Karen O & Michelle Zauner

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Japanese Breakfast frontwomen on the power of 'no', growing up Korean American, and the joys of smashing stuff

-  ANGIE MARTOCCIO

ABOUT A YEAR AGO, Karen O was scrolling through Instagram when she came across a photo of Japanese Breakfast frontwoman Michelle Zauner that left her a little concerned. It was from a stop on Zauner's relentless tour over the past couple of years, which has included more than 100 concerts and promotional appearances on the heels of her Grammy-nominated third album, Jubilee, and her bestselling memoir, Crying in H Mart. "She had the million-mile stare," says Karen O.

It's late August in Los Angeles, and Karen O and Zauner are sitting in a studio in the Arts District, meeting in person for the first time and looking back on their text exchanges from around the period of that million-mile stare.

"She sent me some really nice messages," says Zauner, 33. "It felt very K.O. She was like, 'If you ever want to break a table with me..."" Karen 0 erupts with laughter. As the frontwoman of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, the indie-rock band she formed in 2000, she can relate. "[The road] can wear you down," she says. "The best thing to do in that situation is smash some glass. For me, it was a poster of us. I put my foot through it. It takes the edge off."

Zauner grew up idolising Karen O, a fellow Korean American who became famous for her magnetic stage presence - spitting beer into the crowd was not an infrequent occurrence - and New York swagger. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs recently released Cool It Down, their first album in nine years. Karen 0, 44, is more than happy to pass down some advice: "Michelle, if you ever wanted to bitch to me about the pains of anything, I'm your woman."

KAREN O: I feel very familiar with you, in some funny way. Do you feel that way with me at all? ZAUNER: I also have that feeling. I mean, I guess we've lived somewhat similar lives.

KAREN O: There's a lot of parallels. But the parallels don't really explain... It's just chemistry, a natural connection that you feel with somebody.