Will Smith is sharing one of the strangest and most chilling personal facts of his life.
The Oscar winner revealed during a “Broken Record Podcast” interview released Tuesday that he was fortunate enough to meet the Notorious B.I.G. and speak with Prince when they were still alive — but both artists died hours later.
When podcast host Justin Richmond asked about the rumor, the actor hesitated to share.
“Let me tell you,” said Smith. “I don’t even want to say this out loud, ’cause it’s like, a terrible jinx. I met Biggie four hours before he got killed. And I talked to Prince eight hours before he died.
“I talked to Prince and, he called and he was pitching. He was saying me, him and Jay-Z should start an entertainment company,” he continued. “And he said he had talked to Jay and he wanted to do it. We talked that night, and in the morning, he was gone. I don’t know what that says about me.”
Richmond tried to reassure Smith, arguing coincidences like these are bound to happen when “you have enough experiences in life.” Smith couldn’t help himself, however, and jokingly warned: “Don’t call me!”
Born Christopher Wallace, the Notorious B.I.G. was gunned down in Los Angeles after a Vibe Magazine party on March 9, 1997. His unsolved murder ultimately prompted rappers from opposite sides of the country to end their years-long East Coast/West Coast beef.
Left: Kevin Winter/WireImage/Getty Images; Right: Al Pereira/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
Smith said Tuesday that the “stupid” killing brought him to tears and “scared” him — since Smith was a rapper, too. Tupac Shakur had been gunned down similarly in Las Vegas only six months earlier.
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Smith was already an established actor when he met Biggie and was months away from his smash hit “Men In Black” hitting theaters. By the time he spoke to Prince, shortly before his accidental fentanyl overdose in 2016, Smith had been famous for decades.
The actor is currently promoting his first solo album in 20 years — “Based on a True Story” — which is reportedly scheduled to arrive in March.