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05-26 Will Smith returns for WC2018
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Beginning his career during the mid-'80s under the name the Fresh Prince, by the following decade rapper Will Smith was one
of the biggest superstars ofhis time -- not only a pop music sensation, he also conquered television and eventually feature
films, starring in a string of box-office megahits. BornSeptember 25, 1968, in Philadelphia, he was 16 when he met aspiring DJ
Jeff Townes; joining forces as DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince, the duoimmediately became local favorites, but their
continued existence was threatened when Smith graduated high school and was offered a scholarship t ...read more
Beginning his career during the mid-'80s under the name the Fresh Prince, by the following decade rapper Will Smith was one
of the biggest superstars ofhis time -- not only a pop music sensation, he also conquered television and eventually feature
films, starring in a string of box-office megahits. BornSeptember 25, 1968, in Philadelphia, he was 16 when he met aspiring DJ
Jeff Townes; joining forces as DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince, the duoimmediately became local favorites, but their
continued existence was threatened when Smith graduated high school and was offered a scholarship to MIT.Ultimately, he
chose to pursue a career in music, and in 1987 he and Townes issued their debut record, Rock the House, scoring a hit with
the single"Girls Ain't Nothing but Trouble."Propelled by the smash "Parents Just Don't Understand," DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh
Prince broke into the mainstream a year later with He's the DJ, I'm theRapper, one of the first hip-hop LPs to achieve double-
platinum status. Clean-cut, witty, and easygoing, the duo's bubblegum approach was a starkcontrast to the dominant,
harder-edged rap sound of the period; viewed as a non-threatening alternative to their peers, they received the parental seal
ofapproval, and their appeal spread across racial lines as well. And in This Corner... followed in 1989, and soon Hollywood
began taking notice of Smith'ssuccess; in 1990, he was tapped to star in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, a sitcom for NBC. An
immediate hit, it made Smith a household name, andcontinued in production through 1996.
Smith also continued his music career, and in 1991 DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince scored their biggest chart hit to date with
the excellent"Summertime," from the album Homebase. The year following, he made his feature film debut in the drama Where
the Day Takes You; in 1993, hissupporting turn in Six Degrees of Separation was the subject of much critical acclaim. That
same year, the final Jazzy Jeff/Fresh Prince record, thedisappointing Code Red, was released. In 1995, Smith co-starred in
the action film Bad Boys, a major box-office hit; it set the stage for his leading role in1996's Independence Day, the summer's
biggest smash. A year later, he starred in Men in Black, again the box-office champ of the summer season;recording for the
first time under his given name, he also scored a smash with the movie's rap theme. Smith's debut solo LP, Big Willie Style,
also appearedin 1997, notching the hits "Gettin' Jiggy Wit It," "Just the Two of Us," and "Miami." Shortly on the heels of his
first box-office disappointment, 1999's WildWild West, he returned with the album Willennium. It also fared poorly, compared
to Smith's previous material, and occasioned the release of a (slightly)more artistic record, ^2002's Born to Reign. It also
failed to live up to expectations, and Smith's next record, 2005's Lost and Found, was a soberingalbum. ~ Jason Ankeny, All
Music GuideWritten by Jason AnkenyFrom: http://music.yahoo.com/ « hide |
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