Big Willie Style (Columbia, 1997) by Will Smith

Will Smith was on the verge of movie superstardom when this album was released, but this project proved that the Fresh Prince could still rap.  With top-notch production from the likes of L.E.S., Trackmasters, and Jazzy Jeff, Mr. Smith created a great upbeat album.  The singles are great, but even some of the deep cuts here are great too such as "Candy" and "Chasing Forever."  Nas gets major props as well for ghostwriting some of Big Willie Style's standout material.

He’s the DJ, I’m the Rapper (Jive, 1988) by DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince

For as monumental as this album is (one of its singles, "Parents Just Don't Understand," was the first song ever to win a Grammy in the Best Hip Hop/Rap Single category), it seems that it is underappreciated.  This is a very good album.  DJ Jazzy Jeff's scratching and cutting is superb, and Will's writing and rapping are uniquely his own.  "Nightmare on My Street" is a clever, light ode to horror films and Charlie Mack [First Out of the Limo] is a great shout out to his body guard ("Apollo Creed is a sucker/Charlie Mack could be Drago").  And "Time to Chill" has a nice mellow vibe.  "Here We Go Again" is an excellent reintroduction of the duo.  The aforementioned "Parents Just Don't Understand," of course, is timeless (and props to Ben Affleck for mentioning the song when talking with Will Smith in Jersey Girl).  Overall, this is a great hip hop album that still holds up almost a quarter of a century since its release.

Homebase (Jive, 1991) by DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince

"It's late in the day and I ain't been on the court yet/Hustle to the mall to get me a short set/Yeah I got on sneaks, but I need a new pair/Cause basketball courts in the summer got girls there/The temperature's about 88/Hop in the water plug, just for old times sake/Break to ya crib, change your clothes once more/Cause you're invited to a barbeque that's starting at 4/Sitting with your friends cause y'all reminisce/About the days growing up, and the first person you kiss/And as I think back makes me wonder how/The smell from a grill could spark up nostalgia/All the kids playing out front/Little boys messin' round with the girls playing double-dutch/While the DJ's spinning a tune, as the old folks dance at your family reunion/Then six o'clock rolls around, you just finished wiping your car down/It's time to cruise so you head to the summertime hangout/It looks like a car show/Everybody come lookin' real fine/Fresh from the barber shop or fly from the beauty salon/Every moment frontin', and maxin'/Chillin' in the car they spent all day waxin'/Leanin to the side, but you can't speed through/Two miles an hour so everybody sees you/There's an air of love and of happiness/And this is the Fresh Prince's new definition of summer madness"

-The Fresh Prince, "Summertime"