Gwen Stefani

Gwen Stefani, an Italian-Irish American raised in California, recently said, “I'm Japanese.” Huh? In an interview with Jesa Marie Calaor, an Asian American ...

But words don’t have to be hostile in their intent in order to potentially cause harm,” adding that both she and her colleague who was present left the encounter feeling “unsettled.” Calaor wrote that she didn’t believe Stefani “was trying to be malicious or hurtful in making these statements. A representative for Stefani reached out to Calaor insisting that she’d simply misunderstood what Stefani was trying to say. In turn, Allure asked the singer’s team for an on-the-record clarification of her remarks, an offer which was reportedly declined. “[It] should be okay to be inspired by other cultures because if we’re not allowed then that’s dividing people, right?” Suddenly, something about her Margaret Cho [called this out ](https://ew.com/article/2005/11/02/chos_not_laughi/)as early as 2005.)

Gwen Stefani, who is Italian American and from California, told Allure magazine that she's Japanese despite having no ethnic ties to the country.

The “Rich Girl” performer has given that line time and time again when faced with appropriation allegations, which go all the way back to her No Doubt era, when she was often seen wearing a bindi because she was dating her Indian bandmate Tony Kanal. Allure said it responded with a request for an on-the-record clarification, which the “Voice” coach and her team declined to give. A rep for the “Don’t Speak” singer reached out to the interviewer, Jesa Marie Calaor, the next day and — seemingly in an attempt to gaslight the author — explained that the journalist had “misunderstood” what Stefani was trying to convey.

Gwen Stefani is doubling down again on her infamous Harajuku era amid decades-long accusations of cultural appropriation, claiming "I'm Japanese."

"Even though I'm an Italian American — Irish or whatever mutt that I am — that's who I became because those were my people, right?" a time of the ping-pong match between Harajuku culture and American culture… You are not Asian like us You are not a minority like us. 1 single "Hollaback Girl" along with her Harajuku Girls entourage and brands such as Harajuku Lovers fragrance. [defined cultural appropriation to USA TODAY](https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/entertainment/celebrities/2021/05/05/cultural-appropriation-versus-appreciation-difference-justin-bieber-dreadlocks-backlash/7403328002/) as "stealing something from a culture that is not one's own and reaping the benefits or profits from it." The "Hollaback Girl" singer, 53, has faced decades of cultural appropriation accusations, from wearing a bindi (a South Asian religious symbol) in the 1990s to her 2005 "Luxurious" music video, in which she imitated Hispanic culture and seductively danced in an Our Lady of Guadalupe shirt. But the most serious charge of cultural appropriation came from the Japanese-inspired imagery Stefani used heavily on her 2004 album "Love. In 2012, Stefani donned Native American attire in No Doubt's "Looking Hot" music video, which depicted a Cowboys vs. USA TODAY reached out to Stefani's rep for further comment. Baby.," which birthed her No. (It) should be okay to be inspired by other cultures because if we're not allowed then that's dividing people, right?" Being a superfan of Asian culture does not make you one of us STOP,"

Stefani was asked about what she learned from her Harajuku era, to which she doubled down on defending it. Stefani said she was introduced to Japanese culture ...

“I think it was a beautiful time of creativity…a time of the ping-pong match between Harajuku culture and American culture. Allure later asked Stefani’s team for an on-the-record comment or clarification of these remarks and they declined to provide a statement or participate in a follow-up interview.) Baby,” and continued with the 2008 launch of her “Harajuku Lovers” fragrance. “That was my Japanese influence,” Stefani said. Stefani said she was introduced to Japanese culture by her father, who worked at Yahama for 18 years and frequently traveled between California and Japan. [Gwen Stefani](https://variety.com/t/gwen-stefani/) is standing by her Harajuku era, which started with the release of her 2004 debut studio album, “Love.

In an interview with Allure magazine, Stefani, 53, who is Italian American, cited the influence of Japanese culture in her home when she was growing up. She ...

In 2005, she was accused of appropriating Hispanic and Latino culture for her music video "Luxurious." Amid the release of her 2004 album "Love. A representative for Stefani told Calaor that she had "misunderstood what Stefani was trying to convey" but declined to provide an on-the-record statement. She also donned [Bantu knots](https://www.naturallycurly.com/curlreading/hairstyles/the-history-of-bantu-knots), a hairstyle from the Zulu people of South Africa. "I said, 'My God, I'm Japanese and I didn't know it,'" Stefani told Allure. She described her father's travel to Japan for his job at Yamaha and how he'd tell her stories about "performers cosplaying as Elvis and stylish women with colorful hair," the article says.

Gwen Stefani reflected on her early 2000s Harajuku era in a recent interview with Allure, saying: 'My God, I'm Japanese and I didn't even know it.'

Allure reported that representatives for Stefani insisted that the singer’s comments were misconstrued but declined to issue any further comments clarifying her statements. “If [people are] going to criticize me for being a fan of something beautiful and sharing that, then I just think that doesn’t feel right,” Stefani told Allure. In defense of her appropriation, she added: “[It] should be okay to be inspired by other cultures because if we’re not allowed, then that’s dividing people, right?” Baby., which featured a concrete visual aesthetic drawing from Harajuku fashion — including a crew of four Japanese and Japanese American women who danced backup on the accompanying Harajuku Lovers Tour and attended red carpets with the singer. This is an almost laughably absurd clarification to have to make, but during a recent interview with [Allure](https://www.allure.com/story/gwen-stefani-japanese-harajuku-lovers-interview?utm_brand=allure&utm_social-type=owned&mbid=social_twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter), the singer reportedly asserted multiple times: “My God, I’m Japanese and I didn’t know it.” Stefani has been at the center of accusations rooted in the appropriation and fetishization of Asian aesthetics for nearly two decades.

Music star Gwen Stefani has been called out for comments made about her Japanese influences during an interview with Allure magazine while promoting her ...

"I think it was a beautiful time of creativity...a time of the ping-pong match between Harajuku culture and American culture," Stefani continued. She later also referred to herself as a "superfan" of the culture. The comment was made after Stefani was asked about her previous cosmetic endeavors — specifically her 2008 fragrance collection "Harajuku Lovers."

Gwen Stefani says "I'm Japanese" in response to accusations of cultural appropriation from critics of her 'Harajuku Girls' era.

Gwen Stefani claims to be Japanese in a bizarre new interview with "Allure" about her vegan beauty collection.

“If [people are] going to criticize me for being a fan of something beautiful and sharing that, then I just think that doesn’t feel right,” Stefani continued. To date Stefani has said nothing publicly about the violence faced by the community she claims to love. [accused of exploiting Japanese culture](https://www.nme.com/news/music/gwen-stefani-responds-cultural-appropriation-claims-harajuku-girls-2950951) and appropriating it for capital gain. Writer Jesa Marie Calaor, who is Filipina American, notes there was a beat of silence in their conversation before Stefani added, “I am, you know.” The perfume featured five bottles, one modeled after Stefani and four modeled after her Japanese and Japanese American backup dancers, whom she employed for the promotion of her 2004 album, Love. [with Allure](https://www.allure.com/story/gwen-stefani-japanese-harajuku-lovers-interview) about her vegan beauty collection and past beauty ventures, [Stefani](https://www.glamour.com/about/gwen-stefani) doubled down on her defense of her Harajuku Girl era, which included a collection of fragrances first released in 2008.

Singer and TV host, who is of Irish and Italian descent, made comment in interview promoting her beauty brand.

[wrote](https://twitter.com/ykhong/status/1613185943673999361?s=20&t=h7CngxffRilkE_5MxBvh9g): “The white culture of thinking you can identify as a person of color simply because you like something about that culture. It is not appreciation. Calaor wrote: “Like Stefani, I am not Japanese. Calaor wrote that Stefani said she was Japanese multiple times but also said she identified with Hispanic and Latino communities and was “a little bit of an Orange county girl, a little bit of a Japanese girl, a little bit of an English girl”. “That was my Japanese influence and that was a culture that was so rich with tradition, yet so futuristic [with] so much attention to art and detail and discipline and it was fascinating to me,” Stefani told the Allure editor Jesa Marie Calaor, who is Filipino American. [interview](https://www.allure.com/story/gwen-stefani-japanese-harajuku-lovers-interview/amp) with Allure magazine released on Tuesday, Stefani, who is of Irish and Italian descent, was promoting her GXVE beauty brand when she said: “My God, I’m Japanese and I didn’t know it.”

Singer Gwen Stefani repeatedly called herself Japanese when asked by Allure what she learned from the controversy around her Harajuku era.

Then in 2012, she and No Doubt were accused of appropriating Indigenous culture in their music video for “Looking Hot.” In 2005, Stefani was also accused of appropriating Hispanic and Latino culture in her [Yamashiro, a century-old Japanese-style castle in Hollywood, tests limits of cultural appropriation debate](https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-yamashiro-history-appropriation-20180407-story.html) (Stefani also launched a successful Harajuku Mini children’s clothing line in Target from 2011.) In 2005, Stefani launched her so-called Harajuku era while walking the red carpet at that year’s Grammy Awards with a quartet of “Harajuku girls,” named for the fashion-forward Tokyo neighborhood that she referenced throughout her 2004 solo debut “Love. Baby.” Those are the names she gave each woman in her entourage and later abbreviated them when she launched her “A hit is a hit,” Stefani said. “A hit is what makes me tick. “I don’t think the intent to be harmful is there, but if AAPI ppl have taken offence to her cultural appropriation, then harm has been done. Later, upon traveling to see the Harajuku culture herself, she added: “I said, ‘My God, I’m Japanese and I didn’t know it.” When the comment seemed to give the reporter pause, Stefani doubled down and said: “I am, you know.” a time of the ping-pong match between Harajuku culture and American culture. “I think it was a beautiful time of creativity…

"RHOBH" star Kyle Richards defended Gwen Stefani's Allure interview in which the singer described herself as "Japanese."

“There’s stereotypes that people think we don’t pay for our rent, that we don’t tip,” the former “The Real” co-host explained. “Would you have said it to one of the white women?” Beauvais, 56, asked in a 2021 episode. Elsewhere in the interview, Stefani claimed that not only does she identify as part Asian, but she is also “a little bit of an Orange County girl, a little bit of a Japanese girl, a little bit of an English girl.”