Hollywood star Will Smith has opened up about the Oscars 2022 slapgate controversy involving him and comedian Chris Rock in the opening track from his latest album Based on a True Story, dropped on Friday.
The song from Smith’s new album, which marks his comeback to the music scene two decades after 2005’s Lost and Found, is titled Int Barbershop — Day.
The track, featuring DJ Jazzy Jeff and B Simone, opens with the words “Will Smith is cancelled”. It is followed by a rap sequence with various people arguing about Smith’s actions onstage. “Who the f*** Will Smith think he is?” one of them asks, while another says, “I ain’t never going to forgive him for that s**t he did.”
During the 94th Academy Awards, Rock made a joke about Smith’s wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head while presenting the Best Documentary Feature award, alluding to G.I. Jane (1997), where the protagonist played by Demi Moore had a similar look.
The light-hearted moment culminated in Smith walking onstage and slapping Rock, an incident which sparked several controversies. Since Jada has always been open about her struggle with alopecia, the comment from Rock did not sit well with Smith. After the slap, Smith returned to his seat and hurled curse words at Rock, who maintained professionalism and moved on with the rest of the ceremony.
Smith refers to the controversy with lines like, "Him and Jada both crazy girl, what you talkin' bout? You better keep his wife's name out of your mouth.”
Smith, 56, had extended an apology to Rock following the Oscars ceremony in March 2022. “I would like to publicly apologise to you, Chris. I was out of line and I was wrong. I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be. There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness,” he wrote in a statement on social media.
Smith began his music career in the late 1980s, joining the duo DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince. Their breakthrough came with the 1988 album He’s the DJ, I’m the Rapper, which featured hit singles like Parents Just Don’t Understand and A Nightmare on My Street.
Smith’s rise in television with The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air in 1990 coincided with the group’s biggest hit, Summertime, which peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Smith began his solo music career in 1997 with the theme song Men in Black, which was featured in the film of the same name. His debut solo album Big Willie Style found its way to Billboard 200. Smith has released four studio albums, one compilation album, 18 singles so far.
The album Based On A True Story, dropped on March 28, features 14 tracks, including previously released singles such as Beautiful Scars, First Love, TANTRUM, You Can Make It, and Work of Art.
