is schedule is practically as busy as the President’s, but at no point and edgy and underground but with such well-crafted arrangements—and care- does Will.I.Am stop writing songs. If you ask him about a plug-in, he’ll ful attention to sonic space, musicianship and melody—that it was clear the write a song on the spot just to show you how the plug-in works. In mass public would soon welcome the band with open arms. With the release fact, as Will sits in Black Eyed Peas’ L.A. studio, wearing a FireWire of Bridging the Gap in 2000, Black Eyed Peas continued to keep the under- Hcable as a belt and staring at his Apple Cinema Display, it’s a wonder he thinks ground love and balance it with a bit more R&B appeal with help from backing about anything aside from music. He’s apt to bound out of his seat and record vocalist Kim Hill (“Tell Your Mama Come,” “Hot”) and guest vocalist Esthero synths and beats and whatever at any moment. He might even make his visitors—in (“Weekends”). Some big-name guests—including De La Soul, Les Nubians, Mos this case, a Remix editor with zero rapping skills, whatsoever—rap on the spot. Def, Macy Gray and Jurassic 5—also joined in. His songwriting style is all very quick, and as he well knows, it fosters many Yet the explosive success of the party-loving Elephunk (A&M, 2003) still came opportunities for “magic” in the studio. as a shock. From Apple iPod commercials (“Hey Mama”) to giant radio hits with Will also has a tendency to play his music quite loud. After playing some tracks Justin Timberlake (“Where Is the Love?”) to awards-show performances of “Let’s from the group’s upcoming fourth album, Monkey Business (Interscope, 2005), Get Retarded” (with its PC-friendly version, “Let’s Get It Started”), the group was the room is swimming in the lovely tone of tinnitus. Consternation swiftly comes everywhere—instantly. Black Eyed Peas’ secret weapon was its new member, across his face: “I just heard a high-pitched noise, but it’s my ears—now, every Fergie, a former singer for the TV show Kids’ Incorporated and former member song is in that key,” he says with a laugh. “Like, how about we write a song in the of the pop group Wild Orchid. Fergie fit the puzzle just right, and the band’s key of [sings high-pitched noise] boooooooooo?” success snowballed. He’s deep into the life of being a producer, performer and rapper, with all its But to those musicians out there toiling for years to get a sliver of the kind of benefits and downsides. For Will, it started with his first group, Atban Klann, payoff that Black Eyed Peas finally experienced, it’s still a case of, well, be careful Black Eyed Peas’ Will.I.Am gets with MC and breakdancer Apl.de.Ap. Eazy-E signed the duo to his label, Ruthless, what you wish for. but after Eazy’s death, Atban’s album was shelved and the band dropped. Will busy, writing 60 songs in record and Apl then recruited Taboo, and the trio became Black Eyed Peas, signing Taboo (far left), Fergie and to Interscope. They went from playing shows around Los Angeles to releasing Apl.de.Ap ask that you please time for Monkey Business Behind the Front in 1998 and treading all over the map. Their music was conscious join Will.I.Am in saying grace.

By Kylee Swenson Photos by Joaquin Palting

40 REMIX • FEBRUARY 2005 Direct DRIVE ROAD FOR THE WEARY After releasing Elephunk, Will claims that Black Eyed Peas did more than 480 shows from June 2003 to early December 2004, sometimes two or three shows a day, thus the new album title, Monkey Business. “The idea with Monkey Business was like organ grinders,” Will says. “You’re working out there, and you only get a peanut, and you give all the money made to the monkey owner. There is a good payoff, but you work hard. Last week, we flew from South Africa to L.A. It was a 20-some-hour flight. And before that, we flew from Pittsburgh to Rome to Johannesburg, like, in five days. In Rome, we sat in traffic for, like, four hours, got to the hotel, washed up, went shopping, sat in traffic for two hours, went back, left the hotel to go to the [MTV Europe] awards show [where BEP took home the Best Pop Group award], four more hours of traffic, then went to an after-party for two hours and then left to get on a plane. I sound like a dick to say that it’s hard, but it is hard on your body when you are on three hours of sleep.” What’s amazing, knowing BEP’s schedule, is that Will (and Apl, who has two songs on Monkey Business) wrote 60 songs for the album during the THE STARS ARE ALIGNED past year. And Will didn’t do it in isolation. “I write BRING IN There may have been little time between perfor- better when someone’s in the room with me,” he REINFORCEMENTS mances to write new music, but Will became faster says. “Otherwise, I have no point of direction. When and more efficient with the time he had, due in part somebody’s in the room—they don’t even have to to the Synchro Arts TDM plug-in VocALign. “Don’t sing or play an instrument or rap—I can see what “I’ve had talks with people who say, ‘I don’t Fuck With My Heart,” a ’60s psychedelic and spy- they’re gravitating toward, what makes them go, like that snare sound. Why don’t you use film-flavored track with a deep BEP bass synth and ‘Oh, that’s great! I like that!’” [Digidesign] SoundReplacer?’” Will.I.Am says. call-and-response vocals from Fergie, is instantly Will started coming up with ideas in January “But there’s something about the ambience infectious, the kind of track you could play 10 times 2004, when he and the group were at the Big Day of the room. You replace the sound, and in a row. At one point, there’s a robotic vocoder Out tour in Australia. He took his 15-inch Apple you’re replacing all that stuff. So I’d just do effect on Will’s voice. “That’s me and the sitar,” he Mac G4 Titanium laptop (which now looks like it’s sound reinforcement. Say a snare sounded says. “When I sung it, I sung it in the same twang been driven over by a lawn mower and has since like paper—it was flat; it didn’t have no pop. that the sitar was playing in, and then I put them been retired), a Digidesign Mbox and Pro Tools, I’d just reinforce that snare with another snare together using VocALign. an M-Audio Oxygen8 keyboard and Propellerhead on top of it. It takes a long time. You see the “Say, for instance, you go do a rap, and it’s off Reason software all over the world. Will uses Reason waveform, the different peaks, and you [match beat,” Will explains. “But I liked your voice and the for synths and programs beats from a sound library it with] different snares on a separate track … texture of your voice. What do I do? Okay, let me he’s recorded in Pro Tools. “What I do is come into put it there, put it there, put a little ghost snare rap it, play it on time, get yours that’s off time and the studio and mic hi-hat sessions where I just get here, gain that one lower and put it there.” VocAlign it to my time.” To demonstrate, Will takes a different hi-hat, percussion, shaker and cymbal pat- sample CD with Brazilian beats, samples four bars terns,” he says. “And then, all my songs are based from the second loop onto a Pro Tools track, copies off of those sessions. It’s like a boring day. So I CD. Days later, he was on the bullet train from and pastes the loop and sets the bpm to 100. Then, have a bunch of tse tse tse or tschika tschika tschika Tokyo to Okinawa sampling “Miserlou.” “I just got he leaps up and plays a buzzy rhythm synth part on and psssss pssss pssss. And then in Pro Tools, I can bored and wrote the hook in Japan,” Will says. “And his Korg Triton followed by a throbbing kick sound. manipulate them into all kinds of different time then I said, ‘Hey, let me see if I can clear it, ’cause Then, to demonstrate that this white girl can’t rap, signatures.” Once Will has a new library of drum I don’t want to work on the song if I can’t clear it.’ he asks yours truly to rap “1, 2, 1, 2” over and over sounds, he’s ready to take it on the road with him. And [Dale] said, ‘The only way you can clear it is if to the beat. This one is on beat, so Will puts an Echo I play on it.’” Farm effect on the part and then asks for a more THE TRAVELING ALBUM Meanwhile, vocals, guitars and horns were complicated rap to the rhythm of Wa wawa wawa While record shopping and performing in Brazil, Will recorded at Metropolis in London while the band wawawaaa wawawaaa. This trips things up a bit, so sampled a Beatles-esque fingerpicked guitar mel­ was performing at European festivals. And the drum Will raps the same thing, but better, and lines up the ody from Brazilian psych-rock band Os Mutantes’ track for the song “Don’t Fuck With My Heart” was two with VocALign so they’re perfect. “Vida de Cachorro” for a Monkey Business track recorded on the John Lennon Songwriting Contest “So people who can’t rap right, I’m just like, ‘Nah, called “We Can Change.” When attempting to clear and Educational Tour Bus while BEP was on tour just say whatever you’re going to say! I can make it, Os Mutantes said that the only way that BEP with N*E*R*D. “Somebody asked me what’s the you say it,’” Will explains. “It’s helped me out with a could use it is if the band played on it. The band did difference between Monkey Business and Elephunk,” lot of shit—drummers, guitarists. Say, for instance, just that and mailed the track to the U.S. Will says. “It’s that there was not a lot of fucking- the guitarist’s got a problem playing on the one. The On the same trip, Will also bought a Dick Dale around time.” rhythm is ducka ducka ducka dun ducka dun, but he’s

42 REMIX • FEBRUARY 2005 remixmag.com Direct DRIVE

going ducka dun ducka dun; it’s like, ‘Just play it.’ And [people’s] songs will come out, and I’m like, ‘Wow, then I’ll record myself just hitting the rhythm on this that’s great! We kind of do have a song similar to

desk [with my knuckles]. I tap out the rhythm and that one. How about I try that on [our song]?’ So MAKING VocAlign his rhythm to my rhythm.” it’s always adding to it, just getting inspired by MONKEY BUSINESS But Will doesn’t skimp on using solid musicians other things. On ‘Smells Like Funk,’ I was listening Computers, DAWs, recording hardware: and vocalists; VocALign is just a tool to help move to some Disney thing, and I liked the baritone men Apple Mac G4 computer w/Cinema things along. Similarly, to quickly accomplish the in it, so I was like, ‘Oh, trombones! I want to use Display; dirty, grungy ’60s guitar sound on “Don’t Fuck trombones! Nobody uses trombones and tubas.’ Glyph Trip rack hard drive With My Heart,” Will miked up a Mesa Boogie amp So we came in and put the trombones and tubas from a distance, played a Yamaha electric guitar, on ‘Smells Like Funk,’ and one day in rehearsal, we Consoles, mixers, interfaces: compressed it and fine-tuned the sound using the came in and [guitarist] George [Pajon Jr.] was like, Digidesign 888|24 I/O (2), 1622 I/O, Line 6 Amp Farm plug-in. do do doodododo. And I was like, ‘What is that?’ And Control|24 Another time-saver for Will is the Serato Pitch ’n he’s like, ‘That ain’t nothing but a pentatonic blah console, USD Sync Time plug-in. “Say, for example, that I have a conga blah.’ So we would always add to it.” sample, and the way that I got the live dude in [to Another song from the last album, “Let’s Get Samplers, drum machines, turntables, replay the sample] just sounds like Guitar Center,” Retarded,” was recorded five times before it was DJ mixers: he says. “I can’t get it to sound like the way that released. “The first ‘Retarded’ was nothing like Technics SL-1200MK2 turntable; Vestax it does on the sample. But the sample is in the the ‘Retarded’ we have now,” Will says. “We were PMC-06 key of E. The song is in C. So I Pitch ’n Time it to married to the first one because of the magic when Pro A mixer make it fit.” we recorded it.” The very first version has a gated guitar sound, a lo-fi bluesy guitar melody and a Synths, modules, software, plug-ins, ADD IT UP heavy kick. “That was retarded,” Will says. “After instruments: Although Will is quick in the studio, some songs we tried it, we were like, ‘Eh, that was kind of gay.’” Digidesign Pro Tools software; Korg have a long gestation period, even as long as a The second version sounds bassy, bouncy and Triton Pro X keyboard; Moog Source year. “I think the longest [on Elephunk] were ‘Where groovy, but it doesn’t have the same power as the synth; Novation K-Station keyboard; Is the Love’ and ‘It Smells Like Funk,’ because other commercial version, thanks in part to a last-minute Roland Juno-6 synth

Mics, mic preamps, EQs, compressors, effects: Avalon Vt-737sp preamp; Neumann M 147 mic

I write better when someone’s “in the room with me. Otherwise, I have no point of direction. —Will.I.Am

” remixmag.com 44 REMIX • FEBRUARY 2005 Direct DRIVE

walking bass line. “We were in rehearsal with our snare, but they’re influenced by the same thing.’ So I bassist [Mike Fratantuno, since replaced by Timothy was showing him, ‘Look, you can do it just like this.’ “Izo” Orindgreff] and guitarist [Pajon]. We were try- And the song came out like that.” ing to figure out these chords. And [Fratantuno] was Will is careful not to labor over any one idea. trying to find the right note. So he was just going Rather, changes to songs happen organically. “I try down his frets, and we were like, ‘Hey, what’s that?’ to make [a song] quick to avoid me being lost in And he’s like, ‘No, I’m just going …’ And we’re like, it, ’cause if I’m lost in it, it’s never going to sound ‘Loop that!’ So he does, and then we say, ‘Can you good,” he says. “Everything is always going to sound resolve that?’ And then we’re like, ‘Hey, George, write sloppy; everything is always going to sound muddy; some chords to that.’ We were just listening to the everything is always going to sound tinny because old version in the car, and we were excited. But then I’m in it. I’m not enjoying it. If I’m making a beat and I sang the hook and verse to the fuckup that hap- my mind-set is on fixing it, then it’s never going to be pened in rehearsal, and that’s how the ‘Retarded’ fixed. It’s like cooking fast. You want to eat when it’s that we have now happened.” hot. As soon as you start, ‘Well, no, uh …,’ then it’s gonna get cold, and it’s not going to taste good. So QUICK LIKE LIGHTNING you make it real quick so you can enjoy it. Although some songs go through various incarna- “Some people call that demo love,” he adds. tions, BEP also has tracks recorded in a day, such “But the thing is, it’s not that you’re in love with the as Elephunk’s “Hey Mama.” “That was one of these demo; you’re in love with the fact that it sounds like days,” Will says. “I was showing somebody some- somebody else did it. You become a fan of what you thing in the studio. They were like, ‘Hey, why don’t just did.” you do a reggae song,’ and I was like, ‘Eh, if I’m going It’s when Will gets out the microscope and looks to do a reggae song, I want to fuse bossa nova with at the individual parts painfully close that he loses the kind of bone structure of dancehall but using the opportunity to become a fan of his own ideas. bossa nova rhythms.’ And he was like, ‘What do you “When I’m aware that I’m making something, then mean? Bossa nova and reggae don’t go together!’ it’s never right,” Will says. “If you’ve spent three And I said, ‘Actually, they kind of do. It’s all Afro days tweaking the same thing, throw it away. That’s rhythms, just a different emphasis on the kick or a bad relationship.”

I try to make [a song] quick to avoid me being lost in it, ’cause if I’m lost in it, “it’s never going to sound good. —Will.I.Am ”

46 REMIX • FEBRUARY 2005 remixmag.com