Hollywood (usartical)
During a brief moment in the 1980s, Will Smith had one half of Salt-N-Pepa shouting, “Whatta Man.”
In addition to reflecting on how he was at the time pretty much infatuated with Sandra “Pepa” Denton, 57, the actor/rapper, 55, invited the legendary hip-hop pair to speak about their rise to rap superstardom in the 1980s on his Class of ’88 podcast, which was presented by Audible and Wondery.
Smith and the rapper reminisced about their “one and only date” and how “terrified” the Fresh Prince himself was during the encounter in the episode, which aired earlier this fall.
Smith claimed that after having a long-lasting crush on the musician, they went on a date “sometime in early ’88.” The Grammy winner admitted, “I always had a thing for Sandy, but she was always dating somebody else.” She was now unmarried. Since we will both be in Los Angeles at the same time, I decided to take a chance.
The superstar clarified that he felt he had to do it perfectly because he just had one chance. He said, “I needed to floss a little bit, so I rented a white Mercedes convertible because I wanted to impress this girl, who was special.” “My intention was to show her the Hollywood Hills, drive up Mulholland, and do other things after that.
Although Denton acknowledged in the interview that she remembered their outing together, the Oscar winner’s move stood out the most. “I’m aware of exactly what transpired,” she said. “You gave the homeless person $100 when we saw them while we were out.”
The rapper from “Push It!” went on, “I was like, ‘Okay, that was so great. We next proceeded to the Hollywood sign.
The musician was impressed by Smith, but Smith later admitted that his thoughts were elsewhere at the moment. The King Richard actor said, “My fear was that I would be killed.” When I was attempting to spit my game, it was my worry, but I don’t actually have nothing.
“I was always made to appear to be a gamer. I wasn’t really in the game,” he continued. “I was always trying to give this crazy flavor of having game, but I think that was the most scared I’ve ever been when I was trying to shoot my shot with Pepa.” I also didn’t think I had a genuine chance.
The celebrity acknowledged that their brief romance ended after that evening, but he also said that he, Salt-N-Pepa, and his former partner DJ Jazzy Jeff “always really got along.”
The “Shoop” performers talked to PEOPLE earlier this year about their fast-paced career and their experiences watching the genre develop since their debut in honor of hip-hop’s 50th anniversary.
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Because we are booked and busy, James said, “For me being in this genre and so successful for so many years, it is still mind blown emoji.” And I simply always thought Salt N Pepa was going to be successful. However, I never imagined that we would be in our fifties, still touring and playing, most likely to the same extent as before.
“That’s a testament to the power of the culture and how much people embrace and love it,” the speaker continued.
With the release of Class of ’88 this year, the rapper of “Parents Just Don’t Understand” also reflected on the early years of rap, discussing his initial thoughts on the podcast.