A 50th birthday celebration for the Fresh Prince: Will Smith's 15 best songs

The world was first introduced to the Fresh Prince and DJ Jazzy Jeff in the mid-'80s with their debut single, “Girls Ain’t Nothing But Trouble.” The track samples the theme song from the classic TV show "I Dream of Jeannie" as the rapper spits rhymes about unfortunate situations with women. However, like he says at the end of track, “Women, can’t live with them, can’t live without them.”

The duo’s second single from their sophomore album became one of their most memorable songs to date. The song earned them a Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance in 1989. Although a tremendous win, the two — along with other hip-hop artists — boycotted the award show, in protest of the Grammys choosing not to televise the award.

One of his most eerie singles in his music career in which he tells a story about an encounter with Freddy Krueger, the main character from the "A Nightmare on Elm Street" movie franchise. Although the song wasn’t featured in the films, it peaked at No. 15 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Former professional boxer Mike Tyson is widely recognized as one of the greatest heavyweight champions of all time, and his name being mentioned in hip-hop songs is endless from artists like LL Cool J, Nas, Jay-Z and Big Daddy Kane. However, one of his earliest references in hip-hop came from the Fresh Prince and Jazzy Jeff hit in 1989. Not only was the song about attempting to defeat Tyson, the champ was featured in the video along with noted boxing promoter Don King.

Smith not only starred in the NBC sitcom "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air," but he also presented his version of the show’s theme song to the sitcom’s executive producer, Quincy Jones. In a recent Tidal interview, Smith reflected on how the show already had a song in play, but Jazzy Jeff convinced him to create the show’s iconic song. Jazzy Jeff produced "Yo Home to Bel-Air" while Smith's verses set the premise of the show. Jazzy Jeff plays it in many of his DJ sets today.

If Smith goes down in history as a rapper, “Summertime” would be known as one of his most iconic songs. While sampling Kool & The Gang’s 1974 hit “Summer Madness,” the Fresh Prince and Jazzy Jeff released one of hip-hop’s go-to summer songs for decades to come. The song reached No.1 on the Billboard R&B and Rap singles charts, and Rolling Stone placed it in the top 10 of the magazine’s Best Summer Songs of All Time list.

Although Smith and Jazzy Jeff still remain best friends to this day, they released their final studio album "Code Red" in 1993. “Boom! Shake the Room” was the album’s second single, ultimately reaching gold status in sales and peaking in the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Once Smith became a king at the summer box office, he made sure to include his rap persona on soundtracks. “Men In Black,” synonymous with the film title, was his first single as a solo artist. The song featured vocals from SWV lead singer Coko and sampled Patrice Rushen’s ‘80s hit, “Forget Me Nots.” Although Smith fought aliens in the "Men In Black" film, he’s seen doing a smooth dance routine with an alien in the music video. 

The third single from his debut solo album, "Gettin’ Jiggy wit It" became one his most popular songs to date. The song sampled the famous disco track “He’s the Greatest Dancer” performed by Sister Sledge. “Gettin’ Jiggy wit It” earned a Grammy in 1999 for Best Rap Solo Performance and an MTV Video Music Award for Best Rap Video.

Smith is no stranger to showing his appreciation to music that came before him. On his hit single “Miami,” he sampled The Whisper’s ‘80s hit, “And The Beat Goes On." The song’s production and fiery video helped peak the song in the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100. Not only did Smith give the Florida city a hometown anthem, but it made visitors want to party on South Beach as well.

Smith kept his love for sampling going on his 1998 hit “Just the Two of Us,” which was a song made popular in 1981 by Grover Washington Jr. and Bill Withers. Although the original version was about a couple falling in love, Smith switched up the song’s message to reflect on the love between a father and son. The music video featured celebrity fathers such as Babyface, Magic Johnson and Muhammad Ali. Not only was the song a chart hit, “Just the Two of Us” was used in a memorable scene in the 1999 film "Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me.”

In 1999, Smith returned to the big screen to portray Captain James West in "Wild Wild West." The film’s feature song of the same name samples Stevie Wonder’s hit song “I Wish” and additional vocals from R&B group Dru Hill. The music video featured film co-star Salma Hayek as well as Enrique Iglesias, Babyface, Larenz Tate and MC Lyte. The song reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

As the world prepared for the turn of a new century, Smith used the new millennium as a theme to his second solo album. The theme was widely highlighted on his 1999 hit properly titled, “Will 2K.” The video shows Smith hosting a millennium celebration party, however he takes his guests back in time to different music eras such as the roaring ‘20s and the disco ‘70s.

Smith released his last studio album in 2005, spearheaded by the lead single “Switch.” The song reached gold status and made it to the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Although Smith is mostly known for his acting roles to a new generation, he recently made his way back into the music scene when he teamed up with Nicky Jam and Era Istrefi. They released the Diplo-produced track “Live It Up” as the official song for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. The song not only taught younger generations about Smith being a rapper, but he also showed older generations that music is still in his DNA.