By Jae-Ha Kim
Chicago Sun-Times
February 2, 1990
Rap sensations D. J. Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince are famous for hits such as “Parents Just Don’t Understand” and “I Think I Can Beat Mike Tyson.” But fans will see another side of them when the duo sings an unusual version of “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” on a Disney special.
The duo will appear on “Disneyland’s 35th Anniversary Celebration,” which will air from 6 to 7 p.m. Sunday over WMAQ-Channel 5.
“We like to keep our fans guessing,” said the Fresh Prince, who does most of the duo’s singing. “We like to do things that they won’t expect. I think that keeps the group strong, and at the same time, being unpredictable makes it more fun for the fans, too. Ultimately, that’s who we’re trying to please: the kids.”
D. J. Jazzy Jeff, the bespectacled half of the team, added: “I think rap gets a bad rap sometimes because people say it all sounds the same. Well, I think we’re living proof that it doesn’t have to. Like any other kind of music, the originality will depend on what the artists are willing to put into it.”
Young, slim and good-looking, D. J. Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince are among rap’s reigning kings. The duo exudes a winning combination of street-smart cool and polish. Less threatening than the sexually explicit Tone-Loc, and more citified than the New Kids on the Block, they write about things that kids of all walks of life relate to: school, parents and relationships.
During a recent visit to Chicago, the two musicians patiently waited in their downtown hotel room for room service to deliver their lunch. But after 30 minutes of wrestling with their grumbling stomachs, the Fresh Prince picked up his cellular phone and called room service again. This time, he spoke in a deeper voice that sounded unmistakably like the publicist assigned to taking care of them.
“You don’t mind if I do this, do you?” he playfully asked the publicist, before reordering their meal. “I’m sorry about this, but we haven’t eaten in a long time. We were at MTV (in New York) taping some promotional segments and then got hustled onto a plane, and you know what that food is like. We’ve been rushed all day long and are starving.”
Since their rise to fame two years ago, the duo has been living the hectic, but rewarding, lifestyle that the young seem to thrive on. Since their childhood, the musicians dreamed about making names for themselves, so they’re eager to take advantage of their popularity now.
Both Jazzy Jeff, 24, and the Fresh Prince, 21, are from middle-class neighborhoods in Philadelphia. Born Jeff Townes, Jazzy Jeff got his nickname because of his love for music. At the age of 10, he popped up at neighborhood parties, watching the novice deejays “scratch” records on two turntables, creating new versions of old songs. He was amazed, he said, at how their scratching evoked such amazing sounds.
“I knew from an early age that I would be involved with music one way or another,” he said. “Deejaying gave me an early start.”
The Fresh Prince, who childhood friends know as Will Smith, didn’t get involved in music quite so early. A good student who excelled at composing poems and stories, he kept his teachers entertained with stories. High school teachers nicknamed him Prince Charming, because of his ability to charm them into excusing him from his antics.
When he decided to become a musician, Prince Charming revamped his name to become the Fresh Prince. “It sounded more like a musician’s name,” he explained.
Four years ago, D. J. Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince teamed up. By this time, the Prince had made the decision to pass up admission to Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s pre-med program for a nebulous career in music.
“I don’t like to make a big deal about M.I.T., because it’s not like I actually went there and took classes,” the Fresh Prince said. “But I do hope that I’m a positive role model for kids who show up at our concerts.
“Neither of us comes from wealthy backgrounds, so we don’t take anything for granted. This music business is a lot of hard work. It’s not like the image you see of people lounging around eating chocolates. Even if it was glamorous, I think we’re too smart to be sucked into the whole glamor thing. That would be the end of us as far as I’m concerned.”
