Elle King talks about her “toxic” relationship with her father Rob Schneider

Elle King says her relationship with her father, actor and comedian Rob Schneider, has always been problematic – and in fact, in many ways she would rather not be associated with him at all.

In a recent conversation at Bunnie Xo's Stupid blonde Podcast, delves into her family dynamics and explains that she and her father were never close as a child. At the time, Schneider was at the peak of his career as a movie star in films such as The hot chicken And Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo.

“If I ever spent a summer with my dad, it would be on a movie set. I would just get lost in the hustle and bustle,” King recalls. “If I ever messed up a take, if I ever talked, I would be in fucking…ruble.”

She goes on to say that her father sent her to “fat camp” as a child and that she once got in trouble for not losing weight after spraining her ankle. “Very toxic and very silly,” King says.

“And I remember when I first started getting tattoos, it was 100 degrees. So I had to wear sweaters because my dad was totally against tattoos. Or any form of self-expression that was different than what he wanted,” she continued. “I don't agree with a lot of the things he says.”

In particular, she points to transphobic and homophobic comments Schneider has made. “He's just talking nonsense, and I want to take this opportunity to say that I disagree. I don't agree with what he's saying,” King continues.

King says that by the time she signed her record deal, she hadn't spoken to her father for several years. She hoped to build her career without his name or support – and he never tried to help her, she says.

“I never wanted his help. He didn't have a very good reputation either. I don't want to be associated with him,” she adds. When she was asked questions about her father in interviews, Schneider told her: “Don't talk about me in the press, for God's sake.”

“You can want someone to change so much. You can't control other people's actions. You can't control other people's feelings. You can only control how you react and what you do with your feelings,” she reflects. “And sometimes I just fucking boil over and I explode with anger.

“…My dad forgot every single birthday. I spent my 18th birthday at summer school and they brought me cupcakes and I came home and my dad had forgotten my birthday,” King continues.

The complete episode of Stupid blonde featuring King will be released everywhere on Monday (August 12th). Fans can listen to it in advance via Bunnie Xo's Patreon.

Carena Liptak is an associate editor and staff writer at Taste of Country. She specializes in breaking country music news, interviews, and lists. She's particularly partial to sad songs – check out her roundup of the 50 saddest country songs of all time!