Will Smith is conscious of the elephant within the room, because the very first line on his first album in 20 years shortly addresses the notorious 2022 Oscars slap the place Smith took the stage and hit Chris Rock.
The rapper-turned-actor launched Primarily based On a True Story, his first album since 2005, on Friday. The album opens with “Int. Barbershop,” meant to evoke a free-flowing dialog between a number of folks gossiping about Smith, and it begins with the declaration “Will Smith is canceled.”
“Who the fuck Will Smith assume he’s,” Smith raps. “And that boy rattling loopy, how he raisin’ them youngsters. Sure he’s, and I’m by no means gonna forgive him for the shit he did.” The track will get extra particular with the traces “I heard he gained the Oscar however he needed to give it again, and you understand they solely made him do this shit as a result of he’s Black.”
Smith cheekily references the notorious declaration he made to Rock on stage after the slap just a few extra traces down on the track, as one voice says “him and Jada loopy, lady, what you talkin’ about,” whereas one other voice responds “you higher maintain his spouse’s title out of your mouth,” with the beat briefly halting for emphasis.
On the subsequent track, “You Lookin’ For Me,” Smith briefly addresses the controversy once more, rapping that “gained’t cease, my shit nonetheless sizzling, although I gained’t get nominated.”
Smith had preempted the brand new album with the singles “Lovely Scars” with Huge Sean, “First Love,” You Can Make It,” “Tantrum,” and “Work of Artwork.” The album comes nearly precisely 20 years in the past to the day from when Smith launched his final album Misplaced and Discovered. Primarily based On a True Story reunited Smith with DJ Jazzy Jeff and likewise options collaborations with Teyana Taylor, Joyner Lucas and Smith’s son Jaden Smith. As The Hollywood Reporter reported final yr, Smith signed a distribution take care of indie label Slang Information for the challenge.
“The previous couple of years, I’ve been doing a really deep exploration of who and what I really am,” Smith mentioned in a teaser video Smith posted on his Instagram hours forward of his official launch on Thursday. “The method of this album is de facto permitting myself to be extra sincere with myself than I ever have about who and what I really am. That is about to be the best inventive artistic interval of my whole life.”
Smith introduced an abroad tour earlier this month that can take Smith by a lot of Europe beginning later this summer time. It’s unclear what the demand for the brand new music will likely be given simply how lengthy it’s been since Smith has been a full-time recording artist. Talking on Sway within the Morning on Thursday, Smith recalled recommendation he bought from Jay Z and Kendrick Lamar on recording the challenge.
“‘You gotta say what’s true for you and also you’ll be wanting on the youthful rappers and also you’ll need that to be true to you, however you don’t stay like that,’” Smith revealed Jay advised him. “‘Be true to your story. Inform your story.’ And that’s the place I bought the ‘Primarily based on a True Story,’ from Jay.”
