Just days before filing a bombshell lawsuit, a musician from Will Smith’s 2025 world tour shared a chilling social media message that many now see as a warning sign. Brian King Joseph, a 32-year-old violinist and America’s Got Talent alum, posted a cryptic video about truth, courage, and standing up for what’s right—an eerie prelude to allegations that would soon place the Oscar-winning actor at the center of a serious legal battle.
Joseph’s video, shared on December 26, struck followers as unusually somber and deliberate. At the time, few understood its significance. Four days later, on December 30, Joseph filed a lawsuit in California Superior Court accusing Smith of sexual harassment, retaliation, and wrongful termination. In hindsight, the timing has raised eyebrows, with the post now viewed as a careful attempt to prepare the ground for what was coming.
According to the complaint, Joseph was hired in November 2024 to perform on Smith’s Based on a True Story: 2025 global tour. Things allegedly took a disturbing turn during a Las Vegas stop in March 2025. Joseph claims that when he returned to his hotel room around 11 p.m., he discovered it had been unlawfully entered.
Inside the room, he says, was a handwritten note addressed to him that read, “Brian, I’ll be back no later (sic) 5:30 just us,” signed with a heart and the name “Stone F.” The note was allegedly accompanied by items that heightened his alarm, including wipes, a beer bottle, a red backpack, an earring, hospital discharge paperwork belonging to someone else, and a bottle of HIV medication labeled with another person’s name.
Joseph claims the scene suggested someone intended to return for a private encounter he never agreed to. Fearing for his safety, he reported the incident to hotel security, contacted a non-emergency police line, and notified tour management. Rather than receiving support, he alleges he was shamed, removed from the tour lineup, and ultimately replaced.
The lawsuit states that the experience caused severe emotional distress, financial losses, reputational damage, and long-term mental health effects, including PTSD.
In the video Joseph posted days before filing suit, he spoke cautiously, aware of the legal stakes. He described landing what he called a “major, major” tour opportunity with a powerful figure in the industry, only for things to unravel. Without naming Smith directly, he said that reporting sexual misconduct or safety concerns at work should never result in being fired, blamed, or threatened.
Joseph also used the moment to address others who may have faced similar situations, telling viewers he saw them and understood how hard it can be to speak up.
Will Smith has categorically denied the allegations. His attorney, Allen B. Grodsky, released a statement calling the claims “false, baseless and reckless,” and said Smith intends to fight them using all available legal avenues.
What began as a vague, unsettling Instagram post has now escalated into a high-profile courtroom showdown. As the case moves forward, Joseph’s allegations and Smith’s firm denial are set to face intense legal and public scrutiny.
