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The 1990s sitcom, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, has Will Smith in the lead in his debutant acting role. While many remember the sitcom for being the launch of actor Will Smith, who was then a Grammy Award-winning singer, not many viewers know that the show had a true life inspiration. The sitcom is based on musician and producer Benny Medina.
The American sitcom aired between September 1990 and May 1996 on NBC. Medina executive produced The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air which he created along with Jeff Pollack, his business partner.
The real-life story was tweaked in various places as creative freedom. Actor Will Smith played a fictionalized version of himself. The sitcom was streamed on HBO Max in 2020, and it's currently available on Hulu.
Whose life is The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air based on?
As the lead character of Will Smith is playing himself in the plot of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, there's speculation whether the sitcom is based on Will Smith's life. Smith was a Grammy-winning musician with three albums at the time.
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As mentioned before, the show was inspired by the life and rise of musician Benny Medina who was also the executive producer of the show. Some changes were brought about in the storyline to keep the plot fresh.
One change was when Smith's character moved in to live with a rich black American relative, while in reality, Medina was a black teenager moving in with the family of a rich white friend.
Another difference between Medina's real story and Smith's character in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is the location of the story. While Medina had moved from east Los Angeles to Beverly Hills, Smith's character moved from Philadelphia to Bel-Air, California.
Some other differences between the real and the sitcom stories include the sexual orientation of Smith and Medina. While Will Smith is straight in the series, Medina was not so.
Moreover, Smith's character was shown with a troubled past to add to the drama, while Medina was a hit musician by the time he moved to Beverly Hills.
Who is Benny Medina?
As mentioned before, the real person behind The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, is a record-breaking musician and businessman, Benny Medina.
He started his music career as a teenager and quickly made a name for himself. While he was born in a poor family in east Los Angeles, Medina lost his mother young and was placed in foster homes with his siblings. By the time he and his siblings were taken in by his aunt, he had experienced amphetamines and cannabis addictions.
After meeting a wealthy white teenager, Medina was allowed to move into the refurbished garage of the family's Beverly Hills property. Medina joined Beverly Hills High School and turned out to be a successful student. He met Kerry Gordy in school, and their band produced many hits. From there, he moved to writing, production and talent management.
Some of the renowned names he's connected with include Jennifer Lopez, Tyra Banks, Mariah Carey and more. His growth from a poor black orphan to a successful musician and his flourishing business loosely make up the base for The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.
What is The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air about?
The sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is broadly based on Benny Medina. It stars Will Smith as hypothetical a version of himself in his rapper identity, The Fresh Prince. The sitcom had an opening theme performed by DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince.
The Fresh Prince, Will Smith, was a smart teenager from the poor areas of West Philadelphia. After a basketball accident leading to a street brawl, Smith's mother sent him to live with a wealthy aunt in Bel-Air, California. The humorous story revolves around Smith's interactions with his tough uncle, strict aunt, spoiled cousins and the supercilious family butler.
A dramatic take on the show was released on Peacock in 2022, in a two-season series titled Bel-Air. All episodes of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air are available to stream on Hulu.
