Cape Town - Willow Smith has revealed that growing up in Hollywood with her famous parents, Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith was "absolutely terrible".
Though her family’s celebrity status granted her out-of-this-world opportunities, the 17-year-old told GirlGaze that it was ‘excruciatingly terrible’ growing up in the limelight.
“Growing up and trying to figure out your life while people feel like they have some sort of entitlement to know what’s going on is absolutely, excruciatingly terrible – and the only way to get over it, is to go into it,” says Willow.
“You can’t change your face. You can’t change your parents. You can’t change any of those things.”
Willow, who released her hit single Whip My Hair back in 2010, says that social media played a huge factor in worsening the experience of her childhood fame.
“So I feel like most kids like me end up going down a spiral of depression, and the world is sitting there looking at them through their phones, laughing and making jokes and making memes at the crippling effect that this lifestyle has on the psyche,” she says.
The teenager, who’s a singer and poet, says a person born into the spotlight has to either embrace their fame and make use of the opportunities or simply remove themselves from the public eye.
“When you’re born into it, there are two choices that you have, I’m either going to try to go into it completely and help from the inside or . . . no one’s going to know where I am . . . and I’m really going to take myself completely out of the eye of society. There’s really no in-between,” she says.
I’m really going to take myself completely out of the eye of society. There’s really no in-between,” she says.
Although her parent’s fame resulted in a whole lot of hardships for the singer, Willow revealed to Interview Magazine that she appreciates her parents for setting an incredible example for her and brother, Jayden Smith.
“Growing up, all I saw was my parents trying to be the best people they could be, and people coming to them for wisdom, coming to them for guidance, and them not putting themselves on a pedestal.
“But literally being face-to-face with these people and saying, ‘I’m no better than you, but the fact that you’re coming to me to reach some sort of enlightenment or to shine a light on something, that makes me feel love and gratitude for you,” she says.
Sources: foxnews.com, complex.com, nydailynews.com