Willow Smith releases surprise debut album

Willow Smith has become the latest star to bend the rules of the music industry and release an album without any press, promotion or fanfare.

Will Smith's daughter stepped back from the music industry to focus on other passions including ballet and modeling following the success of her first single, Whip My Hair, in 2011, which landed her a deal with rapper Jay Z's label Roc Nation, but now she's back.

Willow made Ardipithecus available to download online on Friday (11Dec15).

"Ardipithecus Ramidus is the scientific name of the first hominid bones found on earth," the singer, who wrote 14 of the 15 new tracks, explains in a statement to The Fader. "I wanted to name my musical compilation after it because, while I was making these songs, I was in such a transitional state. Digging deep in the soil of my heart and finding bits and pieces of my ancient self that tell stories, which end up being the lyrics to the songs.

"Ardipithecus is my first album in my entire career and it makes me feel so blessed to be able to share my evolution with the LightEaters as I continue excavating my inner worlds..."

Smith isn't the first to surprise fans and follows with an unpromoted album release - Beyonce and Miley Cyrus are among the other acts who have put out albums with little to no fanfare.

Miley announced the release of her latest album, Miley Cyrus and Her Dead Petz, as she closed out hosting duties at the MTV Video Music Awards at the end of August (15), telling fans they could stream it online for free.