Willow Smith and her new single 'Summer Fling'

I'm of two minds about Willow Smith's single and video Summer Fling.  There are two things here that we all have to aware of.  I'm not into the video but it's available on You Tube.

The real Willow Smith

No one knows. She is just a kid who also happens to be a child star. Surrounded by her family and probably chaperoned everywhere she goes by either her mother, dad or some adult. She is not a character portrayed in some music video - on one is.  She's being working and earning a wage since she was ten. In business time is money so she's probably very disciplined and focused at what she does.

However becoming 13 in less than three months she releases this teeny-young adult song Summer Fling.

The image and single

The single is a product - a performance and to be fair Willow does very well on the vocals - a bit like a Rihanna. Who knows maybe Rihanna turned down the track or it was the same producers who worked with Willow.  However given Willow is like her name -  tall, lean and cuts a boyish - this song seems inappropriate for her age. But then there was a huge uproar when Leanne Rimes was singing Blue at 13 years old. And we have  many kids doing adult and age inappropriate songs on shows like  X Factor or American Idol.

Summer Fling  sexualises Willow because when before it was just a kid having fun and expressing herself now she's talking about a fling and staring into the eyes of some dude. Also because Willow is tall for her age so it would be hard to find an actor/model of her age that tall (boys sprout during puberty but most pre-teen boys are short) therefore some young man was drafted in. So there was an imbalance and awkwardness in the video because this boy looked like a man with a kid.

In reality Willow goes on the video set - fully chaperoned by either her mother (you hear Jada Pinkett Smith saying at some point she'd put her career on hold) or some family member and does what the director wants her to. When it's finished she goes home.

Here parents - Will and Jada Pinkett Smith would have seen the video outline and story but it means nothing to them since they are actors.  It's just a part in video to promote Willow's song and music career.

However  when Will and Jada Pinkett Smith watch the finished product Summer Fling will point out Willow is going to blossom into a young woman and soon people will start to see her with different eyes. So at least they can prepare.

For now it's just product. Awkward but still product.