will.i.am's solo album follows the story of a burgeoning hip-hop producer who meets and then falls in love with a girl. Eventually led astray by the temptations of fame and lust, he ends up losing his girlfriend, but in the process he learns to appreciate what he had. In many ways, the making of 'Songs About Girls' served as therapy for will. "It was a way to get closure from something that had been lingering in my soul for many years," he says. Artistically, 'Songs About Girls' is not a cavalcade of other people's talents. "I didn't want to come out and say, ‘Hey, I'm a producer and here are all my friends,'" will explains.

Set to a clubby, electronic bounce and with echoes of 8-bit video game sound effects, "I Got It From My Mama," the first single, is a fun rumination on how girls with certain attributes can owe their spectacular assets to their mothers. "Get Your Money" is a minimalist dance song that would sound right at home in a New York club circa 1978. "Donque" is an electroclash-like club joint that features Snoop, the only big-name guest to grace 'Songs About Girls.' will himself sings over a smooth, Carribean Tropical beat on "One More Chance" - something he was encouraged to do by two of his peers, Common and India Arie. After all, it's not just a hip-hop album but takes influences from European club sounds and house music, old-school soul and Brazilian Baile funk – a musically bold work by a producer bubbling with personal expression.