<P> Jeffrey Allen Townes (born January 22, 1965), better known by his stage name DJ Jazzy Jeff or simply Jazz, is an American record producer, DJ, actor and comedian who is best known for his friendship and collaboration with Will Smith as DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince . </P> <P> Jeffrey Allen Townes was born on January 22, 1965 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania . Early on, he developed a reputation and a following as a school and block party DJ . He took the stage name DJ Jazzy Jeff and was one half of the duo DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince along with Will Smith . The group received the first Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance in 1989 for "Parents Just Don't Understand", though their most successful single was "Summertime" which earned the group their second Grammy and peaked at number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 . </P> <P> When Smith branched out into television with the sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel - Air, Jazzy Jeff played a recurring character named Jazz, Smith's best friend on the show . In the early seasons, the two characters always greeted each other with their signature handshake (swinging mid-five, point - back, snap with both characters saying "Pssh!"). A recurring joke throughout the show's run involved the character being physically ejected from the house by Uncle Phil (James Avery), using the same footage for comedic effect . </P> <P> One of the first records Jazzy Jeff ever appeared on was with The Korner Boyz (Street Artz Records) "Bust The Move and The Soga of Roxanne", which featured legendary Philadelphia rapper, MC Parry P and Grand Tone . The Instrumental was called "Jazzy Jeff Scratch" (1985). DJ Jazzy Jeff along with DJ Cash Money is credited with making the transformer scratch famous . </P>

Who plays jazz in fresh prince of bel air