Joanna Lumley was on a mission to get to know the elusive, singularly inspirational singer and technological entrepreneur will i am. In this special documentary, she travelled to Los Angeles to spend quality time with The Voice judge and former front man of The Black Eyed Peas in his home town. Will showed Joanna the neighbourhood where he grew up, and takes her to the project housing where he spent his early years. He then introduces her to his mother and relations at a family dinner at his Los Feliz home. 

 

Over the course of the film Joanna discovered how the boy who couldn’t keep still as a child made it out of his tough neighbourhood to achieve global success, and is now able to count the former President Barack Obama as a friend. She discovered that the real will i am is a man obsessive about the future, and eager to give something back as a bi-product of his own staggering success. Joanna visits ‘The Future’, a facility space will runs to encourage young artists and start-up businesses devoted to new technology to develop their ideas, and meets his long time friend and collaborator apl.de.ap. 

 

Produced for BBC One