DJ Jazzy Jeff Talks About Will Smith's Oscar Slap Ahead Of National Harbor Show

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, MD — DJ Jazzy Jeff will appear at National Harbor this weekend, and shared some thoughts on long-time friend Will Smith's infamous slap of Oscars host Chris Rock.

Known as Smith's best friend on "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air," DJ Jazzy Jeff recently spoke with WTOP about Smith's confrontation on stage at the Academy Awards in March.

“A lapse in judgment,” the artist said of Smith's attack after Rock joked about Jada Pinkett's hair loss. “It’s just different when the lapse in judgment comes from one of the most recognizable figures on the planet, but that is probably nothing more than 99.9 percent of us have done at some point in our life. It just so happened that he did it on national television at the Oscars. People aren’t defined by their lapses in judgment.”

The slap earned Smith a 10-year ban from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. “It’s unfortunate,” Jeff said. “More than anything, I know Will and I know his character. He was very remorseful, and I’ve stated before, I’ve seen this man avoid bad lapses in judgment more than anybody I know when he could have. It just so happened that this was the one. … This is one of my closest friends. I made sure he’s OK, and he’s OK.”

The rapper is one of three performers set for this weekend's “Célébrez en Rosé,” along with Robin Thicke and Tamia.

“It’s a wine festival, a rosé festival, but everybody wears pink and white,” the rapper said. “It has great talent and people have a good time. Last year was the first one that I did and it was just amazing looking at a sea of people enjoying themselves. … My job in between these acts is to make everybody have a good time, so throw your glass in the air and let’s go!”

Read more about DJ Jazzy Jeff's childhood, love of music and winning a Grammy at WTOP.