Questlove Missed Will Smith Smacking Chris Rock at Oscars as He Was Meditating

Questlove claims he was meditating
when Will Smith smacked Chris Rock at the Oscars, so he missed the viral
moment. Following a joke about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith's shaved head, Smith
smacked the comedian onstage at the Oscars on 27^th March. Pinkett
Smith disclosed she has alopecia in 2018.

Questlove won Best Documentary for
his film Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) by
Rock only minutes after the incident, although he acknowledged that he had no
idea what had just happened on stage.

He told Jimmy Fallon: “They tell
you ahead of time, this is your category, and so, in that moment, you’re either
going to be full of anxiety or, for me, I’ve been like meditating for the past
couple of years.

“And when the commercial break happened, I was in my ‘Mmmm.’ So when I opened my eyes, I didn’t realise. ‘Why is everyone so quiet?’”

Questlove continued: “As I’m
walking to the stage, I’m kind of putting two and two together, and I realise
that was a real moment like maybe three seconds before I spoke words. But in my
mind, they were just doing a sketch or whatever, and I’m just like, ‘OK Ahmir,
remember to thank your mom, your dad.’ So I was not present at all. I was just
in a blank space.”

Many celebrities have condemned
Smith's conduct when he assaulted a comedian on stage for joking that he
couldn't wait to see Pinkett Smith in "G.I. Jane 2," a reference to
her shaved head. The star has been outspoken about her autoimmune disorder,
alopecia, and has shared the effects of the sickness with her social media
fans.

Others, including Fresh Prince of Bel-Air star Janet Hubert, have even defended Smith. “Will stood up for his wife, Chris Rock is always disrespecting Black women. Mean spirited hides behind comedy. BULL,” she said.

After the slap, however, Julian
Casablancas of The Strokes turned to Instagram to complain that "no one
stood up for Chris Rock."

“Imm bummed no one stood up for Chris Rock in the moment and
after, will smith shoulda tried to stand up to Eminem and Dr Dre same way…isn’t
it Chris Rock job’s (!?) to make fun of people in the audience, very weird.”

Following the ceremony, Smith released a statement
apologising to Rock. “I would like to publicly apologise to you, Chris,” the
statement read. “I was out of line and I was wrong. I am embarrassed and my
actions were not indicative of the man I want to be.”

The Academy has launched a formal review into the incident to “explore further action and consequences in accordance with our Bylaws, Standards of Conduct and California law”.

---Silviya.Y