Questlove asks fans to stop discussing Will Smith Oscars slap

NME

Questlove has urged fans to “stop talking about” the Oscars incident involving Will Smith and Chris Rock.

The filmmaker, real name Ahmir “Questlove Thompson” won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature for his debut Summer of Soul just after the altercation between Smith and Rock onstage.

• READ MORE: The story of Slapgate: Will Smith and Chris Rock’s relationship through the years

Today, Questlove took to social media alluding to the incident, simply writing on Twitter: “Can we FINNNNNNNALY stop talking about it?”

Can we FINNNNNNNALY stop talking about it?

— Questo (@questlove) April 1, 2022

Earlier this week, he also revealed he didn’t see the viral moment in person because he was meditating.

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.”

Will Smith has since released a statement apologising directly to Chris Rock.

“I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris,” he wrote on social media. “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. There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness.”

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