In the August 1, 1999 issue of Parade Magazine (a weekly insert to various Sunday newspapers in the United States), Sean was interviewed by Elizabeth Shepard.

Sean said, "I'm not some kind of fringe Beatles celebrity. I'm actually a human being with my own art."

Shepard said she met up with Sean in an Italian restaurant near his New York City apartment, and all the customers seemed to recognize him and stared. Sean's reaction to the attention: "It's all I've ever known. I know that being the son of John Lennon helped my music get noticed in the first place, and for that I'm thankful. If I wanted to, I could simply coast on the family name. But that has nothing to do with what I'm interested in. My music is my own."

Yoko was asked about how she felt Sean's family connections had affected her son: "Sean got pressure from the world since he was 7 years old. His father's friends were waiting to see what he'd write. It made him want to turn away from it all. He stopped his piano lessons, and I just let him be. Then something inside him insisted he become a musician. He couldn't help falling in love with that."

Sean works at his art: "Music does not come easily to me. I'm definitely one of those people who's got to work hard. I play the same song over and over to get it right."

His attitude about life is an upbeat one: "I consciously try to be happy. My positivity isn't instinctive. I want my music to bring people up - that's the only good I can do for the world."

About his family life, Sean said: "My parents were celebrities, but we always had real relationships. Even though my father died, I had a loving mother. And her companion, Sam Havadtoy was kind of my stepfather."

Despite the dissing he and his Mom have received from brother Julian over the past several months, Sean was kind-hearted when speaking of Julian: "I love him and I respect his music. He had a hard time with his career in the '80's - the whole 'son of John Lennon' thing was really dumped on him. I learned a lot from that."

Sean's definitely not a male chauvinst pig. About girlfriend, Yuka Honda, Sean says: "It helps to have a strong girlfriend and have a woman tell me what's right and wrong. She keeps me on the straight and narrow."

Sean plans to keep working and making his own way in the world. He says if he were to "spend the Beatles' money" it would "make me feel empty."