Joni Mitchell

Mitchell created and repeatedly portrayed a fictional Black male character, Art Nouveau, including in blackface and on the cover of Don Juan's Reckless Daughter. The imagery has long been criticised as racist and reassessed in recent biographies and reviews. In 2024, the album cover was replaced on certain editions/platforms.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

Mitchell requested the removal of her catalogue from Spotify in 2022, citing Covid-19 misinformation and siding with Neil Young. Her catalogue returned to the platform in 2024.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

Mitchell publicly described Morgellons as a serious and incurable disease from which she said she suffered, and advocated for patients to be taken seriously. The nature of Morgellons itself was the subject of significant medical debate.

State of the evidence

Allegations

Attribution

Personally implicated

Mitchell repeatedly stated that she did not consider herself a feminist and made critical remarks about certain forms of feminism, describing them as overly divisive or hostile. These statements drew criticism from feminist commentators.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

Mitchell stated that she had blocked the proposed film Girls Like Us, based on Sheila Weller's book, and criticised the idea of Taylor Swift portraying her.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

In a 2010 interview, Mitchell strongly criticised Bob Dylan, notably accusing him of plagiarism and contrasting him with her own artistic authenticity. The remarks attracted extensive media coverage.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

The song Not to Blame was widely interpreted as targeting Jackson Browne following allegations of violence made by Daryl Hannah, while also referring to the suicide of Browne's former wife. Browne publicly criticised Mitchell and denied the allegations of violence.

State of the evidence

Disputed

Attribution

Personally implicated

A former Guatemalan domestic employee sought 5 M$ from Mitchell following an incident in which Mitchell acknowledged kicking her in the shin. A retrospective describes the litigation as continuing throughout the 1980s; a 1991 interview indicates that it was eventually settled out of court.

State of the evidence

Settlement

Attribution

Accused

Mitchell and members of the band America spent years challenging the application of a California tax to master tapes delivered to record companies. In 1990, an appellate court upheld the refund of taxes to the artists, with interest to be calculated subsequently.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated