WILLOW Talks New Album 'empathogen,' Reflects On "Whip My Hair" & More | Billboard News
Summary
TLDRDans cet entretien passionnant, Willow Smith partage ses réflexions sur sa nouvelle album 'andthen', qui marque un tournant dans sa carrière musicale en tant qu'adulte. Elle discute de l'inspiration derrière le nom de l'album, lié à la médecine indienne et aux 'empathogens', et comment elle aspire à être une servante de l'amour à travers sa musique et son écriture. Elle aborde également son processus créatif, ses collaborations avec des artistes tels que St Vincent et John Batiste, ainsi que son livre 'Black Shield Maiden', qui révèle son amour pour les études esotériques et les mythologies oubliées.
Takeaways
- 🎤 Willow a sorti un sixième album solo intitulé 'andthen' qui reflète son désir d'inspirer l'empathie et de créer un espace affectueux.
- 🌱 L'album est influencé par les connaissances sur les médicaments autochtones et les molécules anciennes appelées empathogènes, symbolisant l'empathie.
- 🎶 Willow considère 'andthen' comme son premier album adulte, marquant une évolution dans sa vie musicale et personnelle.
- 🎵 Le son de l'album est une fusion de jazz, de funk et d'éléments de pop, avec une attention particulière aux harmonies et aux rythmes syncopés.
- 🤝 Willow a travaillé avec des artistes talentueux tels que St Vincent et John Batiste pour enrichir la production de l'album.
- 💡 L'artiste a appris à se fier à son intuition et à prendre des risques dans le processus de création, comme le montre l'anecdote sur la réécriture du refrain de 'Symptom of Life'.
- 🔍 Willow cherche à être une source d'inspiration pour les autres, en partageant son processus de croissance et d'apprentissage continu.
- 📚 En plus de la musique, Willow a écrit un livre intitulé 'Black Shield Maiden', qui combine des éléments de la mythologie africaine et scandinave.
- 👨👧 Willow souligne l'importance de la famille et des amis proches dans son processus de découverte et de création artistique.
- 🔗 L'album 'andthen' est perçu par Willow comme un moyen de se connecter avec les auditeurs et de les amener à s'explorer eux-mêmes.
- 🌐 Willow est consciente de l'impact du média social et de la plateforme TikTok sur la diffusion de la musique, même si elle n'a pas expérimenté cela personnellement.
Q & A
Qui est l'invitée interviewée dans la vidéo?
-L'invitée interviewée est Willow.
Quel est le titre du nouvel album de Willow?
-Le titre du nouvel album de Willow est 'Empathogens'.
Quel âge a Willow?
-Willow a 23 ans.
Quelle est l'inspiration derrière le nom de l'album 'Empathogens'?
-L'inspiration vient de l'apprentissage de Willow sur la médecine des plantes indigènes, appelées empathogènes, qui créent de l'empathie lorsqu'on les ingère.
Comment Willow décrit-elle le son de son nouvel album?
-Willow décrit le son de son album comme ayant beaucoup d'éléments de funk et de jazz, et elle le qualifie de 'baby fusion'.
Comment Willow se sent-elle par rapport à la production de son album?
-Willow est très impliquée dans la production de son album et accorde beaucoup d'importance à la sélection de ses collaborateurs.
Quels artistes ont collaboré avec Willow sur cet album?
-Les artistes St Vincent et John Batiste ont collaboré avec Willow sur cet album.
Quelle chanson a été utilisée pour lancer l'ère de cet album et pourquoi?
-La chanson 'Alone' a été utilisée pour lancer l'ère de cet album car elle sert de pont entre le son de cet album et les travaux précédents de Willow.
Quelle est la différence lyrique entre l'album 'Coping Mechanism' et le nouvel album?
-L'album 'Coping Mechanism' avait une énergie lyrique tournée vers l'extérieur, tandis que le nouvel album est plus introspectif, axé sur les sentiments intérieurs de Willow.
Quel est l'objectif de Willow avec sa musique et son album?
-L'objectif de Willow est de s'engager sur un chemin de perfectionnement musical et de compassion, et d'être un serviteur de l'amour inconditionnel à travers sa musique.
Outlines
😀 Interview avec Willow - Nouvel album et inspiration
Willow parle de son enthousiasme pour son nouvel album, expliquant qu'elle a trouvé l'inspiration dans les médecines traditionnelles des plantes indigènes, appelées empathogènes. Elle partage son souhait de créer de l'empathie et d'influencer positivement les espaces qu'elle occupe. Elle décrit son album comme étant son premier projet véritablement mature, mêlant des éléments de funk et de jazz pour créer un son unique qu'elle appelle 'baby fusion'.
🎤 Collaboration et processus de production de Willow
Willow discute des collaborateurs de son nouvel album, notamment St Vincent et John Batiste, en soulignant l'importance de travailler avec des artistes qui l'inspirent et la poussent à évoluer. Elle décrit son processus de production comme étant très sélectif, préférant recommencer plutôt que de se contenter d'un résultat insatisfaisant. Elle évoque également ses réflexions sur l'équilibre entre la musique et l'aspect visuel de ses projets.
🎶 Évolution musicale et introspection de Willow
Willow parle de son parcours musical, depuis son célèbre titre 'Whip My Hair' jusqu'à aujourd'hui. Elle évoque les défis et les leçons qu'elle a tirés en grandissant dans l'industrie de la musique, soulignant que son message fondamental de s'exprimer librement n'a pas changé. Elle réfléchit sur l'impact des réseaux sociaux sur la musique et partage des anecdotes sur ses collaborations avec sa famille, en particulier avec son frère Jaden.
📚 Willow, autrice - Exploration historique et personnelle
Willow discute de son livre 'Black Shield Maiden', un projet de six ans sur une Viking africaine. Elle explique comment sa passion pour l'anthropologie et l'histoire l'a conduite à explorer des thèmes historiques peu abordés, notamment la mythologie ouest-africaine. Elle souligne l'importance de la recherche et des ressources familiales dans l'écriture de son livre, ainsi que la collaboration avec Jess Hendel pour en faire un ouvrage complet.
❤️ Servir l'amour à travers la musique et l'écriture
Willow conclut en parlant de sa mission personnelle de servir l'amour inconditionnel dans tout ce qu'elle fait. Elle explique que son album, son livre et même ses interviews sont des moyens pour elle d'être une servante de l'amour. Elle exprime sa gratitude pour les opportunités qu'elle a eues et sa détermination à continuer à créer de l'art qui inspire et connecte les gens.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Empathy
💡Funk
💡Jazz
💡Syncopation
💡Chorus
💡Anthems
💡Indigenous Plant Medicine
💡Aesthetic
💡Coping Mechanism
💡Viral
💡Personal Growth
💡Black Shield Maiden
Highlights
Willow discusses the significance of learning from experiences and the importance of being present in the moment.
Willow introduces herself and expresses her excitement about her new album, emphasizing the creative process behind it.
The album's title, 'Empathogen,' is inspired by indigenous plant medicine and its ability to create empathy.
Willow describes 'Empathogen' as her first grown-up album, reflecting her growth and self-discovery as an artist.
The album features elements of funk, jazz, and 'baby fusion,' showcasing Willow's diverse musical influences.
Willow emphasizes the importance of working with the right collaborators, mentioning St. Vincent and John Batist as key contributors.
Willow shares her excitement about the album's singles, particularly 'Alone,' which bridges her past work with her current sound.
Willow discusses the personal and vulnerable nature of her songwriting on the album, focusing on self-reflection.
Willow describes the production process and her dedication to creating authentic and meaningful music.
Willow highlights her appreciation for working with family and close friends, mentioning her brother Jaden as a collaborator.
Willow reflects on her viral moment with the song 'Meet Me at Our Spot,' emphasizing the authenticity of creating music with her best friend.
Willow talks about her book 'Black Shield Maiden,' a story about an African Viking, and her passion for unique and esoteric topics.
Willow emphasizes the importance of understanding and honoring her heritage and history in her creative projects.
Willow expresses her desire to be a servant of love in all aspects of her life, including music, writing, and personal interactions.
Willow reflects on her journey from her early music career with 'Whip My Hair' to her current work, emphasizing self-expression and authenticity.
Transcripts
and there's something to learn from that
you know what I'm saying and uh it's
beautiful sometimes you don't got to
think about it you just got to put it
out
there I'm going to remember that she's
looking at her te I'm going to remember
that hey I'm Willow and this is
billboard
[Music]
news hey it's Tetris with billboard news
hanging out with someone who doesn't
really need an introduction but hi
Willow how are you I'm so good I'm so
happy to be
here no
the no use all it falls away in I'm so
excited about your new album it's out
this week you nervous oh my goodness I
don't think I've ever been more excited
for for a project to come out um I'm
just I can't wait for people to hear it
and the title I mean love that andthen
so tell me the inspiration why you
wanted to name the album that well you
know during the time that you know these
songs were kind of coming into being and
I was creating this concept for the
album I was learning a lot about
indigenous plant medicine another you
know name for these molecular compounds
these ancient molecular compounds are
called
empathogens empathy and pathogens
pathogens that create empathy when you
ingest them and yeah I just I just
thought that was a really
beautiful uh explanation of you know
kind of how I want to walk in the world
how I want to affect the space when I
enter the space and I just thought that
was a really cool
[Music]
name and in pathogen is your sixth solo
album first of all how old are you I'm
23 I got to get my life together
23 six albums out how is this project
going to be different from everything
else you've done wow I truly believe
that this album is my first grownup
album okay okay obviously I'm still you
know young but I feel like I started
making music so young that you always
try to find yourself you know what I'm
saying like there's never a moment in
your life where you're like this is me
you know what I'm saying but there is a
moment in your life where you realize
what matters to you and you realize the
path that no matter what
changes the path that you're always
going to be on and for me that path is
sharpening my musicianship sharpening
you know my compassion and those two go
hand in hand and I feel like this album
is the first album where like I'm on the
same page with myself nice yeah and now
that you found yourself how do you feel
like you would describe the sound of the
album there's a lot of funk elements a
lot of jazz elements I would call it
Fusion but you know some of the fusion
that I listen to can be extremely
complicated and you know expanding
expanding on so many different Horizons
I would say this is a little bit of a
baby Fusion oh baby Fusion you know
little baby Fusion Energy but definitely
a lot of jazz definitely a lot of funk
oddly enough some pretty big choruses I
wasn't expecting that oh okay some
anthems in there yeah totally but kind
of mixed with this um a little bit more
syncopated off timing kind of vibe that
that I'm bringing to to some of these
songs and the way you describe the album
I can already tell you're very very
involved in production I'm sure so tell
me about the production process when
you're Crea it really matters to me who
I work with
and sometimes you'll be in a room with
someone and you'll be working on
something for three a half hours and
this has happened to me this actually
happened to me with symptom of life we
were working on the chorus for hours and
in the middle of it I was just like we
have to scrap this bro like everybody
looking at you like uh like we've
literally been working on this for like
the whole day and you just want to scrap
this and I'm like yeah but then that's
where that beautiful chorus comes from
with the with those Bas intervals and
how it slides up and yeah that would
have never happened if I would have just
been like oh well we spent so long on
this let me just let's just go with it
you had to start fresh 100% and you're
talking about like you're very careful
about who you pick so also some cool
collaborators on this album St Vincent
John ba why did you pick those artists
first with St Vincent and John batist
they both just have such Brilliant Minds
yes and personally I feel like this new
album and my just me coming into myself
even more like these are the kind of
people that I want to have around me
these are the kind of people that
inspire me these are the kind of people
that stretch me to become
not only the musician that I've always
wanted to be but the person that I've
always wanted to be the album's out this
weekend you know people will know who
you are as a musician now who's somebody
you would want to hear the project and
be like Oh Willow's dope in that kind of
that dream collaborator oh my goodness
um nay palm of Hiatus coyote David long
Str of the Dirty Projectors I mean I
could go on forever okay but but you
know who knows hopefully hopefully one
day but this is a beautiful start to a a
journey for the that's going to go for
the rest of my life of just honoring the
craft and honoring the lineage that I'm
a part of so I'm I couldn't be more
grateful and now let's talk about the
singles so let's talk about alone the
vocals amazing on
[Music]
[Laughter]
alone tell me why that was the song you
wanted to kick this era off with wow
um so alone has a lot of different
different elements to it it has that 54
Groove for a little bit which is which
is a little bit off-kilter it's not
something that you hear very often but
then it breaks down into this like Rocky
section and you're so good in that
pocket by the way thank you thank you so
much I wanted to kind of create a bridge
between what this album is going to
sound like and what I've done in the
past and you know doing a kind of a
different uh odd time signature and
using my vocals in a different way um
but also giving that big kind of guitar
big guitar section um belting section I
felt like it was just a really nice
bridge I feel like it was a good bridge
and that's musically but also lyrically
I mean the song is very vulnerable so
how was it to like write from like a
personal space I had a lot of practice
doing that on coping mechanism I feel
like a loan is different from coping
mechanism because coping mechanism was
very outward like lyrically the the
energy was very like outward but alone
felt very inward like I wasn't looking
at the world and critiquing it you know
what I'm saying and being like this is
what I don't like and you did that to me
and it's more about like damn like how
do I feel when no one's around what are
the things that you know what are the
things that scare me what are the things
that bring me joy and yeah it was that
song is really special to me what I
think I love talking to you about is
that you sound like you're still a
student like you're always like anxious
to learn of course I definitely feel
like the day that I die will be another
big learning big Learning lesson
everything find something out you know
what I'm saying we're finding things out
every day of our life we never arrive
that's why this album for me doesn't
feel like I'm arriving somewhere it
feels like I'm settling
into an a path that I've always wanted
to find and I always knew was there but
now I'm just trusting that like oh no
this is the path like cool like there's
no question in my mind of like I'm just
going to be walking this path forever
yes and let's talk about the visuals for
alone how was it to be in the creative
process of that man you know I'm always
so focused on the music and I'm always
so focused on the lyrics and everything
that that that goes into making a
composition and so sometimes Other
Things Fall by the wayside that's so
interesting that you say that because
obviously I think you're aesthetic and
your look is like so interesting that I
would think like that's like top tier in
where your in your first now it's going
to it's about to be I feel like this I I
did a really good job uh with this
specific roll out and just the art that
you know surrounds the music but in the
past I feel like I definitely could have
been a little bit more focused on that
and not so obsessed with like just the
music but the music is the thing you
know what I'm saying but yeah this this
process these visuals it was a way more
of like okay let me really hunker down
and be obsessed with this for a little
bit um and I'm glad and I'm going to
continue doing that because it really
matters and symptom of Life tell me why
that was the next one we had that 54
Groove in alone and you know still gave
you big guitars big vocals um but for
symptom of life we're kind of going
deeper into this like now the song is in
seven you know what I'm saying now we're
in a now we're in a little bit of a
weirder time signature
now we're bringing in Pian it's just
kind of
easing myself and also others into this
like just a little bit of a new Vibe you
know what I'm saying even though I
personally feel like if you listen to
coping mechanism and listen to this
album you'll see similarities and you'll
see like ah like specific rhythms and
specific chord changes like it doesn't
matter what genre you're playing music
is music and I feel like that connection
is strong so people have heard alone in
symptom of life when you think about the
album as a whole do you feel like they
properly kind of take you in the
direction or what else can people expect
I think people can definitely expect to
be surprised like how coping mechanism
kind
of brought you inward to like express
yourself this way I feel like this album
is going to bring you inward so that you
can like read really just be more
present with every single moment I feel
like with coping mechanism it was about
escaping right the whole album I mean
it's called coping mechanism you know
what I'm saying it's like I'm trying to
escape this emotion I'm trying to escape
this and this album is really about just
being where you are and I hope that
people can feel that I feel like I'm
learning so much from you in this
conversation I'm like girl preach to me
girl tell me things um let's rewind a
little bit so let's go 10 years ago to
whip my hair
I don't remember anything from when I
was 10 so do you even remember that time
and kind of going through all of it I do
I really really do I really do there
were a lot of fun things about it now
now as an adult I'm like I feel like
when I was a teenager I was very like h
no like trauma like I'm feeling sus and
there were things that hurt me and
things I don't understand and now I'm
like okay yeah obviously there are
things that hurt you and things that you
don't understand but overall
my message hasn't really changed like
with my hair is like be yourself live
out loud don't care what anybody thinks
express yourself that hasn't really
changed oh I love that so I really feel
like with my hair is just a foundation
for everything that has come later you
know what I'm saying do you remember
like filming the video it was so fun it
was it was crazy I remember the specific
kind of paint that we had it might have
been like a weird latex based paint or
whatever but after the shoot I had it
all over my body bro and I had to peel
that [ __ ] off of me dude it wasn't the
kind of it wasn't the kind of thing that
was like you you wipe it off it was like
I don't know it was it it was like a I
don't know bro it was strange it was
weird still to this day I'm like I have
no idea I need to try to find out what
kind of paint that was it was a lot of
fun and I am so grateful I would never
take it back now thinking about now do
you are you grateful that kind of your
start your introduction to the world as
you would
was musically based mhm yeah I
mean I've tried to run away from it I've
tried to be like no I'm not a musici I'm
going to do something else and then then
guess what it just keeps on coming back
the door and so that's how you know like
something is really important to you if
it causes you pain and discomfort and
you're
still wanting to do it you know that's
like okay like I trust that inner drive
you know even through the discomfort
you're like I got to stick with this how
do you feel like it would have been
different releasing music at 10 now that
there's Tik Tok now that there's social
media like I feel like Whip my hair
would have went in a whole different
direction if that was the round yeah I
it yeah I I honestly can't
even really imagine
it um but it would probably be I mean
lit it would probably be lit I agree I I
I thinking about it is actually kind of
interesting you know you did have
another viral Moment Like jump off real
big meet me at our spot so tell me about
like did that kind of come out of
nowhere for you and how amazing was it
to be to get all that great feedback I
never would have guessed I never would
have guessed that people would have
liked that song so much and that me it
hit girl it really hit people really
felt it and I feel like the reason why
people really felt it was because the
song was written by two best friends
talking about some [ __ ] that they do
every day let alone when one person is
being honest but when two people are
being honest you know what I'm saying
that's like how can you not feel that I
feel like I was confused about it before
cuz I put a lot of thought into
compositions and chord progressions and
that song was just a fun thing to do
randomly wow and there's something to
learn from that you know what I'm saying
and uh yeah it's it's it's beautiful
sometimes you don't got to think about
it you just got to put it out
there I'm going to remember that she's
looking at her te I'm going to remember
that and then you talk about writing a
song with your best friend what about
writing with your family you Jaden's a
musician you guys have worked together
so how was it to kind of share
influences with him I just love him so
much and being able to
share a purpose with someone so close to
you that shares your blood and your
veins like that there's there's nothing
better there's really there's really
nothing better than that to be able
to act on our purpose together like
that's what life is about you know I'm
hoping we have more music in the future
I'm hoping that's what I was going to
ask guys worked together on this last
project so there's got to be something
there there's things in the works
there's things there's things bubbling
up I'll let him Express more about that
what's your Discovery process like like
how do you feel like you found artists
was it family playing stuff around the
house you kind of did your own digging
my mom 100% my mom she would always just
be like you're going to like this just
take a listen to that she knew you like
little dragon gold frap you know all of
that with female musician who were so
unique and eclectic My First Foundation
of music that I listened to was all from
my mom when I stopped making music I I
was in a ballet company for a little bit
and then the only thing I was listening
to was classical music for like two or
three years wow yeah it was it was
interesting really really cool and how
do you feel like all of those like
people that have inspired you have
shaped you to who you are today I feel
like the
courage of all of the musicians who have
come before me who have done something
that was different or that people didn't
expect or that people thought was weird
at first or that people like shunned
shunned them for I feel like that like
Soul spark inside or that flame that's
that thing that just carries on you know
that's the real inspiration it doesn't
matter what the genre is it doesn't
matter if they're a man or a woman or
whatever it's that Soul spark that like
flame inside of them that makes you go
oh my God like like I could ignite that
inside of me I could help people ignite
that inside of themselves like I want to
you know what I'm saying and so that for
me is is the most important intriguing
part of it all and then of course we're
talking about your beautiful music but
we have other things to talk about as
well you wrote a book I did write a book
so talk to me about Black Shield Maiden
out May 7th yeah yeah I wrote a book 60
years of the making I'm just a nerd like
I I just love getting into the most
random
esoteric off-kilter
things a story about an African Viking
is just that who would ever expect that
well now I want to know when you
approach like your friends or your
family like what do they think when
Willow comes up to them he like guess
what I'm writing this book and this is
what it's about they're like sounds
about right they're like last week you
were talking about you were talking
about anthropology and going to school
to be an anthropologist it makes sense
that you would be talking about this I
think my friends and my family just they
just know me they just know all my weird
quirks and all the things that I you
know love to read about and pontificate
about randomly so I don't think it was a
huge surprise and I mean you're touching
on a lot of topics here so Scandinavian
African history why were those things
that you wanted to tap on in this book
it's so interesting while I was in the
process of writing the book I realized I
need to do some research about West
African mythology I need to do some
research about you know during the
specific time period And like I hadn't
learned about that you don't learn about
that in school you know what I'm saying
so I was going around to all of these
different all of these different
bookstores trying to find books on this
specific time period in West Africa and
I really just I I I had a hard time
finding finding literature that's crazy
to me and and so I went to my parents
and they were like yo we have a library
and we have a bunch of books on this wow
and I was like score I've been going
around everywhere trying to find and now
I'm in my home and this is where I could
have found it all along so that was a
deep lesson to me and I'm so grateful to
my parents because I would have been
like I don't have the information to
write this book and also big shout out
to to my beautiful friend Jess hendel
who has an amazing historical mind and
creative mind and you know us coming
together really made this book like
exactly what it needed to be and you
talk about your growth we've spoken
about that a lot today when people have
like figured out they know who you are
know who your family are they kind of
already have these pre-conceived Notions
who would you say is Willow how would
you want to describe yourself
H I would say
Willow
is at at her Highest Potential what she
could be at her Highest Potential is a
very pure
reflection of the unconditional love
that holds everything together I am
every day working I just want to be a
servant of love in everything that I do
and I definitely think that this album
is me trying to be a servant of Love
through music and this book is me trying
to be a servant of Love through writing
and this this interview is me trying to
be a servant of Love through talking to
you it all kind of connects servant of
Love unconditional love that's so
beautiful thanks so much for hanging out
today Willow thanks thank you so much
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