Willow Smith’s relationship with Kid Cudi started long before they were collaborators. In fact, she was a nine-year-old fan.
The 25-year-old musician joined Kid Cudi for the September 23 episode of his Big Bro with Kid Cudi podcast, where the longtime friends looked back on their history together while discussing music, creativity, Hollywood, and their upcoming animated film Slime.
© Big Bro with Kid Cudi podcastBut one detail from their conversation makes their friendship particularly sweet: When Willow first met Cudi as a child, she was such a fan that she had his lyrics written on her Converse sneakers.
More than 15 years later, the dynamic looks very different.
Willow isn't simply listening to Cudi's music anymore. She has become a prolific musician in her own right, collaborated with him, and developed the kind of artistic identity that made their Big Bro conversation feel less like an interview between an idol and a fan and more like two artists comparing notes.
Willow Smith First Met Kid Cudi When She Was 9
Willow and Cudi's connection goes back to her childhood. During the podcast, the pair reminisced about meeting during a studio session when Willow was nine years old. At the time, she reportedly had Cudi's lyrics written on her Converse.
© WireImageThat detail hits differently considering what happened next. Willow released her breakout single "Whip My Hair" in 2010, when she was still a child. Her career since then has been marked by repeated reinvention, moving through pop, R&B, rock, punk, and increasingly experimental forms of jazz and art pop.
Cudi, meanwhile, didn't simply remain one of the musicians Willow admired from afar.
The two eventually made music together.
Willow Smith and Kid Cudi Collaborated on "Rose Golden"
In 2016, Willow appeared on "Rose Golden," from Cudi's album Passion, Pain & Demon Slayin'. A decade later, they're apparently ready to revisit it.
During their Big Bro conversation, Willow and Cudi discussed "Rose Golden" and plans to finally perform the collaboration together live.
That makes their relationship one of the more interesting threads running through Willow's career. She went from being a child writing Cudi lyrics on her shoes to having her voice on one of his records and, potentially, sharing a stage with him to perform it.
And her musical ambitions have expanded considerably along the way.
Willow Smith's Music Has Changed Dramatically Since "Whip My Hair"
Willow's conversation with Cudi arrives during an especially prolific period in her career.
She released petal rock black in February 2026, an experimental project that pushed her further into instrumental performance and production. Willow spent roughly a year and a half working on the record and challenged herself to largely create it alone, playing instruments including guitar, piano, and drums.
© Big Bro with Kid Cudi podcastShe followed it in July with The Thread, her second album of 2026. The project reunited her with producer and longtime collaborator Chris Greatti and continued her exploration of spirituality, musicianship and connection.
Willow discussed learning instruments, producing her own music and trying to find what the podcast described as her most "authentic sense of expression." The pair also talked about creating from a truthful place instead of allowing outside expectations to dictate the work.
Willow Smith and Kid Cudi Are Working Together Again
Their creative relationship is also moving beyond music. Willow and Cudi are both involved in the upcoming animated project Slime, which they discussed during the episode.
Willow explained that part of the project's appeal is its anime influence and the opportunity to put Black and brown characters at the center of that kind of animated world. She also spoke enthusiastically about the freedom of animation and cited shows including Adventure Time and Steven Universe while discussing her love of the medium.
© Getty ImagesPerhaps the most interesting part of Willow's Big Bro appearance is the contrast between who she was when she first met Cudi and who she is sitting across from him today. At 25, Willow has spent most of her life making music publicly. Yet her recent work suggests she's still actively pushing against the easiest version of what a Willow Smith career could look like. "My biggest goal or dream would probably be to reach a state of embodied egolessness before I die," she said.
