Willow Smith opens up about being polyamorous and what it means to her
For Willow Smith, polyamory isn’t about having a lot of sex contrary to what some people may think.
In the recent episode of their show the Red Table Talk, Willow—together with her mother, Jada Pinkett-Smith, and grandmother, Adrienne Banfield-Norris or Gammy—opened up the conversation on why she prefers to be in a non-monogamous relationship.
The 20-year-old singer, who practices ethical non-monogamy, shared that polyamory allows her to go beyond the barriers of what society dictates a relationship should be.
In polyamory, an individual engages in multiple intimate relationships at the same time with open, honest, and consenting partners. The practice may still be considered taboo in much of society, but research has shown that polyamory may be more common than one thinks.
“I feel like the main foundation is the freedom to be able to create a relationship style that works for you and not just stepping into monogamy because that’s what everyone around you says is the right thing to do,” she said. “Doing research into polyamory, the main reason why divorces happen is infidelity.”
Willow also debunked the notion that polyamory is just centered on sex, as she was introduced to it in a nonsexual way.
She said matter-of-factly that she is the only polyamorous person in her group of friends and she has “the least sex out” out of all of them.
“Let’s say you haven’t always been that kind of person that wanted to have sex all the time. But your partner is. Are you gonna be the person to say, ‘Just because I don’t have these needs, you can’t have them either?’”
“That’s kind of one of the reasons why I actually was interested in poly because I was introduced to it through kind of a nonsexual lens.”
Willow, who said she only sees herself in a relationship with up to two partners at a time, also opened up on her stance on marriage, whose history “irks” her mainly because of how it has represented women over the years. She said she would consider marriage only if there is a deeper purpose to it.
“Let’s say me and my partner or partners want to help people and we need to put our finances together in order to make that vision happen… There has to be a purpose beyond ‘I think you’re cute’.”
Willow had to work on herself first before she could confidently settle in all the emotions that being in a non-monogamous relationship bring, including jealousy and insecurities within herself. She addressed all these issues before getting into relationships not just for herself but also for her partners.
“I’m not coming into it feeling like I’m at a lack,” she said. “Coming into it feeling fulfilled and feeling like I can actually handle this. I have the tools. I have the security within,” she explained.
Her mother Jada said she has no problems with Willow being polyamorous. “I think anything goes, as long as the intentions are clear—more to yourself than anything. I know that there’s a lot of beauty that sits outside the conventional boxes.”
In the same show in 2019, Willow opened up that she is attracted to both men and women, and she can see herself in a polyamorous relationship in the future.
“I love men and women equally, and so I would definitely want one man, one woman. I feel like I could be polyfidelitous with those two people,” she said.
Thumbnail and banner images from Willow Smith’s Instagram page
