Black Eyed Peas Biography

The foundation for the Black Eyed Peas goes all the way back to 1988, when Allan Pineda and William Adams (now known as apl.de.ap and will.i.am), were just eighth graders. The duo acquired enough attention during their Los Angeles performances to catch the eye of Ruthless Records and strike a deal for their first album, Grass Roots, in 1992.

But it would be almost another decade before the Black Eyed Peas truly burst onto the music scene in 2003.

After a change to Interscope Records, the Black Eyed Peas (now consisting of its two original members, plus Jamie Gomez, better known as Taboo, and Kim Hill) released a second debut album, Behind the Front, in 1998. Bridging the Gap came next in 2000, but the group still failed to garner the attention they sought.

That all changed when the Black Eyed Peas added Stacey Ferguson ( Fergie) to the group. The beautiful, hot young vocalist transformed the Black Eyed Peas into the monster success we associate with them today.

The Black Eyed Peas’ first album with Fergie, Elephunk, was released in 2003. The album’s first single, “Where Is The Love” went on to achieve gold status in the United States and platinum status in Europe. Other hits off the album include “Hey Mama,” and “Let’s Get Retarded.”

From there on, it was a steady rise to fame and staggering success, with the hit Black Eyed Peas albums Monkey Business (2005), The E.N.D. (2009), and The Beginning (2010.) The albums spawned the hit singles “Don’t Punk with My Heart,” “Boom Boom Pow,” “Don’t Mess with My Heart,” “Don’t Lie,” and the smash hit “My Humps.”

The Black Eyed Peas saw most of their released singles rise into the highest numbers on the Billboard charts, and “Boom Boom Pow” earned the band a Grammy for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group. The single also went on to break records, selling nearly a half million downloads in its first week, and becoming the largest selling single-week, download debut by a group thus far in the history of digital-downloaded sales.

The Black Eyed Peas have toured extensively in support of their albums, and fans have enjoyed performances all around the globe. Their European Tour kicked off in 2005, and the Black Eyed Peas headlined the Honda Civic Tour in 2006, playing with The Pussycat Dolls and Flipsyde.

The Black Blue & You Tour began in 2007 and brought the Black Eyed Peas to more than twenty countries. Later that year they performed at Wembley Stadium, and after that, they played the Summer Sonic Festival in Tokyo, Japan. The Black Eyed Peas returned to Japan in 2009 for their E.N.D. World tour, which lasted in 2010.

In 2011, the Black Eyed Peas announced a hiatus during their performance at Alton Towers in Staffordshire, but they have since announced plans for their next studio album.

The Black Eyed Peas are listed at number twelve on the Billboard’s Decade-End Chart Artist of the Decade, and on the Hot 100 Artists of the Decade they are ranked seventh. The Black Eyed Peas have earned multiple Grammy Awards and nominations, and they are also recognized as the second-best-selling artist or group for downloaded tracks.