Willow Smith Talks Dropping Out of ‘Annie,’ Finding Peace & More in V Magazine

Willow Smith by Karl Lagerfeld for V Magazine’s “The World According To Willow”

You may not expect to learn much from a 13-year-old, but Willow Smith provides several bites of food for thought in a new V Magazine feature titled, “The World According To Willow.”

Hailed as “Hollywood’s most imperial teen” by interviewer Steffie Nelson , the wise-beyond-years starlet sheds light on why she decided to drop out of the forthcoming Annie film — produced by her father Will Smith , how she finds peace, womanhood, and tons of other great stuff.

Accompanying the interview is a stunning Parisian photo shoot with cousin Skylar Downs by fashion icon Karl Lagerfeld .

Willow Smith and cousin Skylar Downs Karl Lagerfeld for V Magazine

Willow Smith by Karl Lagerfeld for V Magazine

Willow Smith by Karl Lagerfeld for V Magazine

Styled by Carlyne Cerf de Dudzeele , Willow was asked to bring a few of her own pieces to mix in with DSquared2 jeans, Tommy Hilfiger underwear, Louis Vuitton shoes, and jewelry by Givenchy , Chanel and Dior .

Her makeup and hair are done by Tom Pecheux for Estée Lauder and Medhi R’Guiba , respectively.

During her shoot she described Lagerfeld as “very, very friendly and open… I thought he was gonna be really mysterious, like peering over his glasses, evaluating. But he was just awesome. I don’t have words, because he’s such a huge icon.” Enjoy more photos from the shoot and interview excerpts below.

Willow Smith by Karl Lagerfeld for V Magazine

Why she decided not to star in Annie :

“I just wanted to chill, and be at home, and decompress, and just find out what I wanna do and where I stand on this planet, with the little tiny place we have.”

Willow Smith and cousin Skylar Downs Karl Lagerfeld for V Magazine

On her style choices:

“I can never tell what I’m gonna wear. I kind of just put on what feels right. Sometimes that’s Converse and a T-shirt, sometimes it’s Givenchy heels and leather pants.”

Willow Smith by Karl Lagerfeld for V Magazine

How she relaxes:

“I just wanna do things that make me feel good and not stressed… meditate and get the energy from the flowers.

“I just chill and open my eyes and think, just relaxing and being silent. Because the world is so loud.”

Willow Smith by Karl Lagerfeld for V Magazine

On listening to 70s all-girl band The Runaways:

“[Their music] just makes me feel so powerful, as a woman, just like, yes! I know who I am! Roarrr! Know what I mean?”

On her own music:

“I just feel like I want to do it different than the world’s ready for. It’s like a pearl—I’m reading that book right now. You put a piece of sand in it, which is the imagination. You close it over a bunch of years, making it awesome, and then Bam! It comes open. And I’m it! I’m the pearl.”

Share This!