Black Eyed Peas - Biography
By Joanna Ricco
Black Eyed Peas broke into the Hip-Hop scene of the late 1990s with an infectious sound dominated by pop and dance. The band’s positive party vibe and rhymes were at odds with much of the other Hip-Hop coming out of Los Angeles at the time.
Black Eyed Peas started off as a project for will.i.am and apl.de.ap after their previous group, Atban Klann, which had been signed to Easy-E’s Ruthless Records, disbanded. The two MCs brought rapper Taboo and vocalist Kim Hill to form Black Eyed Peas. A live band accompanied their stage shows. The group signed with Interscope Records and released their debut album, Behind the Front (Interscope), in 1998. The debut fared well critically and included the single “Joints & Jams.” Their follow-up album, Bridging the Gap (2000 Interscope), was released two years later. The single “Request Line” featured popular neo soul singer Macy Gray, which helped sell over one million copies of the album internationally. Following the release of Bridging the Gap, Hill left Black Eyed Peas and still performs as a solo artist.
Replacing Hill with Stacy “Fergie” Ferguson in 2003, the group recorded what is largely considered to be their breakout album. Their third release, Elephunk (2003 A&M/Interscope), included the track “Where is the Love?,” featuring Justin Timberlake. The single rose to number eight on the Billboard Hot 100. The second single, “Shut Up,” did not chart well in the United States, but achieved top spots on European and Australian charts. Elephunk’s third single, “Hey Mama,” once again showed significantly more power overseas and still managed to rise to number 23 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US The song was also featured in an American iPod commercial. The most well-known and arguably over-played song from the album is “Let’s Get Retarded,” which was later revised as “Let’s Get It Started” when it was used for the 2004 NBA Playoffs and at the 2004 Democratic National Convention. The track has been used in several movie soundtracks, including those for White Chicks, Barbershop 2: Back in Business, It’s a Boy/Girl Thing, and Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle. “Let’s Get Retarded” was awarded with a Grammy in 2005 for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group.
Following their 2004 tour with N*E*R*D in support of Elephunk, Black Eyed Peas released Monkey Business (A&M) in 2005. Much of the album was written while on tour and came out with a bang, thanks to the success of the first single, “Don't Phunk with My Heart.” The track earned the group their second Grammy for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group. Coming in at number three on the Billboard Hot 100, “My Humps” is a party jam as ridiculous and lacking in lyrical depth as the title suggests, yet it was unstoppable on Top 40 radio. Due to the success of the three singles, Monkey Business was certified triple platinum by the RIAA.
Following the growing trends in the digital music market, Black Eyed Peas released an iTunes Originals playlist of their greatest hits along with special commentary in 2005. That same year, the group launched a tour as the supporting act for Gwen Stefani, which brought them to nearly all corners of the world including Europe, Asia, and South America. The last stop on the tour was in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil where they performed in front of more than one million people, making it Black Eyed Peas’ largest concert to date.
After the tour brought them back to the United States, the group released a collection of remixes called Renegotiations: The Remixes (Interscope) for iTunes in 2006. Later in the year, they embarked on the 6th Annual Honda Civic Tour with The Pussycat Dolls and Flipsyde. The remainder of 2006 and 2007 was spent on massive tours, still fueled by the success of Monkey Business. 2007’s Black Blue & You World Tour sent the Peas to over 20 countries and was sponsored by Pepsi. The group wrote the single “More” for the soft drink’s Pepsi More advertising campaign.
Their fifth studio album, The E.N.D. (Interscope), was released in the summer of 2009. The single “Boom Boom Pow” reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 before the album’s release date – a first in the Black Eyed Peas’ career. The E.N.D., though it sounds like a final farewell album title, is reportedly an acronym for The Energy Never Dies and is a reference to the interactive online project will.i.am has been working on. 2010 saw the release of The Beginning, which slowed none of the band's commercial prospects, charting at #6 it's first week, going on to sell some 3 million copies.
Members of Black Eyed Peas are well known for their personal artistic endeavors as well. will.i.am is politically active and incorporates his beliefs into his music as well as on his website dipdive.com. He is a vocal supporter of President Barack Obama and has made songs and videos that relay his political leanings. Most notable of his projects have been the videos for “Yes We Can” and “We Are the Ones,” and a song called “It’s a New Day” about Obama’s win during the 2008 US Presidential Election. Meanwhile, Fergie launched a successful solo career with 2006’s The Dutchess (A&M), which included several Billboard Hot 100 singles, three of which rose to number one. She also continues to act and has most recently had roles in Wolfgang Petersen’s 2006 film Poseidon and Robert Rodriguez’s half of the 2007 film Grindhouse, Planet Terror. apl.de.ap founded the Apl Foundation, which provides for children in his native Philippines. He also runs his own music company called Jeepney Music, Inc. and works primarily with DJs. Taboo is currently working on a solo album and has ventured into acting with roles in the films Dirty, Cosmic Radio, and Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li. Will.i.am. had a huge hit with Britney Spears in 2012 called "Scream and Shout"- more a chant to a beat than a true song, the dance clubs loved it.
