Will Smith Addresses Chris Rock Oscars Slap On ‘Based On a True Story,’ His First Album in 20 Years

Will Smith is aware of the elephant in the room, as the very first line on his first album in 20 years quickly addresses the infamous 2022 Oscars slap where Smith took the stage and hit Chris Rock.

The rapper-turned-actor released Based On a True Story, his first album since 2005, on Friday. The album opens with “Int. Barbershop,” meant to evoke a free-flowing conversation between several people gossiping about Smith, and it starts with the declaration “Will Smith is canceled.”

“Who the fuck Will Smith think he is,” Smith raps. “And that boy damn crazy, how he raisin’ them kids. Yes he is, and I’m never gonna forgive him for the shit he did.” The song gets more specific with the lines “I heard he won the Oscar but he had to give it back, and you know they only made him do that shit because he’s Black.”

Smith cheekily references the infamous declaration he made to Rock on stage after the slap a few more lines down on the song, as one voice says “him and Jada crazy, girl, what you talkin’ about,” while another voice responds “you better keep his wife’s name out of your mouth,” with the beat briefly halting for emphasis.

On the next song, “You Lookin’ For Me,” Smith briefly addresses the controversy again, rapping that “won’t stop, my shit still hot, even though I won’t get nominated.”

Smith had preempted the new album with the singles “Beautiful Scars” with Big Sean, “First Love,” You Can Make It,” “Tantrum,” and “Work of Art.” The album comes almost exactly 20 years ago to the day from when Smith released his last album Lost and Found. Based On a True Story reunited Smith with DJ Jazzy Jeff and also features collaborations with Teyana Taylor, Joyner Lucas and Smith’s son Jaden Smith. As The Hollywood Reporter reported last year, Smith signed a distribution deal with indie label Slang Records for the project.