Arguably, The Ed Sullivan Theater is not known for having a lot of people in its hallowed halls who know how to harness their inner jigginess. But leave it to Will Smith to fix that during his visit to "Late Show with David Letterman" Wednesday night.
Smith strode out onto the set in a sharp gray suit, gave Letterman a hug, then dashed to a waiting microphone as the band played "Gettin' Jiggy wit It," his No. 1 hit from 1998. Smith leapt right on the beat and rapped with all the Big Willie style, charm and skill we all know and love him for, then waved at the audience to get into the mood as well.
Smith recently popped up on "The Tonight Show" to beatbox with Jimmy Fallon, and Fallon opened his week of shows in L.A. with a delightful tribute to Smith's "Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" TV series. But nothing beats seeing the real deal in action on one of his own tunes.
"That's for you, man!" Smith told Letterman when he sat down.
"I can't do that," demurred the host.
"No, no, no, you can!" shouted Smith.
"The Late Show with David Letterman" airs weeknights at 11:35 p.m. on CBS.