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Willow Smith has responded to critics who affirm her success is the result of her famous family.

During an interview with Allure, the 23-year-old, who’s the daughter of Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, said she doesn’t think she fits the nepo baby mold.

I truly believe that my spirit is a strong spirit and that, even if my parents weren’t who they were, I would still be a weirdo and a crazy thinker,” Willow said.

The term nepo baby (short for nepotism baby) refers to the child of a famous person (or people) who follows their parent(s) into the creative industries and benefits from their fame or connections.

Image credits: willowsmith

Other celebrities with famous parents, like Zooey Deschanel and Dakota Johnson, have previously spoken out to reject the label.

Willow entered the industry at a young age, starring in the 2007 film I Am Legend alongside her father before appearing in Kit Kittredge: An American Girl the following year.

The California native launched her music career with her iconic single Whip My Hair, which peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2010 and went platinum in the US.

While she’s well aware that she’s been given the nepo baby tag on countless occasions, Willow says she uses the criticism as fuel to push herself further.

“I definitely think that a little bit of insecurity has driven me harder because people do think that the only reason I’m successful is because of my parents.

That has driven me to work really hard to try to prove them wrong. But nowadays, I don’t need to prove sh*t to anybody.”