Destination Jam: Get hooked on Black Eyed Peas before they release new music with five of their best songs
The Black Eyed Peas have recently confirmed they are working on new material. With the announcement of new music in their latest album 'Translation', it looks like 2020 is shaping up to be a full year for Black Eyed Peas fans. We are in Black Eyed Peas fever and before we are treated to new music, let's get warmed up with the hip-hop group's best songs. Check out our top five picks of Black Eyed Peas songs below.
'Where Is The Love?'
A Black Eyed Peas list wouldn't be complete without their mainstream breakout hit. A song with a message that begs to be applied today in 2020, 'Where Is The Love?' remains a timeless classic. Lyrically, the track is a protest song but takes an intersectional approach to societal criticism from a racial justice perspective. 'Where Is The Love?' was originally intended to inspire during post-9/11 anxiety, but became a hit because of the themes it discusses such as terrorism, US government hypocrisy, racism, gang crime, pollution, war and intolerance.
Amid those topics, what is brought to the fore is a call for love in the chorus: "People killin' people dyin'. Children hurtin', I hear them cryin'. Could you practice what you preach? Would you turn the other cheek? Father, Father, Father help us, Send some guidance from above. 'Cause people got me, got me questioning (Where's the love)."
'Let's Get It Started'
With this epic track, the Black Eyed Peas proved their music was a prominent force for club music. The song featured as a bonus track in the 2004 re-issue of their album 'Elephunk'. Opening with a foggy bassline and vocal swell, 'Let's Get It Started' quickly turns up the heat, blasting into a thumping beat as will.i.am raps "To lose this inhibition, follow your intuition. Free your inner soul and break away from tradition. Coz when we beat out, girl it's pullin' without. You wouldn't believe how we wow shit out! Burn it till it's burned out. Turn it till it's turned out. Act up from North, West, East and South!"
'I Gotta Feeling'
In 2009, the Black Eyed Peas began dipping their sounds into more electronic-charged music and the infectious 'I Gotta Feeling' was quick to come to fore as one of their best uptempo tracks of the era. The song is the second single from the band's fifth album 'The E.N.D.' and is produced by French DJ David Guetta. 'I Gotta Feeling' was nominated for Record of the Year at the 52nd Grammy Awards and won the Grammy for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. It was also ranked fifth on the Billboard Hot 100 Songs of the Decade. Watch the official music video below.
'Girl Like Me' featuring Shakira
One of their biggest fan-favorites in 2020 and off their new album 'Translation', fans are in high hopes that 'Girl Like Me' (featuring Latin superstar Shakira) is getting its own music video. The audio clip alone has already racked up nearly five million views on YouTube within a matter of a few months, so it goes without saying that an official 'Girl Like Me' music video is bound to be a potential smash hit. Meanwhile, enjoy the catchy banger by clicking play on the clip below.
'Big Love'
Similarly to 'Where Is The Love?', the 2018 hit 'Big Love' takes a serious tone, albeit more dramatic in the below music video. Sonically, the song is centered around a simple piano progression and gritty drum pattern, with lyrics referencing government corruption, drug addiction and gun control in the frame of a "day in the life of a kid in America," the song's opening line.
The clip below combines two music videos. The first confronts gun violence at schools. Portrayed by members will.i.am and Taboo, a teacher and a gym coach are shot by a gunman along with several students, while others run for safety. Apl.de.ap plays a police officer in the clip. The second video focuses on border portal officers stopping immigrants from crossing the US border.
Destination Jam is a daily list of songs that will keep you entertained and grooving up top in lieu of feeling drained and losing the plot. Look out for a fresh selection of great tunes from MEAWW to refresh your mood every day!