Will.i.am
William James Adams, Jr. , better known by his stage name will.i.am is an American rapper, musician, songwriter, singer, entrepreneur, actor, DJ and... producer. He came to prominence in the late 1990s as a member of the hip hop group The Black Eyed Peas along with rappers apl.de.ap and Taboo and, later, singer Fergie. As a music producer, he has produced with other artists including Michael Jackson, Justin Bieber, Eazy-E, Britney Spears, U2, Rihanna, Usher, Justin Timberlake, Earth, Wind & Fire, Nicki Minaj, Cheryl Cole, 2NE1, SMAP, The Game, Nas, Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, Daddy Yankee, and Juanes. He is a coach on The Voice UK. William Adams was born in East Los Angeles, and raised in the Estrada Courts housing projects in the Boyle Heights neighborhood, where he and his family were one of the few African Americans living in a predominantly Mexican American community. He never met his father, William Adams, Sr., and grew up with his mother, Debra, who encouraged him to be unique and to avoid conforming to the tendencies of the other youth in his neighborhood on the eastside of Los Angeles.
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