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6 year oldThe 49-year-old superstar recently appeared on TIDAL’s Rap Radar podcast, where he talked about his 20-year marriage to Jada Pinkett Smith as well as his long-lasting career. Smith also previews his upcoming rap album, including a song called "The Mountaintop," which he says describes where he's at right now.
“I’m granting myself the freedom to not give a f**k when I don’t give a f**k," he explains.
Smith later bluntly talks about the perks of being an A-lister, and why the song is called "The Mountaintop."
"The idea is... I’ve been to the top of money, I’ve had all the sex that I’ve ever wanted, I’ve had all of the adoration,” he notes. “I’ve been to the top of all those material world mountains and nothing makes you happy other than being useful to others. That’s it. That’s the only thing that ever will satisfy that thing, is that what you’re doing is useful.”
The intimate interview also had Smith addressing his nice guy image in Hollywood.
“I haven’t maintained my authenticity per se," he says. "I’ve maintained the character of Will Smith…[who] signs every autograph, is always happy, and wants to see the fans and that’s not actually authentic. I do want to slap somebody every once in a while.”
The former Fresh Prince of Bel-Air star actually did slap someone at the 2012 Moscow premiere of Men in Black 3, when notorious Hollywood prankster Vitalii Sediuk attempted to kiss him on the lips. Smith recalls his close friend, rapper JAY-Z, calling him after the highly publicized incident.
“I get back and I’m pissed that somebody thinks because you’re famous, they get to do whatever they want to do to you,” he recalls. “So, I’m in my room and I had 10 urgent messages from Jay-Z.”
“So I call him and say, ‘What’s up?’ He sounds winded,” Smith continues with a laugh. “He said, ‘I just saw the video of you slapping the dude in Russia. I just want you to know you’ll never make a better piece of entertainment. It’s the funniest thing I’ve ever seen.’ He said, ‘Me and Bey, we got a show tonight, and we’re thinking about cancelling it and just staying in and watching you slap this dude.’”
However, Smith does admit that he's been bothered with criticism that he's "soft," specifically when it comes to his music.
“That was a difficult time coming up. … It was always difficult [to hear] people say I was soft and my music was cotton candy," he acknowledges. "I always wanted to fight to prove myself. Fighting yourself to maintain positivity is the hardest fight you ever gon’ have. That struggle to just stay my course, be the person in the world that I wanted to be no matter what people said. I started to call it offensive positivity."
On a less serious note, the father of three recalls Kanye West and Kim Kardashian West's reaction to his son, Jaden, infamously wearing a Batman costume to their 2014 wedding.
“Ye was cool. ‘Yo, I love that!’" he says of West's reaction. "Kim was a little bit like, ‘Jaden…'”
In May, Smith addressed the persistent divorce rumors surrounding his and Jada's marriage in a preview of his upcoming music. Watch below:
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