The Witch Who Broke up the Beatles
Other than being the notorious “woman who broke up the Beatles,” how much do you know about Yoko Ono?
Yoko was born into a long dynasty of warriors in Japan. Her parents were wealthy and successful bankers. Yoko was an only child, was not close with her parents. She did not have any friends because she was different from everyone around her.
She learned to play the piano as early as she learned to walk. Little Yoko performed her first public concert at the age of 4.
She also loved to write and paint.
When Yoko was exceptionally lonely, she would write poems and wishes on paper. She tied them to tree branches, hoping other humans like her would find them. Yoko knew she could not be the only one who saw the world in a different light. She couldn't be the only dreamer.
When her family moved to New York City, Yoko found other kids like her. They were creative. They imagined. Yoko finally started to feel like she belonged.
Yoko chose to study at Sarah Lawrence. She wanted to become an artist. Her family did not see how important her art was at the time, so they disowned her and cut her off.
Yoko scraped by, supporting herself by waitressing and taking odd jobs. She kept writing, creating and putting her work out into the world as often as possible.
She made a name for herself in New York City, Japan and London, and became a well-known avante-guard artist.
In 1964, Yoko Published a book of conceptual art called GrapeFruit. In her book, she repeatedly asked her readers to “imagine.”
One day in 1966, the founder, guitarist and lead vocalist of The Beatles walked in to an interactive art exhibition at the Indica Gallery in London.
John Lennon was spell bound by the artwork and by the artist. He learned her Name was Yoko Ono.
She had no idea know who he was. Yoko was never a part of the Beatlemania because she was so focused on her own work.
Yoko said hello and invited John to try one of her interactive pieces. He climbed a ladder and looked through a magnifying glass to find a single word on the ceiling– Yes.
John Lennon and Yoko Ono fell in love. Together, they became activists for peace. Yoko and John championed humanitarian and environmental causes together.
Within a few years, Paul McCartney sued the band and asked to dissolve the Beatles’ partnership over artistic freedom.
Yoko Ono became the easiest person for fans to blame.
A highly respected and influential artist in avant-garde music and conceptual art suddenly became “the witch behind the Beatles breakup.”
The truth is, when John married Yoko, he began evolving as a person and as a musician. She inspired his most meaningful work. Lennon's bestselling and most popular solo song is Imagine. In 2017, Yoko was finally credited with co-writing the song.
Lennon once said,
“I learned everything from her, that’s what people don’t understand.”
Yoko Ono has never stopped promoting their shared message of peace and world unity. To honor his legacy, she founded Imagine Peace, a worldwide anti-violence initiative.
After Lennon's death, Yoko created an ongoing art installation series called "Wish Tree".
She continues to collect all the wishes from her Wish Trees all over the world – currently totaling over a million wishes from all the other dreamers.
Celebrate Yoko Ono with these goods from the shop:
Yoko the One and Ono art print
“A dream you dream alone is only a dream. A dream you dream together is reality.”
— YOKO ONO
