Will Smith Discusses Inspiration Behind New Music in Chat With Russ

Will Smith has teamed up with Russ and his son Jaden for his latest single, and he recently sat down with Russ to discuss the creation of the song.

During their 7-minute conversation, Smith opened up about finding his unique voice with this track. “’Work of Art’ was the song where I found my voice,” he expressed to Russ. “That’s how I want to sound, that’s what I want to talk about. I had recorded probably 20 tracks before that, but they were all influenced by outdated ideas of who I thought I needed to be.”

Smith also shared what spurred this new direction in his music. “It was really the first time in my life since childhood that I got the shit kicked out of me,” he said, referring to the media backlash after his infamous Oscars incident. “I had a run of the gods. It was really the first time experiencing what it’s like to get stomped.”

Smith premiered the lead single of his upcoming project, tentatively titled *Dance in Your Darkest Moments*, during the BET Awards. Last week, he informed fans that his first album since 2005’s *Lost and Found* is now complete. In a conversation with *Black Film Allies*, Smith described this new project as his most intimate work to date. “Over the past year and a half, I’ve been in the studio,” he said. “I have a project that is the most personal and powerful music project I’ve ever done. The idea of the music is, ‘Dance in your darkest moments.’”

Source: Black Film Allies, BET