Willow Smith

"It's very, very, very overwhelming for a 9-year-old," admitted Willow Smith earlier this month in a radio interview with Ryan Seacrest. Then, somewhere between learning her multiplication tables and attending Milan Fashion Week, the fifth-grader found the time to become a pop sensation with her single "Whip My Hair." Jay-Z, who signed her with his label RocNation, compared Willow to a young Michael Jackson -- an apt association that's hopefully more blessing than curse.

Willow's parents are never far behind. Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith have morphed into a new species of Soccer Mom. Instead of cheering their mini-mes on from the sidelines, they're watching them sign major record deals.

"My mom and me are very strong individuals," explained Willow when Seacrest asked where all her confidence came from. "You can't be afraid to be yourself, and you can't let anyone tell you that that's wrong ... lots of people don't act like themselves, so they're not happy." Ryan called her "refreshing to be around," and I believe that's the biggest part of Willow's appeal.

Listening to the lyrics of "Whip My Hair," which the RocNation's Willow Smith Web site says is about "celebration of freedom, energy, expression and liberating yourself," you can't help smiling -- a social concession that everyone with an online degree in therapy claims black women should do more of: "Pay no attention to them haters 'cause we whip 'em off. And we ain't doing nothing wrong so don't tell me nothing. I'm just tryna have fun so keep the party jumping." It sounds like something a 9-year-old wrote for 29-year-olds to live through vicariously.

Jay-Z, who loved "Whip My Hair" before realizing its singer was in elementary school said: "I believe that you have to start somewhere, and when you have that sort of talent, and you have that sort of vision, there's no such thing as too young,"

Willow's charm is rooted in the fact that she looks to be a little woman-in-training, not a woman trapped in a little girl's body.

"Whip My Hair" is now impacting Urban.

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