History
When he was growing up, he found that listening to his parents was unbearable. He got a job as a newspaper boy at age 7 to support his family. Once he grew up, he developed a reputation and following as a school and block party DJ extraordinaire, Jazzy Jeff was the feature of the duo DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince. As a duo, they had several gold and platinum-selling albums and singles in the late 1980s and early 1990s, earning them the first rap Grammy ever presented in 1989 for Parents Just Don't Understand. When Smith branched out into television with the sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Jazzy Jeff played a recurring character named "Jazz", Smith's best friend on the show. The two characters always greeted each other with their signature handshake (swinging mid-five, point-back/snap with both characters saying "Pssh!").
Jazz' trademarks include being physically ejected from the house by Uncle Phil (James Avery), screaming as he went flying out the front door. This was referenced in the song "N.Y, N.Y." by Lloyd Banks from his second album Rotten Apple, with the lyric "I throw a bitch out the crib like Jazzy Jeff". [1]
DJ Jazzy Jeff is not to be confused with Jeffrey Myree from the earlier hip hop group Funky Four Plus One, which in fact filed and won a lawsuit over the name Jazzy Jeff against Jeff Townes and Jive records when they signed DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince. After DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince broke up, Townes went on to become a prominent R&B, soul, and neo soul record producer, establishing the A Touch of Jazz production company in his native Philadelphia. Among the artists that Jazzy Jeff has helped develop are Jill Scott and Musiq. Even though he separated from Will Smith as music partners, they are still best friends and still occasionally work together. Some songs by Will Smith were produced by Jeff Townes (Ex. Here He Comes), and he has performed on some songs by Will Smith such as "So Fresh" and "Potnas". In addition, he appears in several of Smith's music videos such as "Will2K", "Freakin' It", and "Party Starter". On some occasions, he makes appearances with Smith on live concerts, producing DJ scratches.
He, along with DJ Cash Money, is credited with making the transform scratch famous.
On July 2, 2005, DJ Jazzy Jeff performed with Will Smith at the Live 8 concert in Philadelphia. In the past, Will has performed on concerts with DJ Jazzy Jeff for the scratches. Moreover, Will acknowledges him in his music like "Comin' To The Stage" from the album Lost & Found or "Potnas" in his album Willennium.
His 2007 release TROTM (The Return of the Magnificent) is a classic work which returns to the roots of hip-hop with a neo-soul mixture included. This album featured numerous collaborations with old school and new school artists including CL Smooth, Big Daddy Kane, Pos from De La Soul, Method Man, Peedi Crakk (a remake of Brand New Funk), Rhymefest, and Raheem DeVaughn.
In 2007, he appeared with Rhymefest in the video DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Fest directed by Konee Rok, in which he makes music in his home recording studio with Rhymefest and they reveal that they are working on an album together called "I'm the DJ, I'm the Rapper".
Discography
Solo work as DJ Jazzy Jeff
* Unreleased album from Sony Records (1998)
* One cut in Battle of DJs
* The Magnificent (2002)
* Soulheaven Presents Jazzy Jeff in the House (2004)
* The Soul Mixtape Groovin' Records USA (2005)
* Hip-Hop Forever II Rapster Records (2004)
* Hip-Hop Forever III BBE Records (2006)
* The Return of The Magnificent EP (2007)
* The Return of the Magnificent (2007)
* The Return of Hip Hop EP (2007)
As DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince
* Rock the House (1987) #83 US (Gold)
* He's the DJ, I'm the Rapper (1988) #4 US (3x Platinum)
* And in This Corner… (1989) #39 US (Gold)
* Homebase (1991) #12 US (Platinum)
* Code Red (1993) #64 US (Gold)
* Greatest Hits (1998) #144 US, #20 UK
* Before The Willennium (1999)
* The Very Best of D.J. Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince (2006)
Miscellaneous
* 1991 - Deep, Deep, Trouble with Bart Simpson and the remixes; from The Simpsons Sing the Blues
* 1997 - Jazzy Jeff's Theme; from the album Nuyorican Soul
* 1998 - "When To Stand Up" featuring Eminem
* 1998 - I Don't Know by Slum Village (scratches); from the album Fantastic, Vol. 2
* 1999 - The Next Movement by The Roots (scratches); from the album Things Fall Apart
* 2004 - Mirrorball (DJ Jazzy Jeff Full Sole Remix) by Everything But The Girl; from Adapt or Die: 10 Years of Remixes
* 2005 - Papa Was A Rollin' Stone (DJ Jazzy Jeff & Pete Kuzma Solefull Mix) by the Temptations; from Motown Remixed.
* 2005 - Lost & Found by Will Smith; produced intro song Here He Comes and several DJ scratches on several tracks
* 2005 - The Minstrel Show by Little Brother; Scratches on the song Watch Me.
* 2006 - Feel It (Jazzy Jeff Soulful Remix) by the Black Eyed Peas; from Renegotiations: The Remixes
* 2006 - Night in Tunisia (DJ Jazzy Jeff Remix) by Duke Jordan
* 2007 - Ear Drum by Talib Kweli; Scratches on song NY Weather Report.
* 2008 - Get Busy by The Roots (scratches); from the album Rising Down.
I Think I Can Beat Mike Tyson
DJ Jazzy Jeff Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Hey...hey Leroy...Leroy yeah did you hear about that boy Mike Tyson?
Mike...Mike Tyson he's the boy that played football from Montreal ain't he?
No no you old coop, he a...he a boxer man yeah let me tell ya I went to his fight a couple months ago.
I seen him hit this boy, and he hit the boy so hard his head flew off into the eighteenth row (laughing) they had to get his head out of the eighteenth row
[Prince & Jeff] I was in Jeff's crib one night about eight and we were watchin'a couple of Mike Tyson fight tapes Jeff was like... man, you see how hard Mike's punchin'?
Come on Jeff the other guy was just lungin'
The very next day I gave Russell a ring with J.L. and Omar we all called Don King
I said 'yeah, Don I got a problem
Tell 'em Prince 'yeah what's up? what you sayin? you tryin' to solve 'em?'
'forget the small talk let's get to the nitty gritty' 'me and Mike, two months, Trump, Atlantic City'
Yo, you got this you gonna bust dude up
Yeah, you can be my trainer word up?
I'm rough like a freight train smooth like ice and yo Jeff, straight up, I think I can Mike Tyson
Man, you can beat him, you can beat him yo man, word up yo I put on a couple of pounds man we can do this you can do it
[Newspaper boy:] extra, extra read all about it Fresh Prince challenges Iron Mike Tyson to a fight (laughing) ah he's crazy
Ain't that the boy who knocked the guy's head in the fifthteen row?
Hey Leroy, you read the paper? that boy done lost his mind
[Prince, Barber] there was press conference to see what training I was doing
Before then I had never heard reporters booing
Cameras flashing I was in the middle
I didn't wanna look dumb so I exagerrated a little
I said uh I been training 2o hours a day lifting big old cars and big bails of hay (that's what he's doin')
And I run 10,000 miles every morning thinkin' about Mike and my moment of glory (tell 'em more)
I drink water 20 gallons a pop and I can throw a Volkswagon a whole half block (he can do it too)
And 4 million sit ups...in a minute.... ..I ain't lying I did it (he done it)
The general public thought I was a fool
I was gettin' dissed but I guess that was cool
Well gettin' dissed is never good
But I was even gettin' dissed in my old neighborhood
I was at the corner at the top of my block there was a couple of people standing outside of the barber shop
It was Larwence, my barber, and Franny he yelled out hey, Prince, you can win!
I said 'really?' and I stopped to chat
You could beat him man, if you hit him wit a bat ha ha...you gon' get whipped but can I have your shoes when he break your neck?
Everybody was laughin' out loud I thought at least my own Grandma would be proud
I went to her house and snuck in to surprise her I heard her on the phone (a thousand bucks on Tyson)
[Prince, Ring Announcer] it's fight day and man am I hyped boy I can't wait to see Mike
Boy I'm hyped ready to be my thing Trump Castle Casino
In this corner...weighing in at a mere 165 pounds, the Lighting Rodent, the Fresh Prince! (booing)
And in this corner... the heavyweight champion of the world... Iron Mike Tyson (cheering)
I came out hustling sliding and grabbing slippin' and dippin' hustlin' and jabbin'
For a second I looked good out there but then Mike brought to reality my worst nightmare
One punch, that's all it took (oooh) he hit me in my ribs and my insides shook
Now how can I say this and be a little discreet let's just say that my bowels released
I called timeout and went back to my corner
Said to my coach 'ain't no way I'm goin' the hell back out there, man you can't forget it'
My body's like a punchin' bag and Mike is gonna (hit it)
They tried to make me go meet my doom but I sucker punched my coach and hauled to my dressing room
The next day the headline in the town 'Fresh Prince breaks camp, Tyson wins first round'
Some fool asked why I ran away I said 'a good run is better than a bad stand anyday'
My career is over as far as fightin' but I don't know what made me think I can beat Mike Tyson
2 old men: hey Leroy! yeah did you see the fight?
Did you see the fight?
The..the..the football player?
No the boxer, come on man I was at the fight last night I paid four hundred and seventy fo' thousand dollars for my ticket right... ah, you weren't at no fight I seen you around here last night ..and the boy..the boy ran out the ring you always lying I ain't lying... you lie to your grandkids.. ..I seen it... ...you been lying ever since you was a little kid ...Mike Tyson punched the boy in his ribs, and his leg fell off his leg fell off and it fell over... ...you always lying ...and it knocked the HBO cameraman's camera fell out his hand I said, god damn, I couldn't beleive it Leroy you shoulda been there...you definetly shoulda been there ...I was right next to you playin' checkers
The lyrics to DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince's song "I Think I Can Beat Mike Tyson" tell a story of a young man who believes he can beat the heavyweight champion of the world, Mike Tyson, in a boxing match. The song opens with two men discussing Mike Tyson, and one of them describes seeing him hit his opponent so hard that their head flew off into the eighteenth row.
In the next verse, the singer is hanging out with his friend Jeff, and they're watching a couple of Mike Tyson fight tapes. Jeff remarks on how hard Mike can punch, but the singer brushes it off, saying that if it were him in the ring, he'd be okay. The next day, the singer and his friends call Don King to set up a fight between him and Mike Tyson. They agree to fight in two months at Trump's casino in Atlantic City.
The singer talks about his training regimen, which includes lifting cars and bales of hay, running 10,000 miles every morning, drinking 20 gallons of water at a time, and doing 4 million sit-ups in a minute. Despite the ridicule he faces from the press and his own neighborhood, he remains confident that he can win.
On the day of the fight, he enters the ring as the underdog, and while he puts up a good fight initially, Mike Tyson knocks him down with one punch. The singer surrenders, calling a timeout and refusing to go back out into the ring. He ends up fleeing the scene and heading back to his dressing room, ultimately accepting that he was foolish to think he could beat Mike Tyson.
Overall, the lyrics explore themes of confidence, ambition, and the harsh reality of facing a formidable opponent. The singer's belief in himself is ultimately tested and found lacking, leading to a humbling experience.
Line by Line Meaning
Hey...hey Leroy...Leroy yeah did you hear about that boy Mike Tyson?
Hey Leroy, have you heard about the boxer named Mike Tyson?
Mike...Mike Tyson he's the boy that played football from Montreal ain't he?
Wait, Mike Tyson is the football player from Montreal, right?
No no you old coop, he a...he a boxer man yeah let me tell ya I went to his fight a couple months ago.
No, you're mistaken. He's a boxer. I actually went to one of his fights a couple of months ago.
I seen him hit this boy, and he hit the boy so hard his head flew off into the eighteenth row (laughing) they had to get his head out of the eighteenth row
I witnessed Tyson punch a guy so hard that his head flew into the eighteenth row of the audience. It was so funny, they had to retrieve the guy's head from there.
[Prince & Jeff] I was in Jeff's crib one night about eight and we were watchin'a couple of Mike Tyson fight tapes Jeff was like... man, you see how hard Mike's punchin'?
One night at Jeff's place, we were watching some Mike Tyson fight tapes. Jeff was amazed at how powerful Tyson's punches were.
Come on Jeff the other guy was just lungin'
Oh, come on Jeff. The other guy was only making desperate lunges.
Left, right, left, right, another K.O. if that was me I'd a been ok though
Tyson kept delivering powerful left and right punches, knocking his opponent out. If I were in that situation, I would have been fine though.
The very next day I gave Russell a ring with J.L. and Omar we all called Don King
The very next day, I called Russell along with J.L. and Omar. We all contacted Don King.
I said 'yeah, Don I got a problem
I told Don King, 'Hey, Don, I have an issue.
Tell 'em Prince 'yeah what's up? what you sayin? you tryin' to solve 'em?'
Prince chimed in, saying, 'Yeah, what's up? Can you help us solve it?'
'forget the small talk let's get to the nitty gritty' 'me and Mike, two months, Trump, Atlantic City'
Don King dismissed small talk and got straight to the point. He suggested that Prince and Mike set up a fight in two months at Trump's Atlantic City.
Yo, you got this you gonna bust dude up
Hey, you can do this! You're going to defeat that guy.
Yeah, you can be my trainer word up?
Yes, would you like to be my trainer? I'm serious.
I'm rough like a freight train smooth like ice and yo Jeff, straight up, I think I can Mike Tyson
I'm tough like a freight train and smooth like ice. Seriously Jeff, I truly believe I can beat Mike Tyson.
Man, you can beat him, you can beat him yo man, word up yo I put on a couple of pounds man we can do this you can do it
Man, you definitely have what it takes to defeat him. Seriously, I gained a few pounds, but we can still make this happen.
[Newspaper boy:] extra, extra read all about it Fresh Prince challenges Iron Mike Tyson to a fight (laughing) ah he's crazy
Extra, extra! Read all about it! Fresh Prince challenges Iron Mike Tyson to a fight. Haha, he must be crazy!
Ain't that the boy who knocked the guy's head in the fifteenth row?
Isn't he the guy who punched someone's head so hard that it flew into the fifteenth row?
Hey Leroy, you read the paper? that boy done lost his mind
Hey Leroy, did you read the newspaper? That guy has clearly gone insane.
[Prince, Barber] there was press conference to see what training I was doing
There was a press conference held to discuss my training regimen.
Before then I had never heard reporters booing
Before that, I had never experienced reporters booing me.
Cameras flashing I was in the middle
Cameras were constantly flashing, and I was at the center of attention.
I didn't wanna look dumb so I exagerrated a little
I didn't want to appear foolish, so I exaggerated a bit.
I said uh I been training 2o hours a day lifting big old cars and big bails of hay (that's what he's doin')
I confidently claimed that I've been training for 20 hours a day, lifting heavy cars and bales of hay.
And I run 10,000 miles every morning thinkin' about Mike and my moment of glory (tell 'em more)
I boastfully stated that I run 10,000 miles every morning, thinking about Mike and my future triumphant moment.
I drink water 20 gallons a pop and I can throw a Volkswagon a whole half block (he can do it too)
I proudly declared that I can consume 20 gallons of water at once and have the strength to throw a Volkswagen a significant distance.
And 4 million sit ups...in a minute.... ..I ain't lying I did it (he done it)
I boldly claimed that I can perform 4 million sit-ups in just one minute, and I'm not lying, I actually did it.
The general public thought I was a fool
The public considered me a fool.
I was gettin' dissed but I guess that was cool
I was being insulted, but I pretended to be okay with it.
Well gettin' dissed is never good
Well, being insulted is never a pleasant experience.
But I was even gettin' dissed in my old neighborhood
But what bothered me more was that even in my own neighborhood, I was being insulted.
I was at the corner at the top of my block there was a couple of people standing outside of the barber shop
I was standing at the corner of my block, near the barber shop, and there were a few people gathered there.
It was Larwence, my barber, and Franny he yelled out hey, Prince, you can win!
My barber, Larwence, and Franny were among the people there. Franny shouted, 'Hey, Prince, you can win!'
I said 'really?' and I stopped to chat
I responded, 'Seriously?' and paused to have a conversation.
You could beat him man, if you hit him wit a bat ha ha...you gon' get whipped but can I have your shoes when he break your neck?
You could definitely defeat him if you hit him with a bat. Haha... although you'll likely get beaten up. But, if he breaks your neck, can I have your shoes?
Everybody was laughin' out loud I thought at least my own Grandma would be proud
Everyone burst into laughter. I thought that, at the very least, my own Grandma would be proud.
I went to her house and snuck in to surprise her I heard her on the phone (a thousand bucks on Tyson)
I went to her house to surprise her, but I overheard her on the phone, placing a bet of a thousand bucks on Tyson.
[Prince, Ring Announcer] it's fight day and man am I hyped boy I can't wait to see Mike
It's the day of the fight, and I'm extremely excited. Boy, I just can't wait to see Mike in action.
Boy I'm hyped ready to be my thing Trump Castle Casino
Man, I'm so hyped and ready to showcase my skills at Trump Castle Casino.
In this corner...weighing in at a mere 165 pounds, the Lighting Rodent, the Fresh Prince! (booing)
In this corner... the Fresh Prince, the Lightning Rodent, weighing in at a mere 165 pounds! (Booing from the crowd)
And in this corner... the heavyweight champion of the world... Iron Mike Tyson (cheering)
And in this corner... the reigning heavyweight champion of the world... Iron Mike Tyson! (Cheers from the crowd)
I came out hustling sliding and grabbing slippin' and dippin' hustlin' and jabbin'
I entered the ring with a lot of energy, swiftly moving and attacking my opponent.
For a second I looked good out there but then Mike brought to reality my worst nightmare
Initially, I appeared to be doing well, but then Mike suddenly made me face my worst nightmare.
One punch, that's all it took (oooh) he hit me in my ribs and my insides shook
With just one punch, he completely changed the situation. Oof! He landed a blow on my ribs, shaking me to my core.
Now how can I say this and be a little discreet let's just say that my bowels released
I need to express this delicately, but let's just say that my bowels were no longer under control.
I called timeout and went back to my corner
I requested a timeout and returned to my corner.
Said to my coach 'ain't no way I'm goin' the hell back out there, man you can't forget it'
I told my coach, 'There's absolutely no way I'm going back out there. Forget it, man.'
My body's like a punchin' bag and Mike is gonna (hit it)
My body feels like a punching bag, and Mike is going to attack it.
They tried to make me go meet my doom but I sucker punched my coach and hauled to my dressing room
They attempted to send me back out to face my impending doom, but I surprised everyone by punching my coach and rushing to my dressing room.
The next day the headline in the town 'Fresh Prince breaks camp, Tyson wins first round'
The following day, the headlines in town read, 'Fresh Prince leaves training camp, Tyson emerges victorious in the first round.'
Some fool asked why I ran away I said 'a good run is better than a bad stand anyday'
Some fool asked me why I ran away. I simply replied, 'It's always better to flee successfully than to stay and face defeat.'
My career is over as far as fightin' but I don't know what made me think I can beat Mike Tyson
My fighting career is finished, but I still can't comprehend why I ever believed in my ability to defeat Mike Tyson.
2 old men: hey Leroy! yeah did you see the fight?
Two old men: Hey Leroy! Did you watch the fight?
Did you see the fight?
Did you watch the fight?
The..the..the football player?
The... the... the football player?
No the boxer, come on man I was at the fight last night I paid four hundred and seventy fo' thousand dollars for my ticket right... ah, you weren't at no fight I seen you around here last night ..and the boy..the boy ran out the ring you always lying I ain't lying... you lie to your grandkids.. ..I seen it... ...you been lying ever since you was a little kid ...Mike Tyson punched the boy in his ribs, and his leg fell off his leg fell off and it fell over... ...you always lying ...and it knocked the HBO cameraman's camera fell out his hand I said, god damn, I couldn't beleive it Leroy you shoulda been there...you definetly shoulda been there ...I was right next to you playin' checkers
Old man 1: Hey Leroy! Did you see the fight?
Old man 2: Did you watch the fight?
Old man 1: No, not the football player. Come on, I was actually at the fight last night. I even paid 470,000 dollars for my ticket, right?
Old man 2: Ah, you weren't at any fight. I saw you around here last night. And the guy... the guy ran out of the ring. You're always lying.
Old man 1: I'm not lying! You lie to your grandkids. I saw it... you've been lying since you were a little kid. Mike Tyson punched the guy in his ribs, and his leg fell off. It fell off and then it fell over...
Old man 2: You're always lying...
Old man 1: And, the HBO cameraman's camera fell out of his hand. I said, 'God damn, I couldn't believe it.' Leroy, you should have been there. You definitely should have been there. I was right next to you playing checkers.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: JEFFREY TOWNES, PETER BRIAN HARRIS, WILLARD C. SMITH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
King-Vis
You can call Will Smith corny or whatever you want, but you can't deny that he's extremely talented!
King-Vis
*****
Ask the haters.
clark4023
+King Vis People who try to ride that bullsh*# bandwagon forget that this guy thrived during a time when you had to be a great MC in order to make it. It's not like now when one hit makes you great. You had to be great in the 80's.
Cam M
he's being himself infintely better then these trying to hard to be tough guys running around instead of being comfortable in there own skin
clark4023
He had a great impact. He made it easy for MC's like kid and play, Dana Dane and Biz Markie to come out and not be so serious. They talked about funny real life issues and not police brutality or poverty. Before him, the closest thing you had was the Fat Boys talking about food. There was no mainstream hip hop in 86. People think that it always existed because it does now.
clark4023
You call it crap, but being in New York, we loved it. We laughed and talked about that was how we acted after we saw the movie. So, it was far from crap. Again, like parents just don't understand, he spoke truth in a funny way. We felt like our parents didn't understand us.
Florida life is the best
This was the best era for hip hop. Story telling, humor and everyone had their own sound.
Brandon H
Back when rap wasn't afraid to be fun
qxtves 💫💜
@JazzFan76 fr
MLBlue30
@qxtves 💫💜 Actually its more about drugs and getting turnt at the club. Every other song is about some new way to get drunk to some shitty dubstep beat.