‘Little Princesses In The White House’: Michelle Obama Breaks Her Silence On Daughter’s Decision To Ditch Family Name

Michelle Obama broke her silence on her daughter Malia’s decision to ditch her famous last name during her pursuit of a career in the entertainment industry.

Malia wrote and directed a short film titled “The Heart” that premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival and used her middle name as the artistic name on the Hollywood credits. Michelle spoke out about her daughter’s decision on the June 2 episode of the “Sibling Revelry” podcast with hosts Oliver and Kate Hudson.

She noted that her daughters are both “young adult women, but they definitely went through a period in their teen years where it was the push-away.”

“They’re still doing that,” she said.

Michelle went on to explain the reason she supported Malia’s dropping the name ‘Obama’ for her profession.

“It is very important for my kids to feel like they’ve earned what they are getting in the world, and they don’t want people to assume that they don’t work hard, that they’re just naturally just handed things,” she said.

Speaking of both her daughters, Michelle added, “They’re very sensitive to that. They want to be their own people.”

WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 05: U.S. President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, and daughters Malia (L) and Sasha (R) pose for a family portrait with their pets Bo and Sunny in the Rose Garden of the White House on Easter Sunday, April 5, 2015 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Pete Souza/The White House via Getty Images)

Michelle continued, “she took off her last name, and we were like, ‘they’re still going to know it’s you, Malia.’ But we respected the fact that she’s trying to make her way.”

Their daughters “didn’t want to be little princesses in the White House,” she said.

The former first-lady explained her daughters’ desires to break free from their family identity in search of their independent paths in life. (RELATED: Michelle Obama Said Husband Barack Told Her ‘You’re Next Up’ After Her Mother Died)

“They wanted to push the envelope; they needed some rope. They wanted to try some things, they wanted to be out in the world, and I knew that under the circumstances, they needed more rope than I probably would’ve given them if I were my mother,” Michelle said.