Say what you want about Will Smith, but he has talent; 1987’s A Nightmare on My Street proves that.
Today, Will Smith is an Oscar-winning actor that is known for his funny, emotional, and action powerhouse roles. But Smith didn’t start as an actor — he was (and still is) a rapper. Growing up in the 90s, I was a fan of a number of Smith’s songs, many of them accompanied by famous movies like Wild Wild West and Men in Black. While other musicians of the time were making music about ass and drive-bys, Smith (aka The Fresh Prince) was gracing us with fun, catchy rhymes that even our parents could get down to (y’know, when then do understand!).
In 1984, a movie called A Nightmare on Elm Street came out; Freddy Krueger — the antagonist — killed teenagers in their dreams while they slept. Following the film’s success, two more sequels were made and Smith (along with friend/musical partner DJ Jazzy Jeff) decided to give the movie a sort of Weird Al treatment. Thus, A Nightmare on My Street was born.
In the song, The Fresh Prince, Jazzy Jeff, and a few friends go to see Elm Street after performing. Later that night, Smith has a nightmare about “Fred,” and it turns out that the movie was real. While Fred asks Smith to help him reap souls (a shout-out to the second Elm Street movie), Smith begs for his life and tries to escape. When he finally gets ahold of Jeff to warn him about Freddy Krueger, Jeff is killed. The song is a banger and features music sampled from the Elm Street theme.
Now here’s the crazy part — not all people like their ideas taken. New Line Cinema, copyright holders for the Elm Street series, sued the duo over it. Eventually settling out of court, the duo was forced to destroy the music video (obviously not happening because it’s online in all its glory) and include a disclaimer about the song not being associated with the films. While I don’t think anyone should just be able to take IPs and do what they want with them, I’m sure this song didn’t hurt the series at all. Probably even bumped up the numbers slightly, if I’m honest.
Like Nosferatu, it’s cool to see media that was almost lost at one point. It’s certainly a lot easier to pass along bootleg copies of 80s cassettes than it is a film from the 20s, but the point still remains. A Nightmare on My Street shows the talent Smith possesses word-wise. His flow is on point, as are his picture-painting, story-telling skills. He mixes in quintessential Fresh Prince jokes with the seriousness of getting killed via dream demon effortlessly. DJ Jazzy Jeff mixed the supernatural Elm Street sound with one that speaks of the streets — drums and a funky bassline. A Nightmare on My Street goes hard!
What do you think of A Nightmare on My Street? Let us know in the comments!
