WHERE IS THE LOVE?

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"Where Is the Love?" is the first single from The Black Eyed Peas' third album,Elephunk, released in 2003. It was the first single to feature the band's new member,Fergie. The song also features Justin Timberlake. The single peaked at #8 in the USA, becoming The Black Eyed Peas' first Top 10 hit; the single also peaked at #1 in Australia and the UK. "Where Is the Love?" was performed at the 46th Grammy Awards, and received two nominations for Record of the Year and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration.

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.^[1]

Shortly after Christmas 2001, will.i.am created a loop and a guitar part that he liked.Taboo and Apl.de.ap also heard the track and were able to write similar lyrics over it.Justin Timberlake was allegedly introduced to the band by new band member Fergie, and got a chance to hear the track that will.i.am created. Impressed with the music, Timberlake helped write and sing the chorus.

Timberlake was in the midst of promotion of his debut album Justified and his label Jive Records was concerned about possible overexposure. The Peas were worried about this, as getting some assistance from an established popstar 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 credited on the song as an artist. However, in the video, as Timberlake sings, several different people can be seenmiming the lyrics in time with him.

The song was written by Will.i.am, Taboo, apl.de.ap, Ron Fair, P. Board, G. Pajon Jr, M. Fratantuno, and J. Curtis, and co-produced by will.i.am and Ron Fair. In this anti-war pacifist anthem, The Black Eyed Peas lament on various worldwide problems. Many issues are discussed, which include but are not limited to terrorism, U.S. government hypocrisy, racism, war, intolerance, and greed. This song can be interpreted as an anthem against the War on Terror and the 2003 invasion of Iraq, since it was released shortly after the invasion began.

The song was rewarded with nominations at the 46th Grammy Awards in 2004 for Record of the Year and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration.

The song was the 25th best-selling single of the 2000s in the UK.^[2] It was also the biggest selling single of 2003 in the UK.

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 try to 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 offences to tell people the truth. Justin Timberlake does not appear in the video, although several different people are seen mouthing the chorus as he sings it.

The video is similar to a 2002 UK television advertisement for T-Mobile, in which a face of a young baby is presented in various forms around a large city, much like how the question mark is in this video. The Bon Jovi music video "Have a Nice Day" is also similar to both the advertisement and this video. The video features gameplay footage of the graphically explicit and controversial video game Postal 2, in which a group of young children are playing the game. This suggests that violence in the media and entertainment industry affects the morals of children.