will.i.am

will.i.am rose to fame through Black Eyed Peas, the Grammy-winning, chart-topping pop-rap collective he continues to guide, yet he has assembled an equally striking catalog of independent solo releases and production assignments. The Los Angeles native brings the same upbeat, multicultural perspective—drawing from hip-hop, classic and modern Latin sounds, plus club styles spanning disco, rave, and EDM—to every project whether working alone or with the group. His opening solo statements, Lost Change (2001) and Must B 21 (2003), underscored his hip-hop roots via releases on the respected U.K. imprint BBE. Following Black Eyed Peas’ commercial breakthrough and his widespread production work for Pussycat Dolls, Sérgio Mendes, and bandmate Fergie, will.i.am reached the Top 40 independently with “I Got It from My Mama,” the opening single from his first major-label solo album, Songs About Girls (2007). Two further Top Ten efforts from BEP paved the way for his own #willpower (2013), a more ambitious fourth solo set propelled by the number-three pop success “Scream & Shout” featuring Britney Spears. In the years since, will.i.am has contributed to three additional BEP albums while maintaining outside collaborations and issuing solo tracks such as the Lil Wayne-assisted “The Formula” (2023). Beyond the studio and stage, he has accumulated substantial voice and acting credits and has served for many seasons as coach and mentor on The Voice UK and its related programs.

William James Adams, Jr., previously known as Willonex and Will 1X before adopting the name will.i.am, grew up with his mother in Los Angeles’s Boyle Heights district. He first appeared on record in 1992 as part of Atban Klann on Eazy-E’s 5150 Home 4 tha Sick EP. The teenage quartet—Willonex, Aplldeap, Mooky Mook, and DJ Motiv8—signed to Eazy’s Ruthless Records and completed the album Grass Roots, which they promoted with a 12-inch single and video for “Puddles of H2O.” Though an April 1995 release date had been set, the project was ultimately shelved after Eazy’s death the preceding month. By that point will.i.am had already contributed a guest verse to a Ruthless release by Blood of Abraham, and in 1996 he supplied production, writing, and a featured performance on One Stop Carnival, the debut album from Beverly Hills, 90210 star Brian Austin Green. In the interim, will.i.am, Aplldeap (aka Apl.de.Ap), and Taboo formed Black Eyed Peas, a name that had first surfaced on the B-side “Let Me Get Down” (“produced by Motiv8 and Willonex for Black Eye Peas”) of the “Puddles of H2O” single. The group advanced steadily with its first two albums, Behind the Front (1998) and Bridging the Gap, after which will.i.am issued the solo project Lost Change on the independent U.K. label BBE. That 2001 production showcase, featuring verses from Planet Asia and Terry Dexter among others, belonged to BBE’s Beat Generation series; arriving after entries by Jay Dee (aka J Dilla) and Pete Rock and before sets from Marley Marl and DJ Jazzy Jeff, it positioned will.i.am among esteemed company.

During 2003, the year Black Eyed Peas achieved widespread success with the pop-leaning Elephunk—the first of several multi-platinum albums featuring new member Fergie—will.i.am delivered his second Beat Generation volume for BBE, Must B 21 (Soundtrack to Get Things Started). Unlike its predecessor, Must B 21 assembled an array of prominent guests including MC Lyte, KRS-One, and Phife, plus Taboo, Fergie, and former Atban Klann associate Dante Santiago. As Black Eyed Peas continued their climb, will.i.am expanded his external work, most notably co-writing and co-producing the Pussycat Dolls’ Top 20 pop hit “Beep” (2005), the full Latin Grammy-nominated Timeless (2006) by Sérgio Mendes, and the bulk of Fergie’s multi-platinum solo album The Dutchess (also 2006). His outside commitments kept growing even as he prepared his third album, Songs About Girls, issued in 2007. More commercially oriented than his earlier solo outings, the Interscope release debuted at number 38 on the Billboard 200, aided by the Top 40 pop single “I Got It from My Mama.”

Alongside ongoing Black Eyed Peas activity, will.i.am continued to register hits both as lead and featured artist in subsequent years. His 2008 reinterpretation of Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney’s “The Girl Is Mine” and the Cheryl Cole duet “Heartbreaker” (drawn from Songs About Girls) performed strongly in the U.K., reaching number 32 and number four respectively. Between 2010 and 2011 he secured his second and third solo U.S. Top 40 entries with “Check It Out” (featuring Nicki Minaj) and “T.H.E. (The Hardest Ever)” (with Jennifer Lopez and Mick Jagger). Development of his fourth solo album proceeded throughout this period. Preview singles such as the number-one U.K. pop hit “This Is Love” (featuring Eva Simons) and the number-three U.S. hit “Scream & Shout” (with Britney Spears) preceded the 2013 arrival of #willpower. will.i.am’s most commercially successful solo project entered the Billboard 200 at number nine, supported by the Justin Bieber-assisted “#thatPower” and four further charting singles. He returned to the top of the U.K. chart in 2014 with the non-album single “It’s My Birthday” alongside Cody Wise. Two years later Pia Mia appeared on “Boys & Girls,” a number-21 U.K. hit. During these years will.i.am also featured on additional U.S. Top 40 tracks by Kesha (“Crazy Kids”) and Jimmy Fallon (“Ew!”). From the late 2010s into the 2020s his focus remained chiefly on Black Eyed Peas, though outside releases included numerous guest spots and his own Lil Wayne-assisted “The Formula.”