Keke Palmer Details Early Music-Industry Challenges in "Big Boss" Short Film and Album

Keke Palmer has graced us with her latest project: a new album and an accompanying 41-minute film. The star released the project, called "Big Boss," on May 12, and it tells the story of Palmer's early years in a male-dominated music industry.

"It's a huge thing for me in more ways than one, directing and writing for the first time as well as actually being able to tell my story," she told HuffPost on the day of the project's release, adding that she "didn't budge on any aspect of putting this together. I really was fully sound and clear in my mind and what I wanted for this, and I followed through in a way that I never did before. I think it's easy to just get sidetracked and just give up. And this time, I didn't do that."

She also told the outlet that the project chronicles some challenging "stuff [that] happened when I was like 19, 20, 21, 22," and said that she's spent a lot of time healing since then. "I think a lot of it was like forgiving self [sic]. It's not like I did something for me to be ashamed of, but it's like self-betrayal. You don't realize how it affects you until after the fact," she said. "I think I had a lot of moments where I betrayed myself unknowingly, and the effects of this stuck with me. Coming to terms with a lot of that and being able to have compassion for myself is also what helped me to grow and move on."

Palmer officially announced "Big Boss" just weeks after giving birth on Feb. 25 to her son, Leodis Andrellton Jackson, with boyfriend Darius Jackson. Alongside a trailer from the project, Palmer wrote on Instagram, "'BIG BOSS' A musical narrative that chronicles my experience in the music industry. I can't wait for you guys to watch the film and hear the album." The visual features footage of Palmer over the years, including clips from her childhood and career in the entertainment industry.

"I grew up in a very spiritual home, went to church every Sunday. I was always in practice as a child, yet still curious of what the word actually meant. They always said the word is meant to be lived. I never knew why until I started living," Palmer says in a voice-over. "Overcoming this inner narrative that tells me no matter how far I come, I'm still not good enough. Being different is one thing, feeling lonely is another. We all have our hurdles, but this one, I'm done with. I don't need to be accepted by the cool kids or the elite. I just need to be accepted by me."

Palmer first teased the documentary and accompanying album in an interview with Vogue in July 2022, describing the record as "a collection of different vibes" that represent who she is as a woman coming into her own.

"Big Boss" comes just months after the launch of her new digital network, KeyTV. Up next, she'll also star in Amazon Studios' "Moxie" and "Super Toys" alongside Sacha Baron Cohen.