“West Philadelphia born and raised” Will Smith is using his city mural to raise money for students.
The actor, rapper and Philly icon is painted sitting on a chair in a suit and Air Jordans in the new mural at 4545 W. Girard Avenue.
"The idea that there would be a mural of me on the side of a school in West Philadelphia just wrecked me," Smith said on his YouTube channel.
The mural actually sits on the wall of a furniture store across a parking lot from the Global Leadership Academy Charter School. But the proximity to the school inspired Smith to sell shirts, hoodies, mugs, totes, cellphone covers and more with the painting on them with 100 percent of proceeds going to the charter school.
British artist Richard Wilson painted the 65-foot tall mural of "The Fresh Prince" after finding the large wall on Google Street View. He said Kehinde Wiley's portrait of a seated President Barack Obama inspired him.
Smith has yet to see the mural in person but his mother Carolyn was overjoyed to see her son on the side of a building in his native neighborhood.
