Beyoncé‘s nephew Julez Smith has a close bond with his cousins — especially Rumi Carter.
“My baby cousin Rumi, I [saw] her not too long ago, before I went to Paris actually,” Smith, 20, said in an interview with Teen Vogue published on Thursday, February 13. “I was packing my bag and she was like, ‘Where are you going?’ I was like, ‘I’m going to Paris.’ She was like, ‘Oh, you’re going to work.’”
Julez, who is the son of Solange Knowles and her ex-husband, Daniel Smith, explained that this instance was the moment his younger cousins — which also includes Blue Ivy, 12 and Rumi’s twin Sir, both 7 — realized he had achieved grown-up status.
“That was my first time where any of my cousins or siblings was like, ‘Okay, yeah, he got a job now. My cousin’s going to work,’” he shared. “They’re asking me questions like, ‘You drive now?’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, I’m 20 now. I ain’t the same 15-year-old [from] when you were born.’”
The model confessed that having the younger members of his family “look up” to him “warms” his heart, especially when it’s been his inspiration since they were born.
“It’s been protector mode since everybody was born,” he said. “Just trying to be a positive role model as they get older. I think that’s been my main goal.”
Julez added that it’s been “cool” to know that he’s got some street cred with the little ones as he’s walked on multiple runways at fashion week.
“They know their cousin is a model now, so it’s like, all right, that might rub off on one of the kids,” he teased. “I’m really close to my family, so being the oldest is like, I got to set the tone, set the standard for them, make sure I’m in the same direction that I would want them to go.”
Despite coming from one of the most famous families, Julez gushed that his brood isn’t so different compared to everyone else.
“The environment I was raised in, I just go through life how I see it,” Smith told the outlet. “My mom is chill. Everybody in my family just vibes. So, outside of work, we be chilling. It’s real family time. We go to lunch, go to dinners, and watch movies. It’s a regular life.”
Much like Smith, Blue Ivy is also making a name for herself. She joined Beyoncé, 43, on her record-breaking Renaissance tour and had a role in Mufasa: The Lion King. Most recently, Blue performed alongside her mom during her half-time show at the Houston Texans and Baltimore Ravens NFL game on Christmas Day last year.
“Blue is fearless,” Beyoncé gushed of her daughter in the Renaissance: A Film By Beyoncé documentary. “What I love the most is she becomes fearless, and I can see the growth and the confidence and her trusting herself more and more.”
