Kanye West was on a first class flight from Dubai to Los Angeles over the weekend and guess who he ran into? Will Smith. The two A-list supertars were on the way back to the states.
According to HotNewHipHop, Will Smith spoke at the Red Sea International Film Festival in Saudi Arabia. Ye is believed to have been putting the finishing touches on his album.
The two posed for an image together with an unidentified woman
Will Smith aka “The Fresh Prince”, has publicly acknowledged that he was attempting to sound like Rakim on his 1991 smash hit “Summertime” when both of the legends attended CBS’ Grammy Salute to 50 Years of Hip-Hop. While backstage, Smith told the R that he was purposely trying to mimic his style for the classic summer tune.
“I was absolutely trying to sound like you on ‘Summertime,’” Will admitted, garnering a grin from the 55-year-old living legend. He went on, “Because I had been screaming all night, and I couldn’t get my happy-go-lucky high voice. And [producer] Hula just said, ‘Yo, just gimme that Rakim s***.’”
This is great — Will Smith finally tells Rakim he was trying to sound like him on “Summertime”
For years the urban legend was that Rakim ghostwrote the song for Will, when in fact, it was written by the legendary MC Juice & recorded at the old Jive Records studios in Chicago pic.twitter.com/0hCQ3c3axh
Rakim said that “Summertime” was a track that was supposed to be included on their debut album, but timing kept the song off of the Eric B. and Rakim’s epic LP Paid In Full.
The clip of the Rakim/Will Smith interaction can also be seen on a seven-minute, behind-the-scenes special of the CBS presentation on YouTube.
Will Smith to the Grammy’s stage, rocking his Philadelphia Phillies jersey, reuniting with DJ Jazzy Jeff for a medley of their classics. Questlove introduced the two.
“In a year and a night full of hip-hop moments, this is a big one,” says Questlove. “I grew up idolizing these two from my hometown of Illadelpho. They were the first artist to ever receive a Grammy award for hip-hop. Back then, they weren’t invited to perform or accept their award on camera, which led to the hip-hop community sitting things out that year. But thankfully, a year later, their hip-hop invitation did show up and they did become the first hip-hop group to ever perform at the Grammy Awards. And tonight, as a fan, as a friend, from way back in Philly, let’s welcome to the Grammy stage, the incomparable, the amazing, the legendary, DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince!”
The duo performed “Brand New Funk,” “Gettin Jiggy With It,” “Miami,” “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” theme song, and “Summertime.”
The Will Smith allegations just keep on rolling in the media, most of which surfaced from his former friend Brother Bilaal’s interview with blogger Tasha K. Moreover, this resulted in the bombshell claim that Bilaal saw Will and Duane Martin having intercourse, which Jada Pinkett Smith and her husband might sue for regarding defamatory claims. However, there’s another scandalous and unfounded thing he spoke on that has actually been part of the gossip train for a while. This relates to Marc Anthony, who was with Jennifer Lopez at the time, cheating on her with Jada, who remains with the actor to this day.
Furthermore, this is another installment in a long-running series around conversations around the Smiths’ alleged or proven infidelity. Back to the story, though: Brother Bill claims that Jada Pinkett Smith and Marc Anthony had a romantic relationship on the set of the show Hawthorne. While Will was apparently fine with this according to Brother Bilaal, even as gossip outlets reported on it, the “final straw” was when he allegedly caught his wife and the singer having intercourse on their couch. This, Brother Bilaal says, “devastated” Will and led him into suicidal thoughts, whereas he also claimed that this prompted Anthony’s divorce from Jennifer Lopez.
Of course, this is all baseless, speculative, and inflammatory gossip from one man, so take this with a huge grain of salt. If anything, it’s ironic how this interview and other allegations actually put Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith in the same camp. Before, during the actress’ promo run for her memoir Worthy, she solely spoke from her perspective on how rocky their relationship was. Now, though, it seems like they’re both committed to defending each other and fighting against what they call lies and blatant attacks.
Meanwhile, all this drama is taking place as the Fresh Prince remains pretty tight-lipped, other than at least two instances addressing it. One was a video of him sleeping through a bumpy boat ride, indicating that he’s unfazed by the chaos. Another was an email to The New York Times that supported the Baltimore native on her journey and opened up to her emotional nuances. We’ll see if or when he decides to make a more complete return to the public eye. Until then, log back into HNHH for the latest news and updates on Will and Jada Pinkett Smith.
Earlier this week, Will Smith‘s alleged former assistant claimed that he saw the Oscar winner and actor Duane Martin, who appeared in one episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, having sex in a dressing room. The “absolutely ridiculous” allegation was made on the Unwine With Tasha K podcast hosted by Tasha K, who earlier this year filed for bankruptcy after Cardi B won a nearly $4 million defamation verdict against her (a judge upheld the decision). The “WAP” rapper sounded like she was ready to forgive her, but not anymore.
“I don’t like how I got fooled a couple of weeks ago… some people just never change,” Cardi D said on Instagram Live on Wednesday night, seemingly referencing Tasha K. Vibe reports that she then defended Will Smith.
“I don’t like what people be doing to Will Smith. I be feeling like Will Smith is very unproblematic and I feel like he has a nice heart, and that’s the thing. I found out that Will Smith is a Libra… Libras, we be getting tried, we be getting tried, and then when we outburst, we outburst so f*cking heavy, that we become the ones in the wrong.”
Cardi D continued, “I don’t like that some people never f*cking change. I’m so tired of people picking on that man, dead ass. Your job as a journalist, you should be able to detect whether somebody is bullsh*tting or not. Because anybody can say something about anybody. Look what happened to me in 2018 when a b*tch… I didn’t even know her f*cking name was saying that she know me… Anybody can say a f*cking fake ass story about you and people gonna f*cking fake ass believe it. So it should be your job to detect whether something is a lie or not.”
You can watch the Instagram Live below.
“I don’t like what people be doing to Will Smith.
“I be feeling like Will Smith is very unproblematic and he got a nice heart.” – Cardi B pic.twitter.com/EVEMzneR2a
Will Smith is again in the headlines as a former friend and assistant is claiming the star had a sexual relationship with fellow actor Duane Martin.
Brother Bilaal, a former friend and assistant of Smith, spoke to Tasha K. and stated he walked into a dressing room where he saw Smith on the receiving end of oral sex with Martin.
“I opened the door to Duane’s dressing room and that’s when I see Duane having anal sex with Will,” Bilaal said. “There was a couch and Will was bent over the couch and Duane was standing up killing him, murdering him. It was murder in there.”
DJ Jazzy Jeff and Will Smith, known for their iconic hip-hop duo in the late 1980s and their memorable partnership on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, are set to reunite on stage. The duo’s reunion will occur at A GRAMMY Salute to 50 Years of Hip-Hop, airing on Dec 10 on CBS and Paramount+. DJ […]
Last night, Diddy appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! and he sure had some interesting stories to tell. He also didn’t hold back on clearing up rumors.
“Speaking of love, I saw a guy on the internet the other day,” Kimmel said. “He said he used to be your security guard, who said that when you were dating J. Lo, Will Smith and Jada tried to pick her up on a threesome, and you were gonna beat up Will Smith. Is that true?”
For a second, Diddy stares at Kimmel with a tense expression as the audience laughs. He then breaks into laughter.
“This show has gotten crazier since the last time,” Diddy jokes back about the Will Smith rumor.
“It’s all about love, though,” Kimmel asks again. “That’s not true?”
“You really heard that?” Diddy replied. “Nah.” Kimmel and Diddy then poke fun about how you can’t believe everything you see on the internet, to which the rapper and mogul responds, “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Jimmy, I thought we was friends.”
From there, the interview shifts subjects to Kimmel discussing another interview Diddy did, where he revealed that he tried toad venom. Kimmel also pointed out that Eric Andre said last week he did a similar thing that provided a psychedelic effect.
Check out Diddy discussing the Smith rumor above, starting at 7:12 into the video.
Will Smith recalled the turbulent circumstances that came with a one-off date he went on with Pepa (Sandra Denton) from Salt N Pepa. “I think you and Treach had been broke up for a minute. So, in my mind when I was like trying to spit my game but I ain’t really have nothing. Cuz my concern was I was gonna get killed,” Smith confessed on his podcast, Class of ’88. After seeing the clip online, Treach had a little fun with Smith. “KEEP MY NAME CONCERNING MY EX-B-TCH OUT YO F-CKING MOUTH”!! [laughing emoji],” the rapper wrote on social media, tagging Smith.
While Denton agreed that it was a “legitimate concern”, she also told Smith that she had had a nice time regardless. “Okay, you were very nice. This was the date you won and beat us out. You was so happy. You was like let’s go celebrate. Then we were out and you saw a homeless person. You gave the homeless person $100. And it was so nice. Then, we went to the Hollywood sign,” Denton reminisced.
Meanwhile, Smith recently stunned his own (estranged) wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, as he crashed a stop on her book tour. The actor and singer took to the stage to profess his love for Jada, who recently claimed they had been separated for seven years. “I just really wanted to come out and just be here and hold it down for you the way you have held it down for me. We have had a very, very long and tumultuous [relationship]. We call it ‘brutiful.’ It was brutal and beautiful at the same time,” Smith said as Jada attempted to hold back her emotions.
However, he wasn’t done yet. “As I stand here before you today, I am happier than I’ve ever been in my entire life. I have achieved every single thing I have ever wanted in my entire life. There is not one thing left that I desire in this world — all of the awards, all of the money, the family — everything I’ve ever dreamed,” he added. He also referred to his relationship with Jada as a “sloppy public experiment in unconditional love.”
Wondery and Audible have launched their latest audio series, Class of ’88, now available on Amazon Music and Audible. Hosted by Academy Award-winning actor and hip-hop icon Will Smith, this limited podcast series celebrates the pivotal year that defined the global cultural phenomenon of hip-hop.
Class of ’88 takes listeners on a nostalgic journey back to 1988, a landmark year for music, through in-depth, humorous, and emotional interviews with the artists who helped shape the genre. The roster of guests includes Queen Latifah, Salt-N-Pepa, Darryl ‘DMC’ McDaniels, Rakim, Fab 5 Freddy, DJ Jazzy Jeff, Chuck D, J.J. Fad, and DJ Red Alert. This audio series offers a rare glimpse into the minds and experiences of these hip-hop pioneers.
All eight Class of ’88 episodes are available exclusively on Amazon Music and Audible. Prime members can enjoy an ad-free listening experience on Amazon Music.
Through Will Smith’s unique perspective and personal experiences, Class of ’88 sheds light on the milestone moments, iconic albums, and influential artists that shaped the trajectory of hip-hop in 1988, cementing it as one of the genre’s most significant years.
This original podcast is produced by Wondery, Audible, Westbrook, and Awfully Nice, combining talent and expertise to deliver a captivating audio journey through a transformative period in hip-hop history. Will Smith’s engaging narration adds a personal touch, making “Class of ’88” an immersive and enlightening listening experience for hip-hop enthusiasts and music lovers alike.
