Songwriter, singer, producer, actor, entrepreneur and founder member of The Black Eyed Peas, will.i.am has worked with musicians from U2 to Nicki Minaj. Away from music he has maintained a long-term interest in technology working as creative director at Intel and CCO at a 3D printing and scanning company, and working on projects including apps, iPhone accessories and smart watches. He was even the first artist to stream a song to Mars.
William James Adams, professionally known as will.i.am, is a singer, rapper, producer, entrepreneur, activist, and one of the judges on The Voice UK. A Grammy and Emmy award winner, will.i.am initially came to fame as one of the founders and lead members of The Black Eyed Peas before branching out in to the business, technology and acting worlds.
Fusing influences from hip-hop and R&B and more recently house and electro, The Black Eyed Peas drove the emergence of a new kind of pop. Hits such as I Got A Feeling and Let’s Get It Started cemented their reputation for creating dancefloor classics. As well as being the frontman and songwriter for The Black Eyed Peas, will.i.am developed his work as a solo artist and became an in-demand producer, working alongside artists including Rihanna, Britney Spears, Miley Cyrus, David Guetta and Hans Zimmer, to name a few.
Amongst other projects, will.i.am has launched his own fashion line, and as a tech-enthusiast has incorporated technology into everyday clothing. As well as being involved in the early days of audio company Beats, will.i.am is the Director of Creative Innovation for Intel. He was also the first artist to send a song to Mars, working in collaboration with NASA’s Curiosity Mars Space Lab. Furthermore, he has created a foundation that supports underprivileged young people complete post-secondary education. The foundation also has a joint initiative in the UK with The Prince’s Trust which helps students get into IT and STEM programmes.
In speeches will.i.am looks at the future of technology and its impact on everything from the film industry to social equality. He looks at the importance of innovation, how to foster it in business and how to avoid systematic prejudices that are so often built into it. Amongst other examples he considers the Beats headphones in order to examine the power and merging of branding, fashion and technology. He also looks at the role that education can play in the eradication of poverty and inequality, and the ways in which it should encourage curiosity and cultivate creativity.
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