Legendary Philadelphia-born DJ and actor Jazzy Jeff has come to Will Smith’s defense after his friend slapped Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscar Awards.
Jeff, whose real name is Jeffrey Allen Townes, reportedly defended his Philly brethren during a conversation with WGCI Morning Show’s Kyle Santillian at Dorian’s Through The Record Shop in Chicago on Apr. 7.
A clip of the interview was posted on WGCI’s official Instagram page on Apr. 8.
“Don’t get it twisted…it was a lapse in judgment,” the DJ said about Smith smacking Rock. Him and the 53-year-old actor have been good friends for over 35 years.
“The thing that I realize is [that], I don’t know too many people that have had the least amount of lapse of judgment than me. I could name 50 times that he should’ve smacked the s**t out of somebody, and he didn’t. So for him to have a lapse of judgment, he’s human. I think a lot of the criticism comes from people who don’t think people like [Will Smith] are human.”
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The King Richard actor slapped Rock in the face during the recent Oscars ceremony on Mar. 27. He had done so after the 57-year-old comedian made a joke about his wife, actress Jada-Pinkett Smith’s hair as he was hosting the award show.
“I love ya. G.I. Jane 2 can’t wait to see it. Aight?” Rock said as he pointed to Pinkett-Smith. She rolled her eyes in disappointment as she had previously shaved her head bald due to suffering from a severe hair-loss condition called alopecia.
Her husband released a statement via Instagram on Mar. 29, saying he was sorry for his actions. Rock didn’t publicly accept the apology, but his brother, Tony Rock, rejected it via Twitter. Another one of his brothers, Kenny Rock, also spoke out, saying Smith should have been stripped of his Oscar Award. He added that he thought the alopecia joke was funny.
“The joke was funny,” he said. “It wasn’t hilarious funny, but I know that if he knew that she had alopecia … he wouldn’t make a joke about that. But he didn’t know.”
