#97 - Black Eyed Peas

#97 of the top 100 pop stars of the Rock Era is Black Eyed Peas. Their top US hit is I Gotta Feeling:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSD4vsh1zDA

The Black Eyed Peas are an American hip hop group (originally an alternative hip hop group, they have since added R&B, pop, dance, electro and techno influences). Though founded in Los Angeles, California in 1995, it was not until the release of their third album Elephunk in 2003 that the group found widespread acclaim and achieved high record sales. Since that time, the group has sold an estimated 56 million records worldwide. According to Nielsen SoundScan, The Black Eyed Peas are the second-best-selling artist or group for downloaded tracks, with over 42 million sales as of the end of 2011.

Their first major hit was the 2003 single "Where Is the Love?" from Elephunk, which topped 13 international charts. Another European hit single from the album was "Shut Up". Their fourth album Monkey Business, was an even bigger worldwide success, certified 4× Platinum in the U.S., and spawning two singles, "My Humps" and "Don't Phunk with My Heart". In 2009, the group became one of only 11 artists to have simultaneously held the No. 1 and No. 2 spots on the Billboard Hot 100, with their singles "Boom Boom Pow" and "I Gotta Feeling"; which topped the chart for an unprecedented 26 consecutive weeks. The album later produced a third Hot 100 number-one placement with "Imma Be", making the group one of few to ever place three number one singles on the chart from the same album before being followed with "Rock That Body" and "Meet Me Halfway" which managed to peak in the Top 10 of Hot 100. "I Gotta Feeling" became the first single to sell more than 1 million downloads in the United Kingdom. The Black Eyed Peas were ranked 12th on the Billboard's Decade-End Chart Artist of the Decade, and 7th in the Hot 100 Artists of the Decade. On the 52nd Grammy Awards ceremony, which held in January, 2010 they won 3 awards out of 6 nominations.

In November 2010, they released the album The Beginning. In February 2011, the group performed at the Super Bowl XLV halftime show. The album's first two singles "The Time (Dirty Bit)" and "Just Can't Get Enough" became international hits and topped the charts in many countries.

During an interview with NRJ, will.i.am talking about his solo album also confirmed that The Black Eyed Peas will start recording sessions for their seventh studio album in 2013.