My father was obsessed with folk music from around the world, and I think the countless artists who performed them are my biggest influences.
MITSKIWhat I have a problem with is when it becomes another form of tokenization, of shrinking me into a symbol instead of a multilayered, female Asian artist.
More Mitski Quotes
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I think your ego gets in the way of making something good because it kind of blinds you from the actual art.
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When you are a minority, it’s your job to bend, and when you love someone, you really want to make it work.
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I think the pressure gets to me when I play shows and there’s more people in the audience than I’m used to.
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I try to be regimented and try to stay healthy and work out and eat properly and go to sleep. And not get too caught up in the industry in my regular life, so I can save all my expression and energy for my art.
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Pop artists work really hard, and they might not work for the same things that indie artists do, but they’re still musicians, and they’re still making art.
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When you’re young is the one time when you get to indulge in being morose and take yourself most seriously.
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When you’re an adult, things mellow out. I think when you’re a teenager and you are sad and the world is ending, everything is about that one sadness.
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I’m Japanese, and I’m also white American, and neither camp wants me in their camp.
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It’s very tempting, when somebody says they like this about you, to want to do that over and over.
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I remember I took a music course in junior year of high school, and some girl brought in ‘Teardrops On My Guitar,’ and she was like, ‘Isn’t this song great?’ And everyone was like, ‘Who’s Taylor Swift?’ And now, every time I listen to Taylor Swift, I remember that moment.
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I think growing up the way I did has made me a lot more objective, and that’s important in the process of writing and trying to look at subjective matter that way.
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I understand that, because there are so many musicians, you have to make artists into brands, but I sometimes feel like I have to be some kind of non-human icon in order for people to listen to my music.
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The whole ‘grunge-girl’ comparisons certainly are the easiest to pick out, and I appreciate that music journalists are rushed.
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Miyazaki movies were what I was raised on. I’ve watched them since I was very young, and I’ve been greatly shaped by them.
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I don’t think I’m alone in this: I’m obsessed with trying to not only be happy but maintain happiness, but my definition of happiness is skewed more towards ecstasy rather than contentment.
MITSKI