
Entertainment
Share
Published 14:45 13 Jun 2025 BST
Updated 11:49 5 Aug 2025 BST

Willow Smith is one of the latest celebrities to weigh-in on the current 'nepo baby' discourse that is swirling around Hollywood, and insists that her success has nothing to do with who her parents are.
The Wait A Minute singer made her acting debut at 7-years-old, appearing in her father's blockbuster I Am Legend, and had her first hit single at ten with Whip My Hair.
Since then, Willow has released 6 studio albums.
During the cover shoot for American women's magazine Allure, ahead of the release of her album Empathogen earlier this year, Willow opened up about how she doesn't believe she quite fits the description of a nepo baby.
"I definitely think that a little bit of insecurity has driven me harder because people do think that the only reason I’m successful is because of my parents," she admitted.
"That has driven me to work really hard to try to prove them wrong. But nowadays, I don’t need to prove s**t to anybody.
"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 added that being a Black woman means the term 'nepo baby' doesn't quite apply to her, regardless of who her parents are.
"Being Black in America, even with privilege, which I’m never going to deny that I have, you’re still Black," she said.
"And I love being Black. People would look at me and [say], 'Okay, well, her parents are this and this and that, but she still is like me. She still has brown skin'."
"And we all know that that doesn’t exempt you from anything, and that’s a place of connection." Smith stated.
Willow isn't the only product of Will and Jada that has made it as an artist in their own right. Her older brother Jaden rose to fame with his portrayal of Dre Parker in the 2010 Karate Kid remake alongside Jackie Chan. Despite being 11-years-old when making that film, it wasn't his big screen debut.
Jaden was just eight years old when he played his Dad's on-screen son in The Pursuit of Happyness, released in 2006.
Since then, he has gone on to forge a successful rap career, as well as running his own clothing line, MSFTSrep.
Explore more on these topics:


The JOE Film Club Quiz: Week 100
Entertainment

The JOE Film Club Quiz: Week 99
Entertainment

The JOE Film Club Quiz: Week 98
Entertainment
The JOE Film Club Quiz: Week 99

Entertainment
The JOE Film Club Quiz: Week 99
Entertainment
The JOE Film Club Quiz: Week 98
Entertainment
Celebrity Traitors series 2 full line-up confirmed
Entertainment
The JOE Film Club Quiz: Week 96
Entertainment
The JOE Film Club Quiz: Week 100
Movie fans, assemble! Welcome to the 100th entry in The JOE Film Club Quiz. This week, we are presenting players with stills from 10 movies. They then must select which film the images are from based on three options. Have what it takes? Play below and find out. Name the movie Independence Day Men in […]
Entertainment
6 days ago
The JOE Film Club Quiz: Week 99
Movie fans, assemble! Welcome to the 99th entry in The JOE Film Club Quiz. This week, we are presenting players with stills from 10 movies. They then must select which film the images are from based on three options. Have what it takes? Play below and find out. Name the movie Network All the President's […]
Entertainment
1 week ago
Entertainment
All the symptoms of shingles as Ed Sheeran reveals diagnosis
Entertainment