Everything to know about Will.i.am’s F1 artist in residence
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MIAMI — Black Eyed Peas frontman, entrepreneur, and self-confessed “car guy” Will.i.am has launched a global Artist in Residence program with Formula 1 — but not everybody is on board.
The partnership kicked off at the Miami Grand Prix with a pre-race ceremony more closely resembling the NBA All-Star Weekend than a traditional motorsport event, proving divisive among the drivers and fans alike.
The rapper also dropped his first track, aptly titled “The Formula,” with Lil Wayne during the race weekend.
He will release two more F1-inspired songs throughout the season, culminating in a new solo album slated for the fall.
Will.i.am pitched the concept to F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali last November as an initiative that will continue with a new artist every year.
“He was speaking at Harvard when I was attending Harvard [Business School] and I pitched the idea to him there,” Will.i.am told The Post.
“It’s something that could happen for the rest of F1 where we have the arts celebrate the sport in ways that no sport [has done] before.”
Domenicali’s response to the outlandish pitch?
“That sounds like a really freaking awesome idea,” Will.i.am recalled of his conversation with the F1 boss, whom he’s known “for a long time.”
The “Scream & Shout” chart-topper is no stranger to the international sporting stage, having previously written a theme song for the NBA playoffs, and performed at the Super Bowl and the World Cup.
But this collaboration is “deeper,” he told us.
“To put out a record and go on tour with a sport as it travels the whole world … that doesn’t happen,” he said, noting he’s set to perform at a handful of races throughout the year, in addition to releasing a full album.
However, the residency program’s first showing in Miami resulted in a highly memorable moment when all 20 drivers were blasted with smoke while being introduced by rapper LL Cool J.
Mercedes driver George Russell slammed the whole affair as “distracting.”
“I’m here to race, I’m not here for the show. I’m here to drive and I’m here to win,” he told reporters.
His teammate, Lewis Hamilton, was more complimentary of the American-style pageantry, which also featured Will.i.am conducting an orchestra on the starting grid.
“I think it’s cool that the sport is…
Read More: Everything to know about Will.i.am’s F1 artist in residence 2023-05-23 13:59:00