biography

Caroline, a school board worker, and Willard Smith Sr., an engineer, on September 25th, 1968. He was the second of four children who grew up in middle class West Philadelphia. His grade school teachers nicknamed him "Prince", because of his ability to charm his way out of any situation. He later added the "Fresh" himself.

At the tender age of twelve, Will bought his first pop album and fell in love with the style and the rhythm. He was eager to reproduce what he heard and began to rap and create songs of his own. Shortly after, he met Jeff Townes (DJ Jazzy Jeff) at a party and they began jamming together. Eight years later, the successful duo had completed two platinum albums, and received a Grammy award. The Fresh Prince and Jazzy Jeff were dubbed a soft-core rap act that broadened their appeal with parents as well as their fan base.

In 1989, Will expressed his desire to start an acting career to Warner Bros. executive Benny Medina. Medina had a plan for a sitcom based on his own life in Beverly Hills. Will loved the idea and so did NBC. In the fall of 1990 "The Fresh Prince of Bel Air" aired and was a huge success. The highly rated sitcom ran for an impressive six years.

At the age of twenty-five, Will was looking for a new challenge and decided to break into film. In 1993 he landed his first starring role in "Six Degrees of Separation". He played a young gay con man. His acting abilities were well received by both critics and the general public. Smith then teamed up with Martin Lawrence in the action flick "Bad Boys" in 1995. The movie was a hit and Wills asking price rose to a whopping five million dollars per film.

1996's blockbuster hit "Independence Day" catapulted Smith to super stardom. He delivered his lines with remarkable charisma and humor. After all who could forget the wise crack "When we gonna kick ET's ass!"? 1997 brought another action and humor filled flick for Smith. This time it was in Steven Spielberg's blockbuster "Men in Black" starring opposite Tommy Lee Jones. It became the top grossing film of the year. The soundtrack, in which Will's music dominated, was an international smash as well. Will was once again recognized for his music. In fact, he won "Best Video From a Motion Picture" at the MTV Video Music Awards.

His next flick was "Enemy of The State" in 1998. While the movie didn't fare as well at the box office, Smith's performance didn't falter. Will decided to do what he loves best and that's music. He released "Big Willie Style" with great success. He recorded the album in Jazzy Jeff's house. They wanted to retain the magic of the earlier days, so they decided to opt out of a studio recording.

While Will has hit stardom with a capital S, he remains humble and ever thankful for his success. His family, friends and faith continue to be top priority in his life. He believes that "Music is the most difficult creative form" and "Music is like a baby, you gotta nurture it, every second of your life has to be dedicated to the music. It's really a huge undertaking."