Joni Mitchell becomes US citizen

The singer also shared a video of the moment where she is announced by the speaker, “Joni Mitchell, Canada.” Applause follows from people in the audience as she gets up from her seat.

ABC News has reached out to a representative for Mitchell for further comment.

Mitchell was born on Nov. 7, 1943, in Fort Macleod, Alberta, Canada. According to a biography on her website, she and her family moved to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, when she was 9 and has since referred to it as her hometown.

In 1965, she moved to the U.S. with folk-singer Chuck Mitchell and the following year, she played a short set at the Newport Folk Festival in Newport, Rhode Island.

In 1967, she began pursuing her career as a solo artist and released her debut album Song to a Seagull in 1968. Since then, she’s released 18 studio albums and nearly all of them were recorded and produced in the U.S.

Over the years, Mitchell has shared her thoughts about not being a U.S. citizen.

In 2024 at the Hollywood Bowl, during what was dubbed the Joni Jam, her first headlining concert in L.A. in 24 years, Mitchell urged the audience to “get out and vote,” according to the New Musical Express.

“This is an important one,” she said. “I wish I could vote — I’m Canadian. One of those lousy immigrants.”

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.