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DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince

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DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince have done more to bring rap music into the mainstream than any other hip-hop group. The Philadelphia-based duo, who infuse their work with satire and playfulness—a departure from the hostile tone of some rap acts—in 1988 produced one of the best-selling rap albums of all time, He’s the DJ, I’m the Rapper. The group also proved outstanding by receiving the first ever Grammy in the rap music category for their quintessential teenage lament, "Parents Just Don’t Understand." Because their work is funny and accessible to teens of all races, DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince are welcome where other rap groups are rarely invited—to live concerts, teen magazines, and even network television.

Rolling Stone contributor Jeffrey Ressner noted that DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince "have distinguished themselves by avoiding rap’s traditionally angry tone…. Rather than tackling themes like urban violence and drug abuse, Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince prefer to satirize frothier middle-class subjects like video games, monster movies and going shopping with parents." The

music is not entirely sanitized, however—it may be self-mocking one moment and bitterly sarcastic the next, the mood more exasperated than militant. "The music comes from us and it reflects who we are," Jazzy Jeff told the Philadelphia Inquirer. "We don’t approach the music with the idea of getting a message across. We just sing about our experiences, and the audience finds it funny or can relate to it."

Although they have been heralded as the first middle-class rappers, Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince did not exactly grow up in the suburbs. Jeffrey Townes, or Jazzy Jeff, grew up in a working-class neighborhood of South Philadelphia and the Fresh Prince, born Willard Smith, was raised in nearby Wynnefield, Pennsylvania. Both began perfecting their musical craft at an early age. Jazzy Jeff started spinning records at parties when he was only ten, using his family’s basement as a training ground for his expert mixing and double scratching. The Fresh Prince, a rapper from age 13, attended Philadelphia’s Overbrook High School, where he earned sufficient grades to qualify for a full scholarship to the academically rigorous Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.).

The two musicians knew of one another while they were still young teens. Their paths crossed from time to time because they each performed in different rap groups. Early in 1986 they got together at a party; the rapport was instantaneous. "I worked with 2, 000 crews before I found this maniac," Jazzy Jeff told People. "There was a click when I worked with him that was missing before." Jazzy Jeff, who had released an album in 1985, was already a local celebrity when he took on the Fresh Prince. As a result the duo had little trouble finding a record label. Their first single, "Girls Ain’t Nothing but Trouble," hit the charts in 1986.

DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince’s first album, Rock the House, made a strong showing in 1987, selling some 600, 000 copies. Stardom came the following year with the double LP He’s the DJ, I’m the Rapper, one of the first rap albums to go double platinum. Both albums, but especially the second, offer raps about what the musicians understand best—the day-to-day troubles of modem teens. "Parents Just Don’t Understand," for instance, details the nightmares of shopping for school clothes with a mother who is hopelessly out of touch with current styles; the Prince pleads with his mom to "put back the bell-bottom Brady Bunch trousers."

Not surprisingly, the "clean rap" image proved a mixed blessing for DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince. Some other rap artists scorned them for selling out to the white audience and for ignoring legitimate problems of black youths. On the other hand, the musicians found themselves invited to perform live concerts far more often than many of their cohorts because promoters saw less chance for violence at their shows. As a consequence DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince toured extensively, performing throughout the Midwest and in Canada. Jazzy Jeff told the Philadelphia Inquirer: "We like to give the audience a lesson in rap. It’s not hard, anyone can do it. It’s not about black or white, it’s just about having fun."

By 1989 the duo had far more competition in the mainstream market; their release And in This Corner sold just under a million copies. That album contained the hit "I Think I Could Beat Mike Tyson," a piece that pokes fun at an over-active ego. Music videos accompanying "I Think I Could Beat Mike Tyson" and "Parents Just Don’t Understand" brought the Fresh Prince to the attention of a new audience—television producers. On the basis of his work in videos, he was invited to take a leading role in a network situation comedy, The Fresh Prince of Bel Air.

The demands on the Fresh Prince of filming a television show have greatly curtailed the rap duo’s musical work. The two still perform and record together, however, and Jazzy Jeff makes frequent guest appearances on the show. The Fresh Prince told the Lexington Herald-Leader that he took the television work in order to continue his quest to educate people about rap. "Rap music—which a lot of white America doesn’t understand—rap music is not just a music," he said. "Rap music is a subculture: hip-hop. It’s a style of dress, an attitude, a look, a language. It’s more than just music."

Though perhaps not as visible as the Fresh Prince, there is little chance that Jazzy Jeff will return to obscurity. With his wide-ranging knowledge of modern jazz, eerie mixes of fine music and trashy television theme songs, and masterful record scratching, he will remain in demand on the rap circuit. Jazzy Jeff explained his performance philosophy in the Philadelphia Inquirer. "We’re not from the suburbs, so we don’t pretend to know what growing up there is like," he said. "But there are certain experiences or feelings that everyone has in common." He added: "We don’t care if the audience is black or white, inner city or suburban, as long as they show up and are having a good time."

Selected discography
Rock the House, Jive, 1987, reissued, 1989.
He’s the DJ, I’m the Rapper, Jive, 1988.
And in This Corner, Jive, 1989.
DJ Jazzy Jeff also recorded the solo album On Fire, Jive, 1985.

Sources
Lexington Herald-Leader, July 8, 1990.
People, October 3, 1988.
Philadelphia Daily News, June 7, 1989; May 4, 1989.
Philadelphia Inquirer, March 18, 1990; March 26, 1990.
Rolling Stone, December 1, 1988.

DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince

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AMG AllMusic Guide: Pop Artists:

DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince

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  • Genres: Rap

Biography

To many present-day listeners, DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince are best-remembered for launching the superstar music/acting career of the latter, now known by his real name of Will Smith. In their heyday, however, the Philadelphia duo played a major role in making rap music accessible to pop audiences, as well as younger listeners. Smith's raps were never anything more than PG-rated, and his genial, winning personality came through in the good-humored stories that many of his best raps wove. His partner, Jeff Townes, was one of Philadelphia's best DJs, an inventive scratcher who provided appropriately playful backdrops. At a time when rap wanted to establish itself as the authentic voice of the streets, DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince were often ridiculed as bubblegum kiddie rap -- they weren't aggressive, outraged, gritty, or urban enough to fit the prevailing hip-hop fashion of the time. However, in hindsight, it's clear that the duo's appeal was a natural result of simply being themselves, not from pandering to middle-class youth or posing as something they weren't. That's why the best of their work still sounds lively, full of youthful energy and breezy wit, and ranks as some of the most infectious pop-rap of its time.

DJ Jazzy Jeff (born Jeffrey Townes, January 22, 1965) and the Fresh Prince (born Willard Smith, September 25, 1968) got together in 1986, when they performed together at a house party after years of separately pursuing hip-hop around the Philadelphia area. Later that year, they performed at the New Music Seminar, where Jeff placed first in the DJ competition; the attention helped them land a record deal with Jive and the Fresh Prince turned down his acceptance into M.I.T. Their first single, "Girls Ain't Nothing But Trouble," was built around a sample of the theme from "I Dream of Jeannie," and the humorous video began to build the duo an audience through MTV. It helped their 1987-released debut album, Rock the House, go gold and set the stage for their breakthrough success with the 1988 follow-up He's the D.J., I'm the Rapper. One of the first double-LP sets in rap history (thanks to a number of tracks showcasing Jeff's turntable artistry), it also became one of the genre's biggest sellers up to that point, moving more than 2.5 million copies after the comic video for "Parents Just Don't Understand" became a runaway hit on MTV. A playful riff on the generation gap, "Parents Just Don't Understand" hit number 12 on the singles charts, went gold, and won the first-ever rap Grammy; the duo toured extensively behind it, aided in their dealings with concert promoters by their non-threatening image.

Hip-hop, however, was an extraordinarily difficult field in which to sustain career momentum. Even though it was released only a year later, And in This Corner... failed to generate nearly as much attention -- despite going gold -- partly because the lead single, "I Think I Can Beat Mike Tyson," failed to catch fire. The album was also hurt by a rapidly changing hip-hop climate; De La Soul's rapturously received debut, 3 Feet High and Rising, had succeeded in bringing positivity and humor to hip-hop with less of a comic-novelty flavor and seemingly countless new pop-rap fads were springing up by the minute. Fortunately, Smith's performances in the duo's videos had attracted notice in the television world. Convinced of Smith's potential to become a warm, charismatic, clean-cut star in the acting world, NBC gave him a starring role in a sitcom named after his rap persona, The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, which followed a young Philadelphian sent to live with his rich relatives in California to keep out of trouble. Although Smith wasn't yet a seasoned actor, executives were correct about his comic appeal and the show became a hit, running for six seasons; Townes was given a recurring role as Smith's character's street-wise friend (aptly dubbed Jazz).

Although Smith had taken a hiatus from DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince to concentrate on getting his sitcom off the ground, the duo reconvened in 1991, buoyed by their increased visibility. Featuring more outside productions, Homebase returned Townes and Smith to the platinum sales mark and produced their biggest hit ever in the warm, laid-back party tune "Summertime," where Smith nostalgically reminisced about summers growing up in Philadelphia in a way that appealed to listeners of all ages. "Summertime" became their first and only Top Five pop hit, peaking at number four. A follow-up LP, Code Red, was released in 1993, but didn't sell very well at all in the U.S.; oddly, the single "Boom! Shake the Room" became their first number one hit in the U.K. Nonetheless, Smith decided to focus full-time on his acting career, appearing in the critically acclaimed Six Degrees of Separation (also in 1993). Proving he could cut it on the big screen, Smith went on to star in numerous big-budget Hollywood blockbusters, including Independence Day, Men in Black, Enemy of the State, Wild Wild West, and Ali (the latter of which earned him an Oscar nomination); he also returned to music as a solo artist, selling millions more albums than he did with DJ Jazzy Jeff thanks to his enormous exposure. Townes, meanwhile, formed a production company called A Touch of Jazz, and worked as a producer and mixer for several hip-hop and R&B artists (including a few of Smith's solo cuts). ~ Steve Huey, Rovi
Wikipedia on Answers.com:

DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince

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"The Fresh Prince" and "Fresh Prince" redirect here. For the TV series, see The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.
DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince
Origin West Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Genres Hip hop
Years active 1985–1994
Labels Word-Up, Jive
Past members
The Fresh Prince
DJ Jazzy Jeff
Ready Rock C

DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince was a hip hop duo from West Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Rapper 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 (Ready Rock C) the team members became local celebrities. Holmes left the group in 1990, and later sued it in 1999.[1]

The group received the first Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance in 1989 for "Parents Just Don't Understand", though their most successful single was "Summertime" which earned the group their second Grammy and peaked at number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100. Will Smith and Jeff Townes are still friends and claim that they never split up, having made songs under Smith's solo performer credit.[2] DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince have sold over 5.5 million albums in the US.

Contents

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 Word Up Records released their first single in late 1985 to 1986 when A&R man Paul Oakenfold[4] introduced them to Word Up with their single "Girls Ain't Nothing but Trouble," a tale of funny misadventures that landed Smith and his former DJ and rap partner Mark Forrest (Lord Supreme) [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 were brought to the attention of Jive Records and Russell Simmons. The duo's first album, Rock the House, which was first released on Word Up in 1986 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 United Kingdom, the album was rap music's first double-vinyl LP release; it was also issued as a single cassette and CD. "Parents Just Don't Understand", the lead-off single, made them MTV household names and 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 parents' 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 in an episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air ("Someday Your Prince Will Be In Effect (Part 1)"), and referenced in two other episodes of the same series ("The Fresh Prince Project" and "Not With My Pig, You Don't").

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.) After this success, in 1988 the lead singles from Rock the House, including "Girls Ain't Nothing but Trouble", were re-released and changed a bit from their original 1985 release, referencing singles "Nightmare on My Street" and "Parents Just Don't Understand":

Jeff reveals on track 19 of Skillz's Infamous Quotes mixtape that New Line Cinema approached Will & Jeff for a movie role which they ended up turning down. The film was House Party.

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 from He's the DJ, I'm the Rapper was "Brand New Funk" sampled a James Brown song and quotes; however it is Ready Rock C saying get down in the song. 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 duo'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,[6] 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 25% of his paycheck garnished by the IRS.[6]

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"[citation needed]. Holmes later sued the duo in 1999.[1]

Homebase (1991–1992)

Still having a bit of extra money from starring in the successful sitcom, the duo decided 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 driven 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 (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",[7] featuring more jazz and soul samples than previous releases. The lead single "Boom! Shake the Room" reached #1 in UK and Australia, 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 film role in 1993’s Six Degrees of Separation. The 1996 blockbuster 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 solo CDs on Columbia/Sony records. After being dropped by Columbia he released one CD in 2005 on Interscope. Townes released two albums on the famous UK DJ label BBE. He has also become an R&B producer of note, overseeing releases by Jill Scott, Rhymefest and many others.

Discography

Main article: DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince discography

References

  1. ^ a b "Clarence Holmes v. Willard Smith (No. 03-1171), page 5" (PDF). law.villanova.edu. Villanova University School of Law. April 16, 2004. http://vls.law.vill.edu/Locator/3d/April2004/031171np.pdf. 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" 
  2. ^ "DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince to reunite?". ://URLFan. http://www.urlfan.com/local/dj_jazzy_jeff_and_the_fresh_prince_to_reunite/76504345.html. Retrieved 2008-05-14. 
  3. ^ "DJ Jazz Jeff Interview Made From Scratch". DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince Fan Site. http://www.jazzyjefffreshprince.com/interviews/dj-jazzy-jeff/jazzy-jeff-made-from-scratch.htm. Retrieved 2008-05-14. [dead link]
  4. ^ Paul Oakenfold
  5. ^ Champion Records
  6. ^ a b c "Will Smith: My Work Ethic Is "Sickening"". CBS. 2007-11-30. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/11/30/60minutes/main3558937_page2.shtml. Retrieved 2008-05-14. 
  7. ^ "Fresh Ink Talks to Jazzy Jeff & Fresh Prince". DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince Fan Site. http://www.jazzyjefffreshprince.com/interviews/fresh-prince/rapping-with-jazzy-jeff-and-fresh-prince.htm. Retrieved 2008-05-14. [dead link]

External links

DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince
Studio Albums
Compilation Albums
  • Greatest Hits (1998)
  • Before The Willenium (1999)
  • Platinum & Gold Collection (2003)
  • The Very Best of Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince (2006)
  • The Best of DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince (2010)
Singles

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