Entertainment

How Don Cheadle Wrote the Theme Song to His “The Fresh Prince” Spin-Off | Vanity Fair

Published

1 year ago

August 10, 2023

In this “A List” discussion, Don Cheadle sits down with The Black List’s Franklin Leonard to talk about his favorite jazz solos of all time. From Miles Davis’ “Summertime” to Jaco Pastorius’ “Portraits of Tracy,” the actor breaks down what those solos meant to him and how it influenced his life and career. Don also opens up about choosing acting over music, almost getting his own “Fresh Prince” spin-off and what he hopes to see for his future.

SAG-AFTRA members are currently on strike; as part of the strike, union actors are not promoting their film and TV projects. This interview was conducted prior to the strike.

Check out some of Don Cheadle’s favorite jazz solos:
Miles Davis – “Summertime” (Porgy & Bess, 1959) https://bit.ly/3qtme3J
Oscar Peterson – “Tour’s End” (The Essential Oscar Peterson: The Swinger, 1992) https://spoti.fi/45kjbd4
Keith Jarrett – “Personal Mountains” (Personal Mountains, 1989) https://bit.ly/45he654
Jaco Pastorius – “Portrait of Tracy” (Jaco Pastorius, 1976) https://bit.ly/43XNjKd

Director: Alice Park
Director of Photography: Matt Krueger
Editor: Katie Wolford; Matt Colby
Host: Franklin Leonard
Producer: Juliet Lopez, Funmi Sunmonu
Line Producer: Romeeka Powell
Associate Producer: Emebeit Beyene
Production Manager: Andressa Pelachi and Kevin Balash
Production Coordinator: Kariesha Kidd
Director, Video Talent : Lauren Mendoza
Camera Operator: Shay Eberle-Gunst and Oliver Lukacs
Sound : Kara Johnson
Production Assistant: Fernando Barajas and Mike Kritzell
Set Designer: Morgan Roberts
Post Production Supervisor: Edward Taylor
Post Production Coordinator: Jovan James
Supervising Editor: Kameron Key
Assistant Editor: Billy Ward

00:00 A List with Don Cheadle
01:19 Jazz Solo #1: “Summertime” by Miles Davis
04:45 Jazz Solo #2: “Tour’s End” by Oscar Peterson
08:52 “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” Back Story
10:04 Jazz Solo #3: “Personal Mountains” by Keith Jarrett
13:19 Don’s Activism
16:37 “Damn!” Don Cheadle vs. Kevin Hart Reenactment
18:14 Jazz Solo #4 “Portrait of Tracy” by Jaco Pastorius
19:25 What’s Next for Don

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ABOUT VANITY FAIR
Arts and entertainment, business and media, politics, and world affairs—Vanity Fair’s features and exclusive videos capture the people, places, and ideas that define modern culture.

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8 Comments

Vaxdroid

August 10, 2023 at 12:01 pm

Muito bom ❤

Reply
Vaxdroid

August 10, 2023 at 12:01 pm

Like ❤

Reply
Vaxdroid

August 10, 2023 at 12:01 pm

Epico ❤

Reply
Alana Shanah

August 10, 2023 at 12:13 pm

Templeton ✊

Reply
Feroaz Ahmed

August 10, 2023 at 12:39 pm

Yo its a skrull

Reply
- Booming_Systems757
  
  August 10, 2023 at 1:41 pm
  
  🤣🤣🤣🤣
  
  Reply
lifewithntokozo

August 10, 2023 at 1:02 pm

I want to physically fight whoever wrote this clickbait title.

Reply
Anderson E. Luís

August 10, 2023 at 1:07 pm

Cheadle been one of the best black actors for like 30 years

Reply

Entertainment

Mission accomplished for Billie Eilish.

Published

2 days ago

December 20, 2024

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Billie Eilish looks back at her accomplishments over the past year

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Entertainment

“New Year, New _____ ???”

Published

2 days ago

December 20, 2024

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Elle Fanning at the “A Complete Unknown” premiere thinks about what the new year may bring.

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Entertainment

Timothée Chalamet & Elle Fanning Answer Rapid-Fire Questions | Off the Cuff | Vogue

Published

3 days ago

December 19, 2024

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“Scwontz!” In this episode of Off the Cuff (that nearly goes off the rails) “A Complete Unknown” stars Timothée Chalamet and Elle Fanning, answer a series of rapid-fire questions. What’s their favorite Bob Dylan lyric? Do they prefer acting or singing? When did they first meet each other? Do they like vinyl or streaming better? Timothée and Elle also rap about Doechii, Chappell Roan, and underground hip hop sensation Lil Timmy Tim.

Director: Symone Ridgell
Director of Photography: Stefan Vleming
Editor: Michael Penhollow
Producer: Michelle Bruno
Producer, On Set: Chase Lewis
Associate Producer: Marisah Yazbek
Gaffer/Camera Operator: Mike Nelli
Assistant Camera/Camera Operator: Amber Buchanan
Sound: Jennifer Zhang
Set Designer: Leah Waters-Katz
Production Assistants: Karla Rodriguez, Jordan Brown
Production Coordinator: Ava Kashar
Production Manager: Natasha Soto-Albors
Senior Director, Production Management: Jessica Schier
Assistant Editor: Andy Morell
Post Production Coordinator: Scout Alter
Supervising Editor: Erica DeLeo
Post Production Supervisor: Alexa Deutsch
Associate Director, Post Production: Nicholas Ascanio
Director, Video Talent: Lauren Mendoza
Director, Content Production: Rahel Gebreyes
Senior Director, Digital Video: Romy van den Broeke
Senior Director, Programming: Linda Gittleson
VP, Digital Video English: Thespena Guatieri