Will Smith is debuting a new song: What to know about his 2024 BET Awards performance
The Fresh Prince is taking back the mic.
Will Smith will perform a new song at the 2024 BET Awards Sunday, the network announced Monday. The show, which will be hosted by Taraji P. Henson, airs Sunday at 8 p.m. ET and PT.
Victoria Monét, GloRilla, Ice Spice, Latto, Ms. Lauryn Hill and YG Marley, Sexyy Red, Shaboozey and Tyla are among the other performers at this year's awards show. BET will also bestow the Lifetime Achievement BET Award to Usher.
Details on Smith's new release and performance are scarce. The Oscar and Grammy winner, who's been busy promoting the latest "Bad Boys" franchise installation, has made a few surprise performances recently, including at Coachella in April and the "Bad Boys: Ride or Die" premiere in Hollywood last month.
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In April, Smith joined J. Balvin on stage to rap his Grammy-winning track "Men In Black" while appropriately dressed like his character from the 1997 film.
As he rolled up to the "Ride or Die" premiere in Hollywood atop a double-decker bus with co-star Martin Lawrence last month, Smith gave a brief performance of his 1997 song "Miami" as an ode to his character, who's a Miami Police detective.
Smith's last single as lead artist was 2017's "Get Lit," though he recently appeared on the "Bad Boys: Ride or Die" soundtrack with a Sean Paul collaboration titled "Light Em Up."
Before his acting career kicked off with "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" and reached a major milestone in 2022 with his Oscar win for "King Richard" (a moment that remains in the shadow of him slapping host Chris Rock on stage earlier in the ceremony), Smith earned four Grammy Awards as a rapper.
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In 1989, he won best rap performance for "Parents Just Don't Understand," which was featured on DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince's second album, "He's the DJ, I'm the Rapper." Three years later, he and DJ Jazzy Jeff, aka Jeff Townes, scored a win in the same category for their track "Summertime."
Smith earned two best rap solo performance wins for "Men In Black" (1998) and "Gettin' Jiggy Wit It" (1999).
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Will Smith new song to debut at BET Awards 2024
