When Men in Black hit theaters on July 2, 1997, Will Smith was no stranger to the big screen; he’d already appeared in films like Six Degrees of Separation, Bad Boys, and Independence Day. While the sci-fi comedy co-starring Tommy Lee Jones didn’t necessarily push his acting in new directions, it became a pivotal moment for his music career instead.
Global Chart Success
Smith’s song for the film, also titled “Men in Black,” became a sensation. Along with topping the US Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart (renamed to Radio Songs in 2014) for four weeks, it reached No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart on August 16, 1997. The song also dominated the charts in Australia, Germany, Switzerland, Ireland, and other countries worldwide. Since it was not issued as a commercial retail single in the U.S., it couldn’t appear on the main Billboard Hot 100 under the rules at the time.
After years of creating music with DJ Jazzy Jeff, Smith wrote the Men in Black theme song on his own. Since it heavily sampled Patrice Rushen‘s 1982 song, “Forget Me Nots,” she’s credited as a co-writer along with Terri McFadden and Freddie Washington.
The song took off and became a hit, and Smith later released it on his debut solo album, Big Willie Style. At the 1998 Grammy Awards, “Men in Black” went up against LL Cool J, Notorious B.I.G., Trevor Smith, Jr., and Missy Elliott. Still, Smith was the one who walked away with the Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance.
Sampling, Vocals, and Music Video Drama
In addition to sampling “Forget Me Nots,” it also featured Coko (Cheryl Gamble) of the group SWV, who provided the female vocals. According to Poke (Jean-Claude Olivier), who produced the song with Tone (Samuel Barnes), Coko refused to appear in the video.
“She was like, ‘Will Smith? F**k outta here,'” he recalled to Complex. “She sang the record but she was like I’m not doing this video. That was the worst mistake of her life.”
“Men in Black” didn’t just top the charts; it proved Smith could dominate the music world and be a box-office king.
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