The monumental moment marked the ‘Bad Boys: Ride of Die’ actor’s first time at an awards show since his Oscar’s slap controversy in 2022.
Will Smith made his return to the awards show stage with a rousing performance that earned the rapper-actor a standing ovation.
The Bad Boys: Ride or Die star made his BET Awards stage debut Sunday, performing his new track ‘You Can Make It’ with the help of Fridayy and Kanye West’s Sunday Service Choir.
Smith was ushered to the stage following an emotional introduction by Taraji P. Henson, who called Smith her “brother.”
Standing amid a ring of fire Smith prefaced the Gospel-inspired song with this message: “I don’t know who needs to hear this right now, but whatever’s going on in your life right now, I’m here to tell you, you can make it.”
The moving moment also featured a sermon from mega-pastor, Kirk Franklin, who joined Smith on stage.
The performance comes more than two years after the 94th Academy Awards, which saw Smith slap Chris Rock onstage after the comedian make a joke about the Oscar-winning actor’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.
“Nobody gets an easy ride,” Smith said as the music faded out. “We all have a cross to bear, but there is wisdom in that fire, and every single moment of your life is a brand new opportunity. We are not being punished, we are being forged. Dance in your darkest moments.”
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The 53-year-old released the single — from his upcoming fifth studio album Dance in Your Darkest Moments — on Friday, which comes nearly 20 years after his last album Lost and Found.
Smith’s return to rap follows the success of the Bad Boys franchise’s fourth installment, and his surprise performance Coachella earlier this year, which saw him make a cameo during J. Balvin’s performance of Men in Black, dressed in his black suit look from the 1997 movie.
