Stephen A. Smith has received plenty of pushback for his recent claim that the city of Memphis is “not the safest environment,” including from the city’s mayor himself, Paul Young. And it turns out, Smith now plans on putting his claim to the test by visiting Memphis as a guest of Young sometime in the foreseeable future.
In a social media post on Tuesday, Young responded to Smith’s claim, pointing out that crime has been down significantly in Memphis in 2024 and halfway through 2025. Additionally, Young offered an invitation to Smith to come down to Memphis and see the city for himself.
“Stephen, we’ll welcome you here anytime,” wrote Young. “Just don’t bet against us. Memphis doesn’t stay down.”
My thoughts on @stephenasmith’s statement about Memphis: pic.twitter.com/yCDQEpR5q4
— Paul Young (@mayorpaulyoung) June 18, 2025
Smith responded to Young’s statement in his own social media post on Thursday, accepting Young’s invitation to the city and saying that he is “looking forward” to seeing Memphis.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Mayor Paul Young,” wrote Smith on X. “Deeply appreciate your words and the sentiments that came with them. Progress is what life is all about, and when it comes to Memphis, where some dear friends of mine reside, I wish for nothing less. The people deserve nothing less. So with that said, I accept your invitation to come to your city, as your guest. Let’s make it happen. I’m looking forward to it.”
Good afternoon Mr. @MayorPaulYoung. Deeply appreciate your words and the sentiments that came with them. Progress is what life is all about and when it comes to Memphis -where some dear friends of mine reside — I wish for nothing less. The people deserve nothing less. So with… https://t.co/fGb0pf3wZZ
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) June 19, 2025
Young would further confirm Smith’s plans to come and visit Memphis in a follow-up post.
Sounds like a plan my brother 🤝🏾 https://t.co/QRm5oObqgd
— Paul Young (@mayorpaulyoung) June 19, 2025
Perhaps Young can change Smith’s mind about Memphis. But either way, it is quite admirable of Young to invite Smith to the city in the first place, considering Smith went as far as to call the city “one of the worst in America,” a direct shot at the work Young has done to lower crime rates in Memphis.
