Willow Smith has been in the music business for more than ten years, starting with the teeny-bopper hit “Whip My Hair” and continuing with her more mature and heartfelt most recent track, “Big Feelings.”

The 23-year-old discussed all things beauty, work, and life with Allure in an interview that followed the release of her upcoming new album Empathogens. She also discussed her quest for recognition in the industry.

Willow has always been involved in music as the daughter of international celebrities Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, but she has also had to deal with being called a “nepo baby.”

In response to a question about it during her interview, she clarified why she doesn’t think she fits that stereotype. She acknowledged the opportunities that came with having her last name and said that she probably pushed herself to work harder and leave her own mark because of her family’s legacy.

“I truly believe that my spirit is a strong spirit and that, even if my parents weren’t who they were, I would still be a weirdo and a crazy thinker,” she said. 

“I firmly believe that a small amount of insecurity has motivated me more since people do believe that my parents are the sole reason I’ve succeeded. That has motivated me to put forth a lot of effort to try to disprove them. However, I no longer have to prove [expletive] to anyone.”

She went on to discuss how being Black in America made her feel uncomfortable even with her privilege, going into detail about how she still felt uncomfortable in some circumstances. 

“There have been some experiences where I went into a place that I have worked in the past and my picture could even be up on the wall, and they treat me like, ‘This is a little bit out of your price range’ or ‘You don’t really belong here.'” 

Willow went on, “You’re still Black in America if you’re Black, even if you have privilege—which I will never deny I have. And I’m proud to be Black.” 

“Her parents are this and this and that, but she still is like me,” people would comment to me when they looked at me. Her skin tone remains dark. And as everyone knows, that’s a point of connection—it doesn’t absolve you of responsibility.”

The “Meet Me At Our Spot” singer did, however, disclose that although she had a desire to pursue music from a young age (released “Whip My Hair” at the age of nine), her parents were initially hesitant to follow through.

“I’m up on my cloud like a small child. “I felt like they were being really negative people,” she recalled telling them she wanted to be a musician.

They are behaving really gravely. “Alright, we just want you to know that this is not going to be easy if you really want to sing,” they said. And I was thinking, What? It was really simple. I recently wrote a song. I had no idea that the [expletive] had a long history and that you had to come correct when you added to it.