If some producers suggest chefs slaving away in their sonic kitchens, Black Eyed Peas auteur will.i.am (born William Adams in 1975) specializes in microwaved snacks, flavorful yet empty. The group he forged in the ‘90s forged a critical reputation by proferring light yet earnest hip-hop with a conscience, a change of pace from West Coast gangsta rap. With the addition of singer Stacy “Fergie” Ferguson on recent albums, the Peas have morphed into purveyors of pop jingles: “Let’s Get it Started” (2003), “My Humps” (2005), and now “Boom Boom Pow,” each increasingly annoying. Will.i.am never met a successful formula he couldn’t exploit, and the group’s fifth studio album, “The E.N.D.” (Energy Never Dies) (Interscope), is slathered with vocals electronically altered by the Auto-Tune effect featured on recent singles by everyone from T-Pain to Kanye West (the Peas must’ve missed the memo from Jay-Z, whose latest single, “D.O.A.” proclaims the “death of Auto Tune”). As usual, the mall-friendly music touches on rock, dancehall reggae and electro-pop, a parade of sing-songy hooks, simplistic anthems and silly lyrics (“Fill up my cup/Mazeltoff!”). But Black Eyed Peas do serve a purpose: They personify Big Dumb Fun. After all, “My Humps” or “Boom Boom Pow” aren’t that far removed from “Hey Macarana” or “Who Let the Dogs Out.” Here’s a group that’s managed to turn a string of borderline novelty songs into a highly lucrative career.
May 25, 2009
1 Comment »
RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URL
The group he forged in the ‘90s forged a critical reputation by preferring light yet earnest hip-hop with a conscience, a change of pace from West Coast gangsta rap. With the addition of singer Stacy Fergie Ferguson on recent albums, the Peas have morphed into purveyors of pop jingles:
Comment by fake rolex — June 11, 2009 @ 10:38 am