Will Smith was the second of four children of Caroline and Willard Smith Sr., owner of a refrigeration company. He grew up in middle class West Philadelphia and got the nickname 'Prince' because of the way he could charm his way out of trouble. Produing music, he met Jeff Townes at a party and they soon began performing together as DJ.Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince. When the duo took off in popularity, Smith made, and spent a lot of money on a house, cars and jewelry. But Smith was looking for something new when, in 1989, he met Benny Medina, who had an idea for a sitcom based on his life in Beverly Hills.
Smith loved the idea as did NBC which put on the 'The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'. The plot was simple - Will basically played himself; a street-smart West Philly kid transplanted to Beverly Hills. The series lasted 6 years. During that time, he ventured into movies where the critics took note of him in Six Degrees of Separation (1993).
With the success that came with the action picture Bad Boys (1995), Will's movie career was set.