Getting Emotional
The teary-eyed mother looked sadly at her daughter and realized just how much Will and her actions had ended up hurting Willow. Jada tried explaining the motivation behind these actions, “Your dad and I, we were like, ‘Oh man, she’ll be set up for life. This is her start.’”
But Willow said that shaving her hair was a direct consequence of the “upset” that she suffered from her pop career. She adds, “There’s a Nirvana lyric that says, ‘I shave my head, and then I’m not sad.’”
Willow's Rise
In what probably amounts to the greatest example that wealth and fame don’t equal happiness, Willow explained that her rise to fame, which happened when she was just ten years old, was actually one of the most nerve-wracking and depressing times in her life. What got Willow put on the spotlight was her viral 2010 single, “Whip My Hair”.
Despite the song gaining worldwide appeal and more than a hundred million views, Willow very much regrets that she was put in the spotlight at such a young age. She claims that it was a “really terrible experience.” the young girl added, “The values of the people that were around me should have been the opposite.”
Reaching for the Stars
While every parent wants to support their child’s dreams, sometimes when you’re as famous and successful as Will and Jada, it’s best to hold off on pushing your kids to “be all that they can be.”
With the Smith family's incredible fame and wealth, it was clear that Willow wouldn’t have had a problem achieving anything she ever wanted.
Film Debut
Willow wasn’t the only child in the Smith family that found themselves being pushed towards the spotlight at a very young age. Jaden, Willow’s older brother, first became widely known after he was cast in the role of Chris Gardner’s son, Christopher in Will Smith’s highly successful nonfiction drama film, The Pursuit of Happiness.
The movie was enormously successful and garnered widespread acclaim. This caused Jaden to instantly became a child celebrity, and he also felt that being pushed so early into fame caused various problems throughout his life. There was one film in particular though that Jaden felt really damaged him as a child.
First Lead Role
Jaden opened up about his traumatic experiences after appearing in the 2010’s martial arts film The Karate Kid. The young actor explained, “I went through the same thing that Willow went through with “Whip My Hair” with The Karate Kid. It was happening at the same time.” The film starred Jackie Chan and was effectively Jaden’s first lead role in a film.
While he had a key role in The Pursuit of Happiness back in 2006, it was a heartfelt film and his contribution was more of a supporting role. Now that he was the star of a popular film, this opened him up to all sorts of criticism and judgment that often come with so much attention.