Willow Smith has revealed a secret that even her mom, Jada Pinkett Smith, did not know: she used to cut herself.
The 17-year-old revealed her struggle with depression and self-mutilation in the past during an interview with Red Table Talk released on Monday, May 14. Her mother, Jada, was also on the show to talk about her own grief from losing one of her best friends Tupac Shakur.
Willow Smith's Acting And Music Career
The young singer/dancer/actress rose to fame when she was 7 years old, making her film debut with dad Will Smith in the movie I Am Legend. She appeared on Kit Kittredge: An American Girl alongside Abigail Breslin and Chris O'Donnell. Her acting creds include Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa, True Jackson, VP, and Netflix's Neo Yokio.
A few years later, Smith signed with Jay-Z's Roc Nation as a recording artist. She released her first single, "Whip My Hair," back in 2010. It entered the music charts and peaked at the number 11 spot on Billboard's Hot 100.
Her next hit was "21st Century Girl" which also made it into the chart months later.
Despite her famous parents, Willow's rise to fame was unprecedented. She appeared on television interviews, landed on the cover of magazines, and collected acting and music awards.
However, constantly being in the spotlight proved to be too much for the young artist.
Losing Sanity
The new episode of Red Table Talk on Facebook was focused on dealing with loss. When Jada asked her teen daughter about her greatest loss, Willow answered "sanity."
The young star recounted to her mom that her rapid rise to fame as a child star was overwhelming and it led her to question her life at such a young age.
"It was after that whole 'Whip My Hair' thing and I had just stopped doing singing lessons and I was kind of just in this gray area of, 'Who am I? Do I have a purpose? Is there anything I can do besides this?'" Willow said. "After the tour and the promotion and all of that, they wanted me to finish my album. I was like, I'm not gonna do that."
She admitted that, after her tour, she fell into a "black hole." Willow said that, at the time, she listened to a lot of music and started cutting herself.
Her mother, Jada, apparently did not know. The revelation took her by surprise and prompted her daughter to elaborate.
"I mean, you can't even see it but there's still a little something [on my wrist]," Willow added.
Watch the interview below.
Surviving Loss This week around the Red Table, Jada Pinkett Smith reveals the impact of the tragic death of her longtime best friend, Tupac Shakur. While Willow Smith shares a painful secret for the first time. Follow Red Table Talk for episodes and updates, only on Facebook Watch. Posted by Red Table Talk on Monday, May 14, 2018
This is not the first time that Willow opened up to growing up and being under public scrutiny. In an interview with the digital zine Girlgaze in November, she talked about what it was like having famous parents.
"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," she admitted (via People). "You can't change your face. You can't change your parents. You can't change any of those things."
This, she said, is probably why many young people who were in similar situations end up wrecking their lives and falling into a downward spiral. However, she does not blame her famous parents, especially because she saw Will and Jada do the best they can to be good people.
Willow is set to star in the upcoming television series Menencholy based on her original book proposal. Not many details about the project have been revealed as of writing but Carter Entertainment has signed up to oversee the production.
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