Is Will Smith Set To Release New Music After Studio Time With Kanye West?

Hollywood megastar Will Smith has once again teased the press about returning to music after a decade long break.

At a screening of his new film Focus this week, according to the Press Association, Smith told reporters he’d been in the studio Kanye West and he’s been discussing options with his son.

“I went into the studio with Kanye. I’m thinking about it. I’m exploring.

“I’m not sure what I’m going to do yet but I’m exploring. I’m in a creative ceiling. My son tells me I have to write out the things I don’t like. I can’t write and stop, I have to keep going and going and write them out. I’ve never worked like that before but I think I might give that a shot.”

The last time Smith, 46, released an album was in 2005, his fourth studio LP “Lost And Found,” having initially shot to the attention of most through rapping on television series The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air.

A string of hits followed in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

It has long seemed like that was all behind Smith. Demanding lead roles in a number of action movies have needed his whole focus for ten years, but now it seems music could be on the cards once again. After all, he’s now 46. How long does he want to continue running and jumping and shooting aliens and courting the affections of significantly younger leading ladies – as he does in Focus? Could music be the retirement plan?

You could still be waiting a while though. Back in 2013 the NME reported that Smith first confirmed he was working with Kanye West, after they were photographed together in a studio in Brazil. He went on record saying that he had been “messing around with Kanye,” not very expansively adding, “We went to the studio a couple times.” The photographs apparently told as much as Smith wanted to give.

It could even be that even for a man seemingly possessed of such natural charm, and oozing with confidence, and charisma, Smith’s confidence has taken a hit over recent movies. Other press conferences given in promoting ‘Focus’ have hinted at a personal crisis of sorts.

“For me, this film really marks a transition in my life and emotionally and in my career.”

With grown-up children, it could be that Smith is beginning to ponder his mortality and examine the catalogue of work behind him. Might Will Smith try adding to his cultural footprint with another shot at music, or would that risk being an embarrassing Dad? Surely impossible for a Dad as cool as him?

If Will Smith does go back for another serious foray into the world of music, he won’t be short of collaborators, or publicity.