wonder505 said:

wow, they were so different pre-Fergie.

The earlier A.T.B.A.N Klann is even more different.

http://prince.org/msg/8/352781

BlaqueKnight said:

BEP are the definition of "sellout". They have the least musical integrity of any pop artist on the market and I certainly have the least amount of respect for them. You never see some artists "sell out" because much of the time it starts from the beginning of their careers and its not until some old band member uploads an old demo do you find out what time it really was with them. With BEP, they had two records out already, a cult following and an established style and sound before they did a complete 180 and morphed into what they are now - fluff with zero substance. Kim added an element that made them just a bit more special and they lost that when they lost her.

The second you rely on titilation to sell your music (Fergie looking like a runaway stripper), you lose. They have DEVOLVED musically and Will.I.Ain't needs to be shot in the mouth and his head put on a pole as a warning to all.

Okay, maybe not all of that but it definitely shows that there is a pathway into pop stardom and it involves losing yourself. Very few people get to keep their integrity AND become commercially successful. The more successful you become, the more you will be asked to do that goes against who you are and what you sound like.

BEP is a perfect example.

Where's The Love might be THE last real rap classic with that alternative hip-hop sound that they were known for before the crossover to hip-pop. But when the follow-up single Shut Up was released plus the video debut they happen the same week, it was perfectly clear in retrospect that Interscope/A&M Records CEO Jimmy Iovine knew exactly what he was doing when he successfully convince will.i.am to make Fergie a full-time member of the group.

Before THAT (in)famous conversation ever happen, Fergie was only hired to sing looks, which was something Kim Hill used to do for BEPs in-between breaks from her own solo career that she was already building.

WOW - Kim Hill is dopeness personified! You know that she DJs now too? I follow her on Twitter: http://twitter.com/killhim and Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kimhill.killhim I am glad she left BEP...loved their first 2 albums and their live show back then was HOT! But now...just glad that Kim didn't choose to go in the same direction.