With William "Will.i.am" James Adams Jr. at the helm, the hip-hop and R&B collective the Black Eyed Peas has earned six Grammys and sold 29 million albums worldwide. He's a prolific producer who has worked with artists such as Justin Bieber, Nicki Minaj, Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears. Along with campaigning for President Barack Obama, Will.i.am has become a major advocate for education. In February he helped raise $5 million for his i.am.angel Foundation, which provides funding for needy students. He's been an outspoken supporter of making courses in STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) a bigger part of school curricula. His efforts in science and math education led to him becoming the first artist to have a song broadcast from Mars, when NASA's rover Curiosity blasted out "Reach for the Stars" after touching down on the red planet in August 2012. His fourth solo studio album, #willpower, is scheduled for release in October 2012.