William Adams (born William James Adams, Jr.; March 15, 1975), known professionally as will.i.am, is an American hip hop recording artist, entrepreneur, actor, musician, DJ, record producer and philanthropist. He is best known as a founding member of the hip hop and R&B band The Black Eyed Peas.
Will.i.am is also a music producer. He has produced with other artists including Michael Jackson, Justin Bieber, Kesha, Eazy-E, Britney Spears, Miley Cyrus, David Guetta, U2, Rihanna, Lady Gaga, Usher, Justin Timberlake, Nicki Minaj, Cheryl Cole, 2NE1, SMAP, The Game, Daddy Yankee, Wolfgang Gartner, Juanes, Baby Kaely, Nas, Bone Thugs-n-Harmony and Earth, Wind & Fire. He is currently a coach on The Voice UK and was previously a coach on Australian series of The Voice in 2014. In collaborations and with the Black Eyed Peas, he has a total of 34 top-40 entries on the UK Singles Chart since 1998, and has sold 9.4 million singles in the UK.
Adams was born William James Adams Jr. in Eastside Los Angeles, and was raised in the Estrada Courts housing projects in the Boyle Heights neighborhood, where he and his family were among the few African Americans living in a predominantly Hispanic community. Adams has never met his father, William Adams Sr. He was raised by his mother, Debra (née Cain), who encouraged him to be unique and to avoid conforming to the tendencies of the other youth in his neighborhood on the east side of Los Angeles. To encourage his musical career, she sent him to public schools in affluent West Los Angeles. While attending John Marshall High School, he became best friends with Allan Pineda (stage name apl.de.ap), who was also a future member of The Black Eyed Peas. While still in high school, Adams and Pineda performed in East L.A. clubs and were soon joined by three other entertainers to form the socially conscious rap group, Atban Klann. Atban Klann caught the eye of Compton rapper Eazy-E and was signed to his label, Ruthless Records in 1992.
Adams used to attend raves while in high school. He later said his history with rave culture is why he chose a more electro sound for The Black Eyed Peas' albums The E.N.D. and The Beginning. Despite the use of electro and house music elements, will.i.am prefers to separate the underground from pop. In an article with Los Angeles Times, he mentions that secrecy over the whereabouts of raves is what made raving special, and different from the mainstream.
According to an interview with the British tabloid The Sun, will.i.am says he suffers from tinnitus, a disorder which is common among musicians who have been exposed to loud music for prolonged periods of time.[65] In April 2013, he stated that he has ADHD.
He is the nephew of former NFL player Lynn Cain, who played for the Atlanta Falcons and the Los Angeles Rams. will.i.am spent a large part of his life looking up to his uncle as a role model.
On June 22, 2009, gossip blogger Perez Hilton accused will.i.am and his entourage of assaulting him in Toronto after the MuchMusic Video Awards, a charge will.i.am denied in a video posted on his blog. No further action was taken.
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