An industry plant is defined by Wikipedia as “a pejorative used to describe musicians who ostensibly become popular through nepotism, inheritance, wealth, or their connections in the music industry rather than on their own merits”. In other words, if an artist has a foot in the door to the entertainment industry, they are often discounted regardless of the quality of the art itself. I believe the term is borderline obnoxious due to how much it diminishes the artistic achievement of those it is meant to demean. I believe this pseudo criticism has affected the careers of many current artists in both positive or negative ways. Artists such as Rebecca Black, Billie Eilish, and the artist I will be reviewing the work of here, Willow Smith, also known as Willow.
To address the elephant in the room, yes, Willow is the daughter of one of the most prominent entertainers in history, Will Smith. Willow was also shoved into the music industry at a young age with a song I (and many others admittedly) did not enjoy, “Whip My Hair”. These are highly invalid criticisms of Willow in my view and are non-starters to conversations on what she has been up to in the past five or even ten years and how she has evolved as an artist. Willow has been playing with and exploring different styles her whole career. Whether it be the vibey art pop of her self-titled album, or the alternative rock and metal on copingmechanism, Willow has genuinely been following her heart with the music she chooses to make. Not only that, she has also been honing the more common qualities of her albums. Qualities such as her angelic voice, her ear for atmospheric beauty, who she chooses to work with, and most of all, her genuine love for the craft.
All of this has culminated in her latest album, and the subject of this review, Empathogen. Willow, of course, changed her musical style and influences up, as she so often does. After copingmechanism I expected her to go full metal and shoegaze a la Deftones on her next project. This was what I wanted to a degree considering I believe her passion and harmonies would carry extremely well into something like that. I should have expected the unexpected, and that’s the best advice I can give any curious listener going into Empathogen. Willow tackles art pop again, yes, but she combines this with a variety of other styles, and creates a completely different feeling than on any of her other albums. On Empathogen, Willow not only proves that she is infinitely beyond Whip My Hair in terms of musicality, but also illustrates her own feelings and philosophies in such a compelling manner that I can only hope she is seen as the voice of a generation for years to come.
When I saw John Batiste was first on the feature list I was admittedly slightly worried. Thankfully his contributions are not all that noticeable bar from the admittedly entertaining intro where he makes a weird squawking noise and claims “I love everything”. Willow then comes in with some whispery (yet loud enough to keep the rhythm) vocal chants that she croons on top of “I wish for this river to carry me”, that river being “the river of grace”. The song sounds like a theatrical anxiety attack with the “ba ba ba ba” background chanting, the continued repeating of the word “breathe”, and the rhythm section that switches back and forth between ‘everything is fine’ and ‘my heart is pounding’. It’s subtle while remaining as relatable as Willow has always been.
This album thrives on being simple yet complex. The good news is that, even with that being the case, not a single song overstays its welcome. This isn’t to say the shorter tracks aren’t bursting at the seams with creativity like the rest of the album, quite the contrary. Ancient girl has a folky guitar melody along with Willow cryptically singing of an “ancient girl” in the forest. Not only does the name of the song completely fit with how cryptic and enchanted it sounds, but also when she emphasizes the ‘i’ in girl she uses an ominous groaning cadence that just sounds sinister and I love it. Another shorter track on this album shines without even saying anything. The song “no words 1&2” shows Willow’s creativity just using her voice as an instrument. That doesn’t stop her from playing a funky bass in part one that truly shows her love for Les Claypool and Primus. There’s also some saxophone action too, which is always nice. Part two is more atmospheric and even more centered around Willow’s voice. I love how it builds on the album’s beauty without even saying a word. I Know That Face is a bit more melancholic, with the more minor keyed bassline and Willow’s beautiful, but almost defeated and often breathy vocals. She sounds like she doesn’t want to speak up until her emotion can’t be hidden any longer. It is technically impressive while serving a purpose emotionally. This track makes me think about my own struggles with anxiety and people. Lines such as “light and dark is just a place called home” hit close to home especially with how Willow delivers them, overflowing with authentic heart.
While Willow is trying a plethora of new ideas on Empathogen, that does not mean she has forgotten her other musical endeavors. False Self has aggression and alternative tendencies that would feel right at home on copingmechanism, with Willow’s gritty delivery and the soaring vocal harmonies thrown in to emphasize an intense chorus. Said chorus feels like a more intense version of something from her self titled album; Airy art pop. That being said, this track also uses that influence and adds funk influence in the second verse. In many ways this song would fit in the 80s pop sphere, but it also has less overblown synth work, which is appreciated. Overall, False Self almost feels like Willow coming out of a chrysalis of her old music and is now soaring like a butterfly. It is a beautiful moment in an album of beautiful moments.
The track between i and she is a bit more obvious with the influence of Willow’s older work. This is essentially a more acoustic version of the kind of song you would hear on copingmechansim. It is driven by a punchy drum rhythm and a somewhat folky but fast guitar melody that begs for Willow to sing beautifully over it, which she does in spades. She asks why she even tries, and ponders her existence in the world. “It’s just me in this moment of the purest devotion” is a lyrical highlight for me. Willow truly has matured as a songwriter, yet she’s also stayed the same in many ways. She stays true to herself while she continues to grow.
No points against the album for this, but I am still mixed on the decision for Willow to release Big Feelings as a single. Not only is it the album’s closer, but it is one of the best tracks on the album. Part of me truly believes she should have saved this one for the release. With that said, the song is incredible. It starts with a muffled but groovy piano intro that is then continued as a huge drum lead comes in and clears the fog. Willow sings “I have such big feelings” and changes her cadence almost every word. It is absolutely impressive, but also so fun to sing along to. The piano and drum rhythms in the background are so jazzy, and this is even built on with actual brass instruments and spacey alien synths after the second verse. So much is thrown at this track yet it all falls perfectly into place. There is also a more twinkly, spacey bridge that leads into an explosive outro that combines everything the track had done into an incredible finish.
In a Rolling Stone press statement, Willow says that the track Big Feelings “has a darkness and complexity that reflects what we all experience in our own minds.” While I would agree this applies to Big Feelings, I would also argue it describes the entire album. Empathogen is not the darkest album I have heard, but it comes from a place of darkness and overcoming it. Willow loves music; that cannot be denied. Willow has also shown throughout most of her musical career that she loves the art of making music as much as the music itself, and this album is one of the biggest displays of that. She is also a very expressive individual and there is passion oozing from every corner of Empathogen, from the flawless and ever changing vocal delivery, to the plethora of creative musical directions she goes while using the same set of qualities to tackle each. It is focused yet eclectic, and the variety in approach alone is enough to make an album like this win me over. However, it’s the passion a relatable music lover like Willow adds to the mix that makes me feel this album is truly something special. Willow shows that you can be more than who people claim you are, and no matter your origins you can be your authentic self, and the right people will love what you create.
10/10
