,” she said in an interview with Clash Music.
A life that has shaped her into the woman she is today. It is fair to say that Ono has risen to success through her unique younger years and because of the experiences has stood out when compared to other people.
“I had a natural feeling for doing something that was new,” Ono said to “Rolling Stone” in 2014.
Part of this rebellious nature was because of the way in which her parents raised her. Coming from a very traditional styled and “upper class” family. This with the traveling and immense exposure to different cultures shaped her into the unique person she is today.
Her life continued to show struggles even as she moved into adulthood, especially in the public light. Upon marrying John Lennon, the public continues to blame her for the breakup of arguably the most successful musical group of all time, “The Beatles.”
However, despite the controversy, Ono has created and continues to create music. Music that is special to her and a result of the set of experiences in her childhood.