The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (song)

Lyrically, the song is storytelling narrative,[7] describing how its protagonist was "born and raised" in West Philadelphia, but after a violent encounter there was sent to live with family in Bel Air, Los Angeles. As one account maintains, the protagonist "raps about his mother sending him to live with his aunt and uncle because she was afraid that he would fall victim to [his] tough West Philadelphia neighborhood".[8] It has thus been described as an example of the tendency of rappers to "present pathological perspectives of their own communities".[8] The song further "explains how a boy from the ghetto would end up living in Bel-Air", and thereby "ushers in a fantasy" of an implausible scenario in which a poor person escapes to wealth.[9]

The single was released exclusively in the Netherlands and Spain in 1992. In the former country, it spent 10 weeks on the Dutch Top 40, peaking at number three.[1] In Spain, it debuted at number two, its peak, and stayed in the top 20 for seven weeks.[10] Although it was not released in the United Kingdom, the song earned a Silver sales certification from the British Phonographic Industry in February 2018 for sales and streams of over 200,000.[11]

An article on the MTV.co.uk website stated about the song, "Say what you want, but considering the sitcom wrapped up over 20 years ago and people are still able to start spitting out those lyrics on cue, its lasting appeal is undeniably impressive."[12] Tom Eames of Digital Spy ranked the song 3rd in a list of 25 sitcom theme songs.[13] and Rolling Stone readers ranked the song 6th out of a list of 10 television theme songs.[14]

• The song was covered by Ving Rhames for an Arby's commercial in 2016.[16]
• Ed Sheeran performed an acoustic cover of the song on Capital FM in January 2017.[17]
• Sylvia Jeffreys performed an on-air recitation of Yo Home To Bel-Air during an episode of the Nine Network's show Today.[18]
• Jimmy Fallon performed a shot-for-shot spoof remake of the Fresh Prince of Bel Air introduction during an episode of The Tonight Show in 2015, with DJ Jazzy Jeff as the cab driver.[19]
• One Direction performed the song during a concert in Philadelphia.[20]
• Alessia Cara performed a short version of the song on The Tonight Show while impersonating Nicki Minaj.[21]
• The Lonely Island performed the song as part of a medley of Will Smith's songs at the 2016 MTV Music Awards.[22]
• Alex Trebek performed a short version of the song, as part of a question on the Jeopardy! TV show.[23]
• A caller to C-SPAN, during a segment on nuclear talks with Iran, stated "At some point during the conversation, a couple of guys who were up to no good essentially started causing trouble in my neighborhood. I got in one little fight and my mom got scared and said 'you're moving with your auntie and uncle in Bel-Air.'"[24]
• Welsh comedy rap group Goldie Lookin Chain recorded a parody of the song in 2011 titled "The Fresh Prince of Cwmbran" featuring lyrics praising the South Wales town of the same name.[25]
• In 2017, Hasbro Studios created a new promo for the seventh season of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic where Pinkie Pie (Andrea Libman) parodies the theme song as "The Fresh Princess of Friendship".[26]
• A 2018 Saturday Night Live sketch saw an extended parody version of the song, where the West Philly gang tracked Will (played by Chris Redd) to Bel Air. Following this, an FBI agent (played by Jessica Chastain) helps him fake his death, only to sell him out to the Yakuza. The West Philly gang then turns up and a shootout occurs, where Will is saved by Uncle Phil (played by Kenan Thompson), who dies in the crossfire. The sketch ends with Will living in the woods under an assumed name in New Hampshire.[27][28]
• In 2018, the Sesame Street YouTube channel featured a spoof of the song performed by the characters Bert & Ernie entitled "How They Became Bert & Ernie", detailing how they first met.[29]
• The song was later interpolated in 2019 on the track "Don’t Be Afraid to Be Different" by rapper Logic, also featuring Will Smith, from his fifth album Confessions of a Dangerous Mind.[30]

• Full version on YouTube
• Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics