In Defence of Yoko Ono
For decades, Yoko Ono has been unfairly cast as the woman who “broke up the Beatles”. This long-standing narrative has woven itself through popular culture, despite its deep inaccuracy. At the height of the band’s success, Yoko – a fearless, boundary-pushing multimedia artist – was introduced to the charismatic John Lennon, and the two became partners in musical experimentation and radical peace activism. While their love story continued to blossom, the Beatles grew more and more disconnected as personal, creative, and financial tensions continued to rise. For fans and media unsettled with a strong, outspoken Japanese woman so intertwined within their beloved British band, the world collectively clung to a simpler story: to blame “the woman”. In a tale as old as time, Yoko emerged as an easy scapegoat in the 1960s white and male-dominated music scene.
Ono was an avant-garde artist of Asian descent, who entered a space governed by Eurocentric ideals of femininity and conformity. Known for her performance exhibitions and experimental sound pieces, she defied the notion that art must be decorative or easily understood, prioritizing bold concepts over aesthetics. As John engaged with her work – from hammering nails into a blank canvas to genre-bending instrumentation – his songwriting took a surrealist turn. Yoko became his muse within the Beatles, encouraging John to step beyond the band’s commercial trajectory and embrace a more personal, unfiltered artistic voice. But as their relationship brought her into the public eye, Ono’s once respected reputation was overshadowed by the drama surrounding the Beatles, especially as the group neared its breaking point.
The hostility faced by Ono went far beyond simple band politics. While the media targeted Yoko’s mere presence in the studio and her perceived authority over John’s creative direction, fans exoticized her appearance and mocked her out-of-the-box artistic approaches. The coverage of Yoko and John’s relationship became laced with orientalist stereotypes, reducing her to a conniving and mysterious woman who had seduced him away from the band, while glossing over the real, tangible issues that the Beatles confronted at the time – from the death of their manager to shifting creative visions and individual priorities. In the political and social climate of the 1960s, anti-Asian sentiment still lingered in Western society. The press exploited that discomfort, portraying Ono not just as a nuisance, but as an existential threat to the Beatles’ integrity.
To the public, Yoko Ono remained an outsider who did not belong in both her cultural identity and artistry. Unfortunately, women of colour, especially those in the spotlight, are often held to impossibly high standards and afforded little grace, making them uniquely vulnerable to judgment when they fall short of the expectations imposed on them. Yoko was no exception – she became inevitably entangled in the Beatles’ highly publicized internal power struggles and subjected to relentless scrutiny. The caricature of Yoko as a scheming interloper reinforced broader societal views that Asian people, especially women, do not belong in environments of creativity and influence. The portrayal not only damaged her legacy, but also set a harmful precedent for how Asian excellence is received and resisted in popular culture.
The breakup of the Beatles had been years in the making. Narrowing it all down to “Yoko’s fault” erases not only the complexity of that history, but perpetuates a xenophobic and misogynistic agenda. Ono was propelled into a world of notoriety and vitriol she did not deserve. Undeterred, she consistently carried herself with elegance throughout the years, refusing to retaliate against her detractors while remaining committed to her love for John and her uncompromising self-expression. Rather than diminish Yoko’s impact, we should celebrate her resilience and innovation. Yoko Ono did not break the Beatles. Instead, she refused to let the world break her, and redefined what it means to lead with vision, voice, and authenticity.