Will.he.is

The Black-Eyed Peas have always had a raw edge to their music that never quite convinced me that they were the best hip hop act in the world. That said, their earlier stuff - pre-'where is the love' - always showed the potential they eventually realised since 'where is the love'. When 'The Dutchess' was released last year, I was surprised at just how good a job Fergie had done on her own. She'd managed to do what I'd always hoped the Black-Eyed Peas would, and that is make music that sounded good, while still seeming effortless. The problem with any new solo act (see Justin Timberlake or Simon Webbe) is whether their brilliant first solo album outside of the comfort of their group, can be followed with equal brilliance on a second album. Justin's proven he can do it, and to an extent, so has Simon Webbe. We'll get the chance to see whether Fergie can some time next year.
Which brings me to the man most people, myself included, thought was the brains behind Black-Eyed Peas - Will.i.am. He's just released his debut solo album, Songs about Girls, and I have to say, it's nothing short of brilliant. if you've heard the first single, "I got it from my mama", imagine this being the weakest song on the album and you'll have an idea of how good this album is. To my knowledge, the only collaboration on this album is with snoop dogg on 'the donque song' - I say 'to my knowledge' only because rumour has it that Fergie provides vocals for 'I got it from my mama'. These two tracks stand out for me on this album. They stand out like a sore thumb, because Will.i.am has put together a collection of songs that have really surprised me in quality. Yes, you can expect the usual extremely intellectual lyrics you'd expect from a Black-Eyed Pea (whatcha gonna do with all that junk inside that trunk, or, my humps, my humps my humps my humps, my lovely lady lumps), but despite the lyrical content, the music still re-inforces the talent that this man has. By far my choice for album of the year....so far.