Times Malia Obama Proved She's One Of The Most Normal Celeb Kids

Malia Obama's mom enforced some strict rules when the Obamas lived in the White House, and her approach to parenting paid off. By offering her daughters a sense of stability in such unusual circumstances, Michelle ensured that Malia and Sasha Obama didn't act entitled or privileged after Barack Obama's presidency ended.

Michelle raised her girls to be self-sufficient. "I don't want [Malia] to be 15, 16 and be that kid: 'I've never done laundry before.' I would cringe if she became that kid," she said in a 2011 "Oprah" interview. She also told Yahoo! Shine that Sasha and Malia had to do household chores to earn their allowances. Michelle realized Malia was just a typical teen after speaking to her about her adolescent experiences and discovering that they mirrored her own. "Malia and I were talking recently about all the little things we'd stress over in junior high and high school — whether we're wearing the right clothes, a snarky comment somebody made about us, the boys we crushed on, and on and on," she told Good Housekeeping in 2018.

Another sign that Malia was no spoiled nepo baby was how she wanted to spend her final night in the White House. "Because my girls are so normal, they're like, 'Well, eight girls are gonna be sleeping here ... and we want pizza and we want nuggets,'" Michelle said during a Q&A, per People. Since then, Malia has continued to prove that she's one of the most normal celeb kids.

Where there's smoke, there's fire — or a first daughter doing standard teen stuff. Some of Malia Obama's most controversial teenage moments weren't nearly as scandalous as the tabloids made them out to be. In 2016, she was spied puffing on what appeared to be a joint at Lollapalooza. Radar deemed the act "a new low" for Obama and quoted an eyewitness who said, "She took at least one hit on it. She had it in her hand for about one minute."

The outlet also shamed Obama for — gasp! — dancing to the music she was there to listen to. Basically, the then-18-year-old was behaving like many of the other festivalgoers around her and would have blended right in if she hadn't been the daughter of the 44th president of the United States. "Love to see Malia Obama living life and enjoying Lollapalooza like a normal Chicagoan," The Shade Room's AC Trybula captioned a video of Obama twerking to Bryson Tiller.

Obama had skipped the Democratic National Convention to attend the music festival, and what says "typical teen" more than blowing off a parent's work thing to do something fun? She seemed to poke fun at the furor over the spliff scandal weeks later when she wore a "Smoking Kills" T-shirt to Budweiser's Made in America festival. Her tee had a homemade vibe, and the rest of her ensemble was refreshingly low-key: denim cutoffs and a Harvard baseball cap.

Malia Obama made an internship for a big Hollywood producer seem like a stereotypical job that a college student might get to put a little extra spending money in their pocket. Before Harvey Weinstein landed in prison, Obama interned at The Weinstein Co. office in New York. According to the Daily Mail, she was getting paid $9 an hour to peruse scripts and pick out which ones to pitch to studio execs. When she was photographed arriving at work with a water bottle in hand in February 2017, there were some visible signs that the daily grind was starting to take its toll on her. She looked exhausted and had her hair pulled back in a messy updo as if she had gotten ready in a hurry.

Instead of going all "Gossip Girl" or "The Devil Wears Prada" while living in NYC, Obama kept her outfits cozy and casual. In her flannel shirt, leggings, and cranberry parka, she could have been on a quick grocery run, not on her way to work alongside some of Hollywood's most influential people.

Obama had previously worked as a production assistant on Halle Berry's sci-fi series "Extant" in 2014. According to Berry, the teen didn't act any differently from other PAs. "She tried and tried to be one. We just couldn't really see her as one, but to her credit, she tried very hard to be one," the actor said on "Watch What Happens Live."

Thanks to the paparazzi, we know that Malia Obama likes dining al fresco with friends. In 2017, she was photographed sharing a few laughs with a pal outside an NYC sidewalk cafe. She was paying homage to her new residence with a New York Giants cap, and the rest of her outfit was similarly dressed down: dark skinny jeans, a white crop top, a denim coat, and booties with block heels. She seemed to be making the most of her downtime during the gap year she took before heading to Harvard.

Courtesy of Michelle Obama, we know that her daughter doesn't just eat out all the time — she's willing to work for her grub. While the kids of a certain former president enjoy spending big bucks to jet across the globe and go trophy hunting for exotic game, Malia has taken up a less gruesome hobby that doesn't require leaving home. Like many college students, Malia moved back in with her parents during quarantine. With dining out with friends no longer being an option, she and Sasha Obama began perfecting their culinary skills. Michelle told People that pies became the sisters' specialty. "They were good at it! Good pie crust, good fillings," she said. She also learned that her daughters were night owls with serious sweet tooths. "At 1 in the morning, you'd smell cinnamon buns baking," she shared. "I had to tell them to stop because we can't have all those sweets."

In 2017, TMZ published photos of Malia Obama on what would be considered a normal date for most college kids. While tailgating at a Harvard football game, she locked lips with a guy who was yet to be identified. Eventually, the media would discover that Malia's date was Rory Farquharson, a fellow Harvard student she was in a serious relationship with.

The lovebirds were photographed using a wide New York window ledge as a makeshift bench in October 2018. They both had on sporty outerwear to fend off the fall chill, although Malia's legs were fully exposed in a floral mini-dress. Farquharson was smoking a cigarette, and Malia was all smiles as she kicked back and relaxed beside him.

Farquharson is British, and Malia spent some time with him in London. For one outing across the pond, they checked out the play "Allelujah!" at the Bridge Theater. Farquharson got to know his girlfriend's family members rather well when he got stranded in the U.S. during lockdown and quarantined with them. On "The Bill Simmons Podcast," Barack Obama revealed that he taught Farquharson how to play spades during family game night. "I didn't want to like him, but he's a good kid," he admitted. But in true dad fashion, Barack had to add something to embarrass his daughter. "The only thing you discover ... young men eat. It's weird to watch them consume food," said the proud girl dad. "My grocery bill went up about 30%."

Malia Obama has often been photographed chilling in public with her friends — when hanging out at the park with her posse, she drinks her wine from a red solo cup just like the rest of us. However, Malia's sibling will always be her OG ride-or-die. 

Malia and Sasha Obama possess such a powerful sisterly bond that they decided to become roomies when their life paths took them both to Los Angeles. During a 2022 appearance on "Today," Michelle Obama recalled what went down when she and Barack Obama received an invite to join their daughters for dinner. She said Malia and Sasha served martinis, and it sounds like the girls might have been rationing their alcohol. "The martinis were a little weak," Michelle complained. She also expressed her disbelief over being ordered to use a coaster for her cocktail. "I'm like, 'You never used a coaster at my house. So now when it's your stuff, you want to take care of it?'" she quipped.

So, just like other older Zoomers, Malia has discovered that adulting is a difficult skill to master. However, her mom is thrilled over how she and her sister turned out after having such an abnormal upbringing. "They have managed this situation with poise and grace and they are normal and kind and smart and friendly and open," she said on "Good Morning America" in 2018. "Gosh, and it could've gone so wrong."