"Baffled by this take": Gwen Stefani heritage and nationality explored as Japanese identification leaves internet bewildered

Gwen Stefani is facing immense backlash on social media after claiming that she is partly Japanese. While promoting her latest vegan beauty brand GXVE Beauty to Allure magazine, she defended her alleged Harajuku heritage to an Asian-American journalist.

Internet users have since been curious about her actual ethnicity and nationality.

Netizens started questioning Gwen Stefani about her Japanese influence. They also slammed her for cultural appropriation after the release of her debut album Love. Angel. Music. Baby. in 2014 and her Harajuku Lovers fragrance. She also performed in concerts alongside four “Harajuku Girls” who also accompanied her to red carpets and other events.

When asked about what she had learnt about her supposed Harajuku heritage, the 53-year-old shared that her father used to work in Yahama for 18 years, and was a frequent traveler between California and Japan. She added:

“That was my Japanese influencer. 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.”

She also added in the interview:

“I said, “my god, I’m Japanese and I didn’t know it.” I am, you know.”

Speaking about the backlash she has faced in the past for claiming Japanese heritage, Gwen Stefani said that it “doesn’t feel right.” She went on to opine that “it should be okay to be inspired by other cultures” and if people are not doing so, “then that’s dividing people, right?”

In the interview, the journalist also revealed that Gwen Stefani identified herself as “a little bit of an Orange County girl, a little bit of a Japanese girl, and a little bit of an English girl.” However, a representative for the singer clarified that the journalist “misunderstood” what the singer meant to say. They declined to give an on-the-record statement after that.

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Gwen Stefani’s ethnicity and nationality revealed as Rich Girl singer faces backlash for Allure interview

The Luxurious singer was born to Dennis Stefani, an Italian American who was a Yamaho marketing executive by profession. Her mother, Patti Flynn, is of English, Irish, Scottish, German and Norwegian ancestry and is an accountant-turned-homemaker.

Gwen Stefani was born in Fullerton, California. Neither do her parents have any Japanese heritage in their bloodline nor was Stefani born in the country, making it peculiar that the singer has found herself claiming the Harajuku heritage for herself.

Internet users were baffled by the interview. Many noted that just because the singer’s father used to frequently travel to Japan does not mean that Stefani could claim their heritage. Some netizens continued to slam her for cultural appropriation. Others seemed nervous about the singer coming forward and claiming Black culture as well. A few reactions to the interview read:

This is not the first time Gwen Stefani has raised eyebrows over cultural appropriation. In the past, she was accused of mimicking Hispanic and Latino culture in the music video of her hit track Luxurious. She was also accused of appropriating indigenous culture in the music video for the 2012 song Looking Hot.

In the past, the singer has been criticized for wearing a bindi, a Hindu symbol worn by women to indicate that they are married. Stefani has also donned Bantu knots in the past, which are predominantly worn by the Zulu people of South Africa.