Nothing is more significant in this life than the love of a mother.
Renowned musician will.i.am took a moment to shed light on how his mother’s sacrifices led to his success today during the AFROTECH™ 2024 Conference, Nov. 13-16.
The innovative producer, visionary artist, and founding member of the Grammy Award-winning music group Black Eyed Peas opened up about his humble beginnings in a session on the main stage titled “CollaborA(I)te: Empowering Creative Connections.”
“I remember my mom was like, ‘Wait, put your clothes on. You go up here to get our food stamps. Sit in this line to get this cheese.’ When you’re in the projects, and that’s your reality, standing in line to get government services, and you’re there and you’ve got dreams and you’re like one day, I want to move my mama out of these projfts, and you come outside, and your best friend that you grew up with is no longer with you because he got shot and you want to dream different — that’s where I get ambition from.”
Moreover, the “Boom Boom Pow” emcee also recalled how, despite their circumstances, his mother, who was raising children on her own, still found a way to ensure that their needs were met. Beyond that, she fostered the creativity that will.i.am wanted to explore through music from an early age.
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When he had a real opportunity to make something out of the music he had been in heavy pursuit of, will.i.am said his mother used her last $200 to help him purchase a car to take him back and forth to the studio.
“I remember I was like, ‘Mom, the next door neighbor is selling a car for 200 bucks.’ I could use this to go to the studio and she’s like, ‘Boy, I ain’t got $200.’ I was like, ‘Come on, mom. I don’t want to take the bus. It’s hot on the streets. I just want to get from here to there,'” Will.i.am recalled.
He continued, “And then she’s like, ‘Boy, go get my purse. And me and my mom was talking about this. We was in Italy this summer, I’m sorry, we were in Spain this summer, in Greece, and I was like, ‘Ma, remember I asked you for that $200 [and she was like] ‘Yeah, that was my last $200.’ [I was like] How did you feed us that month before we had to go get that welfare check the month later. She was like, ‘I knew how much it meant for you to have that car, and I didn’t want to tell you no ’cause I was tired of telling you no when we didn’t have money. And if this was gonna help you on your dream, I just didn’t want to crush your dream.'”
Now, he is looking to pay it forward to his community, whether through investing in tech companies like OpenAI, Anthropic, Runaway, and Hugging Face or as the founder and CEO of FYI, the new AI messenger and tool for streamlining apps to make them a one-stop shop on people’s phones. Will.i.am is always one step ahead of the curve. His desire to give back after amassing such success began when he volunteered abroad for tsunami relief in 2005.
“I go back to the projects every weekend when I’m home,” he said. “And I’ve done that since when I was living there. “I was like, ‘Wow, there’s a tsunami that happens in every hood, every single day, and it’s not a tsunami of water but one of no opportunity, of neglect, of bad food, bad zoning. I thought, ‘Why am I not giving back to my own neighborhood?'”
Like his approach to music, the “Shake Ya Boom Boom” crooner has a similar perspective on life. During his AFROTECH™ conversation, he revealed his outlook on home ownership.
Although his estimated net worth is $50 million, will.i.am doesn’t currently own a home. Instead, he opts for hotel living while he awaits the moment he’s “made it” as a star.
“I don’t think I made it because every milestone takes me to the next milestone,” he said. “I’m making it. I’ve never had a house. I bought myself a studio. I have my office, but I stay in a hotel. I don’t have a house because I ain’t bought the house that says ‘I made it.’”
Looking to attend AFROTECH™ Conference 2025? Secure your early bird tickets now — Oct. 27 – 31, 2025, in Houston, TX.
