Oscar-winner reignites feud with veiled barbs and bars from flop comeback album
Will Smith appears to have reignited his feud with Chris Rock through a pointed freestyle delivered on Apple Music’s Fire in the Booth. While the Men in Black star doesn’t name Rock directly, he leaves little doubt about the target of his lines.
“If you talking crazy out your face up on the stage and disrespect me on the stage, expect me on the stage,” Smith raps in a clear reference to the infamous 2022 Oscars slap. He continues with, “Jokers dish it out, cry foul when it’s time to take it / City full of real ones, wasn’t raised to fake it.”
Chris Rock has yet to respond to the apparent diss.
The freestyle adds to a series of recent lyrical moments where Smith has addressed his public controversies. His 2025 comeback album Based on a True Story — which failed to chart on the Billboard 200 — opens with barbershop-style commentary touching on his Oscar fallout, family scrutiny, and public relevance.
Tracks like “You Lookin’ For Me?” also touch on his personal life, with references to wife Jada Pinkett Smith: “Personal life with my wife – mind your business, it’s complicated.”
Smith said advice from JAY-Z and Kendrick Lamar inspired the project, especially the album title. “Jay told me, ‘Don’t fake your story,’” Smith recalled. “That’s where I got Based on a True Story from.”