WILL SMITH 'HATED' QUINCY JONES' ORIGINAL FRESH PRINCE OF BEL-AIR THEME SONG (AND JONES AGREED)

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Will Smith 'hated' Quincy Jones' original Fresh Prince theme song (and Jones agreed)

"Mine's a piece of s---," Smith recalls Jones saying.

By 

Lester Fabian Brathwaite

 

 Published on December 4, 2024 10:00AM EST

Now this is a story all about...how Will Smith hated Quincy Jones' original theme song for The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.

 

On the latest episode of Vice's docuseries Black Comedy in America, Smith recalled how the now-iconic Fresh Prince theme was almost lost to time and a "piece of s---" Jones tune.

 

'The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'.  NBC

"So Quincy presented a theme song," Smith said, noting the legendary producer — who died Nov. 3 at age 91 — wrote one of the other great TV themes of all time, for Sanford and Son. Despite this being Quincy Effing Jones, the mastermind behind Thriller and countless other masterworks, Smith "hated it."

The young rapper turned actor felt like he couldn't tell Jones that he hated his theme song, it being Quincy Effing Jones. Not only that, Jones was an executive producer on the show and played a large part in getting the show, and Smith, to air. So Smith turned to his longtime collaborator DJ Jazzy Jeff.

The two worked out a demo of their own theme, a rap telling the premise of the show, in Jeff's hotel room and then Smith took it to Jones. Without revealing his own feelings about the 28-time Grammy winner's tune, Smith offered to play what he and Jeff had come up with.

"I played it for him and he listened," Smith recalled. "He said, 'That's good. Mine's a piece of s---.'" According to Smith, Jones' original theme sounded outdated and Jones thankfully agreed that Smith's far more fresh (pun intended) version should run over the opening credits.

Jones had been one of The Fresh Prince's and Smith's earliest champions, using his own birthday party to arrange an impromptu audition for Smith in front of then–NBC head Brandon Tartikoff.

 

Quincy Jones and Will Smith on 'The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'.    Ron Tom/NBCU Photo Bank

"I said, 'Quincy, I don't know how to act, I'm not an actor. Just give me two weeks, let me find an acting coach and let me work on it, and then let's just set up a proper audition,'" Smith recalled during Max's 2020 Fresh Prince reunion special. "He says, 'Here's the deal: Right now, everybody who needs to say yes for this show is sitting out in that living room waiting for you.' And I was like, 'Give me 10 minutes.'"

When Jones died last month, Smith joined the chorus of friends, colleagues, collaborators, and admirers paying tribute to a national treasure.

 

"Quincy Jones is the true definition of a Mentor, a Father and a Friend," Smith wrote on Instagram. "He pointed me toward the greatest parts of myself. He defended me. He nurtured me. He encouraged me. He inspired me. He checked me when he needed to. He let me use his wings until mine were strong enough to fly."