Will Smith was born in West Philadelphia, where he was awarded; there’s now a street called Will Smith Way.
Smith honored with “Will Smith Way” street name in his Philadelphia hometown
Will Smith was awarded in West Philadelphia, where he was born and raised; there’s now a street called Will Smith Way.
On Wednesday (March 26), the “Fresh Prince of Bel Air” actor was given a hero’s welcome and the first key to the city issued by Mayor Cherelle Parker. “This is amazing,” said a smiling Smith when he stepped to the podium.
West Philadelphia’s 59th Street is now officially known as Will Smith Way in honor of four-Grammy-award winner Will Smith. Mayor Cherelle Parker and other city leaders joined Smith to unveil the new street name Wednesday morning across the street from Overbrook High School, where Smith attended.
“You don’t get anything without discipline and hard work. You can’t make a life if you’re not willing to sacrifice and you’re not willing to suffer and work for your dreams,” Smith said.
Smith remembered walking the streets of Philadelphia in his youth.
“I walked across this bridge for my whole high school career in snow and rain,' he recalled.
And, in talking about the renaming effort, Smith said that ahead of the day, he found himself wondering “what is the Will Smith Way?” In the end, he said the answer laid in his parents and grandmother and the impact they had on his life.
“The Will Smith Way is encompassed in the lessons I got from my father, my mother and my grandmother,” he said.
Smith said that his father taught him that you need to be disciplined, suffer and work for your dreams.
“Nobody gets an easy ride and that's one of the things these streets of Philadelphia taught me is that there is nothing wrong with a hard day's work,” said Smith.
Smith also recalled the origin of his nickname, “the Fresh Prince,” saying he got it from Ms. Brown, his tenth-grade teacher, who often called him “prince charming.”
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