Willow Smith On Avoiding Dark Path As A Child Star

Willow Smith revealed that she had to step away from some career opportunities as a child star. This was in a bid to avoid a “dark path of sadness and world-shattering fear.”

Per Page Six, the 21-year-old singer revealed this in an interview with SiriusXM‘s “Bevelations” on Friday. Willow Smith knew that she needed to avoid some career opportunities as a child star. She knew that she needed to be a normal kid before diving into her career so that she won’t be lost on a dark path.

In the interview, Willow explained how she saw the dark path she could’ve been on at a young age. She had to catch herself on time before her “coping mechanisms started too early.”

The songwriter noted that at age 12, she felt she had “touched a sadness” she wasn’t even aware existed. It was not a good place for her, and she felt scared because it wasn’t healthy for her.

Willow recalled how the feelings she had then were just wrong on many levels, she knew she was not supposed to be feeling like that at that age. She decided to stop and avoid some things even though they were to be beneficial for her so that she wouldn’t go into an even darker place.

Whenever Willow experiences fear now, it’s not as deep as the one she felt when she was younger. She is much older now and can handle her emotions, unlike when she was still a child and no one will understand how she felt.

Was Willow Smith’s Family Aware of Her Anxiety?

Willow’s struggles were dismissed by her mom, Jada Pinkett Smith, initially before she understood what her daughter was passing through. Willow admitted that she had to forgive her mom for not understanding her.

Jada explained on an April episode of the Facebook Watch show that she had a hard time understanding her daughter. She explained that “her lifestyle and how she was brought up was very different than mine.”

The Red Table Talk co-host has often been public about her mental health struggles. She even talks about it on the show she co-hosts with her mom, Jada Pinkett Smith, and grandma, Adrienne Banfield-Norris, while they interview guests.