"Where Is the Love?" is a song by American hip hop group
the Black Eyed Peas. It was released on May 12, 2003, as the lead single from their third album, Elephunk (2003). The song was written by
will.i.am,
apl.de.ap,
Taboo,
Justin Timberlake,
Printz Board, Michael Fratantuno, and
George Pajon. The track features vocals from Timberlake, although he is not officially credited on the single release. It was the group's first song to feature singer
Fergie as an official member.
"Where Is the Love?" saw success on radio airplay charts,[2] peaked at number eight on the US
Billboard Hot 100, and topped the charts in Australia, Ireland, and the United Kingdom, where it became the biggest-selling single of 2003. The band and Timberlake received two nominations,
Record of the Year and
Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, for "Where Is the Love?" at the
46th Annual Grammy Awards.[3]
Background
Following the commercial failures of their previous albums and singles, there was doubt over whether
the Black Eyed Peas would continue to record together. A&R executive
Ron Fair approached them and suggested a crossover to a more mainstream pop sound.
will.i.am in particular resisted the idea for fear that they would be seen as sellouts. However, after discussions and some writing sessions, the idea was pursued.[4] After the release of 'Where is the Love' Taboo would claim on the topic of selling out that if he was going to sell out, he'd "rather be selling out arenas than selling out of my trunk on the corner of my block."[5]
In an interview with
The Telegraph in 2016, will.i.am alleges the inspiration for the original song came from the generalized anxiety following the
September 11 attacks. will.i.am said: “On our last day (of recording sessions in San Francisco), as I was packing my equipment, I saw the first plane fly through the World Trade Center (...) I thought it was a film. The fear of driving back home, y’know going over San Francisco bridge. That 10 minute drive across the bridge felt like an hour.”[6] In the same interview will.i.am claims that the emotions from that time form the base emotions the song's lyrics are composed of.
Shortly after
Christmas 2001, three months after 9/11, will.i.am created a loop and a guitar part that he liked.
apl.de.ap and
Taboo also heard the track and were able to write similar lyrics over it.
Justin Timberlake was introduced to the group by Taboo, and got a chance to hear the track that will.i.am created. Impressed with the music, Timberlake helped write and sing the chorus. The production of Where is the Love was halted over the early half of 2002 as the band burned out over what will.i.am claimed was 9/11-induced anxiety during their tour in that year.[6]
Timberlake was in the midst of promotion of his debut solo album, Justified, and his label
Jive Records was concerned about possible overexposure. The Black Eyed Peas were worried about this, as getting some assistance from an established pop star like Timberlake had been the original point of this song. A compromise was reached eventually in which Jive gave clearance for the vocals of Timberlake to be released on the song, but he does not appear in the song's music video nor is he officially credited on the song as an artist. By 2008, the single had sold 954,000 digital copies.[7]
Composition
Although initially intended as a vessel to post-9/11 anxiety, the song discusses many issues including
terrorism,
US government hypocrisy,
racism,
gang crime,
pollution, war, and intolerance, with the call for love in the chorus as the element tying these together. The lyric "Overseas, yeah, we try'na stop terrorism - but we still got
terrorists here living - in the USA, the big
CIA - the
Bloods and the
Crips and the
KKK" suggests these organizations being terrorists too - however, in the later live performance of
One Love Manchester the inclusion of the CIA was censored.[8] The song was released during the
Iraq war and alludes to it and its
casus belli with the lyric "A war's going on but the reason's undercover" in the bridge.
The song has a tempo of 94 BPM. Will.i.am laid the track's iconic main rhythm over the chord progression, which he claimed is inspired by that of a human heartbeat. "I was like, 'this song needs a heartbeat.' (...) I just liked the pull and the call of response of the human heart – a beat, a rhythm that we hear everyday subconsciously, without paying attention to it."[6]
Reception
As part of the album Elephunk, the song was met with critical and commercial success. Elephunk has a
Metacritic score of 66/100.[9] The Black Eyed Peas' album Elephunk sold 3.2 million copies as of 2011.[10] David Jeffries of Drowned In Sound noted that it was the "long time coming" Black Eyed Peas hit, praising its dramatic delivery as "epic, positive, and concerned with where the world is going, “Where Is the Love” bounces between positive hip-hop and orchestral soul that royally recalls
Marvin Gaye's social meditations."[11] According to The Washington Post, "Where is the Love" propelled the Black Eyed Peas from the underground to the mainstream.[5]Entertainment Weekly was more negative about the song, which deviates sharply from the Black Eyed Peas' rap roots, writing that "the biggest offense for a once smart-sounding rap collective is ”Where Is the Love,” the horrifyingly trite single with Justin Timberlake. It's enough to make longtime fans wonder, ”Where are the Peas?”"[12] Chris Nettleson of Drowned in Sound refrains from commenting on "Where is the Love" directly, but instead notes that other critics have unfairly regarded Elephunk as deviating from standard hip hop. Nettleson writes that "Where is the Love" is a "slightly saccharine hippy anti-gulf war anthem", but in the context of the entire album of Elephunk it is worth listening to.[13]
The song was the biggest selling single of 2003 in the UK. It was also the 25th best-selling single of the 2000s (decade) in the UK.[14]
Music video
The music video for "Where Is the Love?" was shot in
East Los Angeles and features
the Black Eyed Peas and various other people, including various young children, asking the world where the love really is. In the video,
will.i.am and
Taboo act as a
soul music road duo who use music to tell people what is wrong with the world,
Fergie appears as a peacemaker who places stickers with question marks on them all over the place to ask people where the love is in the world, and
apl.de.ap is a criminal who is arrested for using criminal offenses to tell people the truth.
Justin Timberlake does not appear in the video, as he was promoting his album Justified at the time,[15] though several different people are seen mouthing his part.
The video features posters from the video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, with the question mark symbol plastered over said posters in an apparent protest over the game's
violent content.[16] The video later shows gameplay footage from the controversial first-person shooter Postal 2, in which a group of young children are seen playing the game, suggesting that violence in the media and entertainment industry is a corrupting influence to the youth.[17][18]Running With Scissors, creators of the Postal franchise, later claimed in a tweet in 2021 that they were paid for the use of the game's footage.[19] As of April 2024 the YouTube video has accumulated more than one billion views.[20]
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
Release history
Release dates and formats for "Where Is the Love?"
On August 31, 2016, a new version of the song titled "Where's the Love?" (stylized as "#WHERESTHELOVE"), credited to "The Black Eyed Peas featuring The World" was made available for
digital download exclusively on
iTunes and released to other digital retailers later that day.[108] The song samples the original track but has additional music composition and features additional vocals from
Justin Timberlake,
Jamie Foxx,
Ty Dolla Sign,
Mary J. Blige,
Diddy,
Cassie,
Andra Day,
The Game,
Tori Kelly,
V. Bozeman,
Jessie J,
French Montana,
DJ Khaled,
Usher,
Nicole Scherzinger,
ASAP Rocky,
Jaden Smith, and a 40-member children's choir.[109] All proceeds from the song were going to will.i.am's non-profit foundation, i.am.angel. – the charity funds educational programs and college scholarships.[110] The Black Eyed Peas partnered with issues-driven media company ATTN and foundation education partner and leading geospatial company Esri for the single release campaign.[108] It was the group's last song to feature singer
Fergie.
Inspired by tragedies, like the
attacks in Paris, and in
Brussels and
Orlando, and police shootings of
Philando Castile and
Alton Sterling, the Peas saw the relevance of the song and decided it was time to revive the track for a new generation.[114] Family members affected by gun violence including (
Alton Sterling's aunt Sandra,
Philando Castile's mother Valerie) and police officials (Dallas Police Chief David O. Brown, Officer Miguel Salcedo) and more appear in the video.
The Black Eyed Peas also released a bilingual Spanish/English version of "Where's the Love?", titled "Dónde Está El Amor?" crediting the Black Eyed Peas featuring El Mundo. The version was premiered on November 7, 2016, during Premios de la Radio. The music video premiered days later, featuring a roster of Latin stars including
Gerardo Ortiz, Milkman,
Pepe Aguilar,
Becky G,
Fey,
Paulina Rubio,
Luis Coronel, and many others.[137]
^Where Is the Love? (European CD single liner notes). Black Eyed Peas. A&M Records. 2003. 0602498091050.{{
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^Where Is the Love? (Australian CD single liner notes). Black Eyed Peas. A&M Records. 2003. 9809104.{{
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link)
^"
ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Singles Digital Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select SINGLES DIGITAL - TOP 100 and insert 201636 into search. Retrieved September 12, 2016.