Michelle Obama has been opening up about personal topics in recent conversations. The former First Lady has decided to share details about her time in the White House and her family dynamics with her husband Barack Obama and daughters Malia and Sasha Obama.
On a recent episode of the podcast ‘Sibling Revelry,’ hosted by actors Kate and Oliver Hudson, Michelle opened up candidly about a topic that has sparked curiosity, her daughter Malia’s decision to drop the Obama last name in her professional work.
The former First Lady did not shy away from the subject, explaining that Malia’s name change is part of a larger, ongoing effort by both her daughters to carve out identities separate from their famous parents.
“They’re still doing that,” Michelle said. “And you guys know this — children of parents who are known, they’re trying to distinguish themselves. It’s very important for my kids to feel like they’ve earned what they are getting in the world.”
© PoolMalia’s name change comes as she is now carving her path in the film industry. When Malia premiered her short film ‘The Heart ‘ at the Sundance Film Festival in February 2024, viewers noticed something different: her name appeared in the credits not as Malia Obama, but as Malia Ann.
© Foc KanHer decision intended to separate her creative identity from her political lineage. “She started in film, and I mean her first project she took off her last name,” Michelle shared. “We were like, ‘They’re still going to know it’s you, Malia.’ But we respect that she’s trying to make her way.”
© Dia DipasupilMichelle also reflected on the complex balance of raising two young girls while living in the White House, describing how both daughters went through what she calls “the push away” period during their teenage years, and how that desire for independence hasn’t disappeared.
© Theo Wargo“Our daughters are 26 and 23. They are young adult women, but they definitely went through a period in their teen years where it was the push away,” she said. “They didn’t want to be little princesses in the White House. They wanted to push the envelope. They needed some rope.”
She added, “They wanted to be out in the world. And I knew under the circumstances they probably needed more rope than I could have given them if I was my mother.”
© SAUL LOEB“Now that they’re older, they are embracing our parenting principles,” she said. “They understand us as full human beings now. In the same way, I think that I discovered that with my parents when I went away to college.”
The author also emphasized that her daughters are particularly sensitive to public perceptions, especially when it comes to assumptions of privilege. “They don’t want people to assume they don’t work hard, or that they’re just naturally handed things,” Michelle said. “They want to be their own people.”
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