Questlove missed Will Smith's Oscar slap of Chris Rock because he was "meditating"

People

"I really wasn't aware of that. It's weird to say, because they tell you ahead of time, 'This is your category,' so in that moment, you're either going to be full of anxiety or, for me, I've been meditating for the last two years," The Tonight Show bandleader told Jimmy Fallon, in an interview about his win for Summer of Soul, according to People. "So when I opened my eyes, I was like, 'Why is everyone so quiet?' I literally was not present for that whole entire moment," he recalled. "As I'm walking to the stage, I'm kind of putting two and two together, and I realize that that was a real moment maybe three seconds before I spoke words," he continued. "But in my mind they're just doing a sketch or whatever and I'm like, 'OK, Ahmir, remember to thank your mom, dad,' so I was not present at all." In a tweet, Questlove confirmed he was rattled by the controversy while on stage.