Think Will.I.Am isn’t hip-hop? He doesn’t care, but this writer will champion the cause anyway. Sure, his production for the Black Eyed Peas has gotten poppier than Orville Redenbacher (18 million records sold ain’t no hoe), and his clientele list includes Fergie and Ciara. But the past two years have seen the Los Angeles native man beats behind gritty tunes such as Game’s “Compton” and Nas’ “Hip-Hop Is Dead,” silky hip-hop hits like Talib Kweli’s “Hot Thing” and Common’s “I Want You.” And even before then, check the history: homie’s got two albums with revered hip-hop label BBE, that feature guest spots by the likes of Planet Asia, KRS-One, and Tribe Called Quest’s Phife Dawg. His first record deal was with Ruthless Records, in which he had a group and ghostwrote for Eazy E himself. Do you fools listen to music,or do you just skim through it?

But William James Adams Jr. isn’t worried about proving people wrong—his music does that for him. While crafting beats for the aforementioned MCs, he’s simultaneously working alongside icons like Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston. And with the impending Songs About Girls, and, as he tells HipHopDX, Black Einstein, his musical reign should continue. Check the latest Producer’s Corner beatmaker as he talks versatility, technique, and studio time with legends.

HipHopDX: You’re about to go on an international tour with Black Eyed Peas. Why not tour here?
Will.I.Am: Cuz you can’t tour in America. Who tours in America? American tours, are you serious? That’s like me saying, ‘What makes you want to write for the high school newspaper and not for"…the planet is huge. There’s a lot of loot out there, different cultures, you get to learn a lot from people. We do tours in the states, but once you do it once in that same year, that’s it. We’ve already toured the states on this record. We can’t go on tour in America without a record. We have no record, we have no Black Eyed Peas album. We’re selling out 50,000, 60,000 (capacity) venues with no album.

HipHopDX: Why do you think that is, though? Have they just not caught on to the album yet?
Will.I.Am: Nah, it’s just a different mentality. America’s, America. That’s the only way to describe it; it’s America. In a way, it’s not as open-minded as the rest of the planet. Something’s got to be in the club or whatever here. I love the states; it’s a great place, but it’s not a great place to tour.

HipHopDX: Let’s go back for a minute. When did you first start experimenting with music?
Will.I.Am: When I was like 13, 15. At 13, I started rhyming. At 15, I started making beats.

HipHopDX: When you first started, you were signed to Ruthless Records and you were ghostwriting for Eazy E. What was that like?
Will.I.Am: Eazy E was…I was in high school, so it was a dream come true. To be in 11th grade, 12th grade, and you’re running with Eazy. NWA was, still, think about what they were in 92, 93. That was unbelievable. That’s like being in high school right now, and you’re working with…you can’t compare it. You can’t compare it to 50 Cent or Jay-Z, because Eazy E was the first nigga.

HipHopDX: Eazy was a gangsta rapper; how did your sound progress to the pop-friendly sound you’ve established with Black Eyed Peas? How difficult was it for you to transition your beat-making like that?
Will.I.Am: When I was rolling with Eazy, I was just a straight-up killa. He found me straight from the streets. I had like two bodies under my belt, I was in and out of mothafuckin juvenile hall and shit, I was straight up rugged raw. I used to slang crack and mothafuckin twinkies and shit, robbed the liquor store. Then finally, I just started selling my shit out of ice cream trucks, and then the little kids used to run to the truck when they heard the ice cream song. I’m like, “Oooh, this is a hot little market here, this ice cream truck shit!” So with the Black Eyed Peas, I just took it to the next level, and just started making ice cream truck music. You know what I’m saying? Slangin’ mothafuckin lollipops. [laughs hysterically] I can’t even hold a straight face.

The music hasn’t really changed since then. You have to hear; not a lot of people have really heard our album on Ruthless. I was 17, 16 years old. The only difference I can say is that I’m an adult now. I know the business, I understand the marketplace, I’m a lot wiser. I can say I know what I’m doing, and I mastered my craft as a businessman. At the same time, I’m able to make “poppy” Black Eyed Peas songs, and then make rugged songs for Game and Nas. I’m a marksman—you call me, what do you want me to shoot? I can aim long-distance, I can shoot close-distance. That’s what happens when you’ve got years in the music industry. I can make (Fergie’s) “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” that’s like number one in the planet. Or I can make “Hip Hop Is Dead.” Continued on page 2 »