DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince
DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince |
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DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince were a hip hop group that experienced extreme popularity in the 1980s and 1990s. The vocalist, Will Smith (The Fresh Prince), met Jeff Townes (DJ Jazzy Jeff) while trying to make a name for himself in West Philadelphia's local hip hop scene. After joining forces with Clarence Holmes aka Ready Rock C, the team became local celebrities, although Holmes was kicked out of the group in 1990.[1] They received the first rap Grammy ever in 1989 for "Parents Just Don't Understand". The two are still friends to this day and claim that they never split up, having made songs under Smith's solo performer credit.[2]
History
Early years (1985-1987)
Jeff Townes and Will Smith were introduced to each other by chance in 1985. One night, Townes was performing at a house party only a few doors down from Smith's residence, and he was missing his hype man. Smith decided to fill in and both felt strong chemistry: so much that Townes was upset when his hype man finally made it to the party.[3]
Soon after, the two decided to join forces. Smith enlisted a friend to join as the beatboxer of the group, Clarence Holmes (Ready Rock C), making them a trio. Philadelphia-based Pop Art Records and Champion Records released their first single in late 1985 to 1986 when A&R man Paul Oakenfold[4] introduced them to Champion with their single "Girls Ain't Nothing but Trouble", a tale of misadventures with the opposite sex. [5] The song sampled the theme song of I Dream of Jeannie. Smith became known for light-hearted story-telling raps and capable, though profanity-free, "battle" rhymes. The single became a hit a month before Smith graduated from high school.[6] Townes was known for his turntable acrobatics, and he is credited by many as inventing a style of scratching called "transforming".
Based on this success, the duo was brought to the attention of Jive Records and Russell Simmons. The duo's first album, Rock the House, debuted on Jive in March of 1987. The album sold about 300,000 units. That same year, the band found themselves on their first major tour with Run DMC, Public Enemy, and others.
He's the DJ, I'm the Rapper (1988)
Their 1988 follow-up album, He's the DJ, I'm the Rapper made them multi-platinum stars. Mostly recorded in the UK, the album was rap music's first double-vinyl LP release (also issued as a single cassette and CD). "Parents Just Don’t Understand", the lead-off single, made them MTV household names. "Parents Just Don't Understand" also gained the honor of the first Grammy for a hip hop/rap song, which was met to mixed feelings. Nevertheless, the single was a success, launching the group into even more mainstream stardom.
The video showed Prince's misadventures of trying to get around his parent's strict rules in a very comical way, very much like their first single "Girls Ain't Nothing But Trouble". It gained much airplay on TV channels such as MTV, giving the group much attention. The song was played on the first episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and referenced a few times. The video did not feature the beatboxer Ready Rock C.
Another single, "Nightmare on My Street", showcased a fictional confrontation with movie villain Freddy Krueger. Coinciding with the release of the fourth Nightmare on Elm Street film (1988’s The Dream Master); New Line Cinema was not pleased. A video allegedly shot for the single was buried, and a disclaimer was hastily included on pressings of the album indicating that the record was not officially affiliated with any of the "Nightmare" films. (Ironically, Jive Records ended up releasing the soundtrack to the next film in the series, The Dream Child.) The lead single from Rock the House, "Girls Ain't Nothing But Trouble", was re-released and changed a bit from its original 1985 release, referencing singles "Nightmare on My Street" and "Parents Just Don't Understand":
Jeff: Man, first your parents just don't understand
Will: Word, I know, man.
Jeff: Then you have these crazy nightmares.
Will: Why Me? Why Me?
The last single was Brand New Funk, which sampled a James Brown song and quotes. In the song, Prince explains how Jeff has brought in a tape that contains a very cool song that he cannot help but rap over, and how fans react to it. The song was well received by many hip hop fans, due because of its funk sound and lyrical spins and the fact that it showed off more of the skills of Jazzy Jeff. The video was shot in black and white, showed live performance clips from a concert, and featured 2 Damn Hype Dancing. This is the only music video to feature the third member of the group, Ready Rock C (it is possible he was in the Nightmare on My Street video, but it was allegedly axed).
And in This Corner..., television, and hiatus (1989-1990)
1989 saw the release of And in This Corner…, the group's third LP. While the sales were a success, reaching gold, the trio's popularity was slipping. The crossover curse of various rap acts had come to pass, as their initial audience felt they had become too accessible; non-crossover rap acts like Big Daddy Kane and Boogie Down Productions had bigger street followings; meanwhile, pop radio had latched on to new faces like Tone Loc and Young MC, while non-radio followers became more enamored with hardcore acts like Ice-T and 2 Live Crew.
The lead single, "I Think I Can Beat Mike Tyson" was in the same vein as their other lead singles; with this one having Will say he could literally beat Mike Tyson in a boxing match. Jazzy Jeff is shown training Prince to perform this task, and after Prince loses, Jeff then claims that he might be able to do it himself. James Avery and Alfonso Ribeiro (co-stars of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air) show up as Don King and member of the fighting crew's posse, respectively.
The next single was Jazzy's Groove, sampling Nautilus in the chorus and bridge. The song features much more of Jazzy Jeff, like in Brand New Funk; Jazzy Jeff gives a 'math lesson' by making the sound clips add 1+1, 2+1, and 2+2.
Due to a self-admitted spendthrift attitude[7], Smith felt he had nothing to lose when a producer from NBC and Quincy Jones approached him with an idea for a sitcom, with Townes appearing as a recurring character, named "Jazz". The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air boosted his profile and his pocketbook. Smith blew through almost 2.8 million dollars, while giving none to the IRS for taxes. Soon after "And in This Corner..." was released, Smith was sentenced by the IRS to pay this all back. For the first three seasons of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Smith had 70% of his paycheck garnished by the IRS.[8]
Ready Rock C left the group in 1990 due to creative differences. Smith claimed that beatboxing at this time of hip hop was "played out".
Homebase (1991-1992)
Still having a bit of extra money from starring in the successful sitcom, the duo to stage a comeback album in 1991, Homebase. The platinum album featured a more mature sound from the group, with Smith rapping in a deeper, consistent voice and changed their sound to fit the era's trend of hip-hop. Homebase featured the lead-off single “Summertime”, which added rap lyrics to the music of the Kool & the Gang instrumental "Summer Madness" and has become one of their most enduring hits. The video features clips from a family reunion in Philly, and shows the duo being drove around while sitting atop a car. Summertime earned the duo its second Grammy win. The next singles were "Ring My Bell" and "Things That U Do". Both featured the typical sound of the early 90s. Both videos for the songs featured a different version from the original found on the LP.
The final single for the release was "You Saw My Blinker", a song about an old lady that crashed into Prince's new car and his anger at the events that happened thereafter. This is the first (and one of the only) songs where Smith curses, saying the word 'bitch' (To the left lane I tried to switch, then, you saw my blinker, bitch). Prince's voice is a bit deeper than usual, to make it sound like he's agitated, similar to "Then She Bit Me" from And in This Corner... This song reached #20 Billboard Hot 100 and #22 Hot R&B/Hip Hop singles.
Code Red and unofficial split (1993-1994)
Code Red, their last studio LP as a duo was released in 1993, reaching gold sales. This LP featured a self admitted harder sound than their other songs, with Jazzy Jeff saying "We wanted to take a new direction. It wasn't that we were concentrating on harder, it was just different."[9], featuring more jazz and soul samples than previous releases. The lead single "Boom! Shake the Room" reached #1, and featured a harder sound than any of their other songs. Other singles were "I'm Looking For the One (To Be With Me)", which is similar to "Summertime", and "I Wanna Rock", which showed off more of Jazzy Jeff's DJ skills.
Shortly afterward, Smith began to pursue acting full-time. He played his first lead role in 1993’s Six Degrees of Separation. 1996’s Independence Day cemented him as a major draw, and he left the Fresh Prince sitcom that same year. Strangely, he and Townes ended up being sued by Jive, who alleged that the duo was still under contract to create more albums. In an interview, Smith has stated that while shooting Men in Black he approached Jive with the "Men in Black" single; they turned him down, saying that it couldn’t be a hit. In the aftermath of the movie and soundtrack’s success, the duo settled the lawsuit out of court. Hence, their greatest hits compilation includes two cuts from the M.I.B. soundtrack.
Since then, Smith has released three Columbia/Sony albums under his own name; a separate "solo" hits CD was released in 2003. He released a new album in 2005 on Interscope. Townes released 2 albums on BBE. He has also become an R&B producer of note, overseeing releases by Jill Scott and others.
2008 tour
The duo is planning on a 2008 summer tour connecting dates with the openings of Smith's film, Hancock.[10]
Discography
Albums
| Album information |
|---|
Rock the House
|
| He's the DJ, I'm the Rapper |
And in This Corner…
|
| Homebase |
Code Red
|
Greatest Hits (1998) #144 U.S.
|
Singles
From Rock the House
- Girls Ain't Nothing But Trouble #57 US, #21 UK
- The Magnificent Jazzy Jeff #93 UK
- A Touch of Jazz #79 UK
From He's The DJ, I'm the Rapper
- Brand New Funk
- A Nightmare On My Street #15 US
- Parents Just Don't Understand #12 US, #87 UK, #49 AUS
From And in This Corner…
- I Think I Can Beat Mike Tyson #58 US, #94 UK, #53 AUS
- Jazzy's Groove
From Homebase
- Summertime #4 US, #8 UK, #52 AUS
- Ring My Bell #20 US, #53 UK, #58 AUS
- The Things That U Do
- You Saw My Blinker
From Code Red
- Boom! Shake The Room #13 US, #1 UK, #1 AUS
- I'm Looking For The One (To Be With Me) #93 US, #24 UK, #48 AUS
- I Wanna Rock
From Willennium
- "So Fresh" (performed as DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince) (feat. Biz Markie, & Slick Rick)
- "Pump Me Up" (performed as DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince)
Other non-album singles
- The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air #3 Netherlands
- Lovely Daze #37 UK
- Summertime '98 (SoulPower Remix)
References
- ^ "Clarence Holmes v. Willard Smith (No. 03-1171), page 5" (PDF). law.villanova.edu. Villanova University School of Law. April 16, 2004. Retrieved 2007-11-21.
On appeal, the parties agree that the year Holmes stopped performing with Smith was 1990, nine years before Holmes brought this suit against Smith.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ ""DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince to reunite?"". ://URLFan. Retrieved 2008-05-14.
- ^ ""DJ Jazz Jeff Interview Made From Scratch"". DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince Fan Site. Retrieved 2008-05-14.
- ^ Paul Oakenfold
- ^ Champion Records
- ^ ""Will Smith: My Work Ethic Is "Sickening""". CBS. Retrieved 2008-05-14.
- ^ ""Will Smith: My Work Ethic Is "Sickening""". CBS. Retrieved 2008-05-14.
- ^ ""Will Smith: My Work Ethic Is "Sickening""". CBS. Retrieved 2008-05-14.
- ^ ""Fresh Ink Talks to Jazzy Jeff & Fresh Prince"". DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince Fan Site. Retrieved 2008-05-14.
- ^ ""Jazzy Jeff & Fresh Prince / Will Smith Tour Summer 2008!"". DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince Fan Site. Retrieved 2008-05-14.