Taboo

Jaime Luis Gomez (born July 14, 1975), better known by the stage names Taboo, or Taboo Nawasha is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, actor, DJ, and comic book writer, best known as a member of the musical group Black Eyed Peas.

Jaime Luis Gomez was born in Los Angeles, California.

His parents were both from Mexico.

The Black Eyed Peas date back to 1988, when eighth-graders Will.i.am Adams (will.i.am) and Allan Pineda (apl.de.ap) met and began rapping and performing together around Los Angeles.

The pair signed to Ruthless Records (run by Eazy-E) in 1992, catching the attention of Eazy-E manager, Jerry Heller's nephew.

Along with another friend of theirs, Dante Santiago, they called their band Atban Klann (ATBAN: A Tribe Beyond a Nation).

Will 1X (aka will.i.am), apl.de.ap, Mookie Mook, DJ Motiv8 (aka Monroe Walker) and Dante Santiago formed Atban Klann.

Their debut album, Grass Roots, was never released because Ruthless founder Eazy-E had died.

He attended Rosemead High School (class of 1993), and was educated at Richard Garvey Intermediate School.

He also has Shoshone heritage from his grandmother.

After Eazy-E died in 1995, Atban Klann reformed and changed their name to Black Eyed Pods, and then Black Eyed Peas.

Dante Santiago was replaced with Jaime Gomez (Taboo), and Kim Hill became a steady background singer.

Unlike many hip hop acts, they chose to perform with a live band and adopted a musical and clothing style that differed wildly from the gangsta rap sounds of Los Angeles–based hip hop acts at the time.

Taboo is known primarily for his guttural spoken reprises of the last few words of a sung lyric, as well as emphatic flourishes between vocal parts.

After being signed to Interscope Records and releasing their debut, Behind the Front (1998) the group (and their accompanying live band) earned critical acclaim.

One of the singles from the album was "Joints & Jam", and was featured on the Bulworth soundtrack.

Their second album was Bridging the Gap (2000), which had the single "Request + Line" featuring Macy Gray.

In 2003, Fergie became the fourth member of the group and the group gained international fame, having won six Grammy Awards and sold an estimated 75 million records worldwide.

They released their third album Elephunk, with the hit singles "Where Is the Love?" and "Shut Up".

Their 2005 album Monkey Business was a worldwide success, being certified 4× Platinum in the US, and spawning the singles, "My Humps" and "Don't Phunk with My Heart".

In 2008, Taboo was in the process of creating a solo album, but in a 2011 interview Taboo said it would be some time before he would begin a solo album.

Sie7e was also confirmed to have composed at least three of the Album's songs.

"Revolution Ni Hao" can be heard on his official website.

Music he has co-written and performed has been featured on many movie soundtracks, including Coach Carter, Legally Blonde, Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle, and Barbershop 2: Back in Business.

In 2009, the group became one of only 12 artists to have simultaneously held the No. 1 and No. 2 spots on the Billboard Hot 100, with their singles "Boom Boom Pow" and "I Gotta Feeling", with the next single "Meet Me Halfway" achieving similar success, from the album The E.N.D.

These three singles topped the chart for an unprecedented 30 consecutive weeks in 2009.

The album later produced a third Hot 100 number-one placement with "Imma Be", making the group one of few to ever place three number one singles on the chart from the same album before being followed with "Rock That Body" which peaked in the Top 10 of Hot 100.

"I Gotta Feeling" became the first single to sell more than 1 million downloads in the United Kingdom.

In November 2010, they released the album The Beginning.

The first single of the album was "The Time (Dirty Bit)" and topped the charts in many countries.

In February 2011, the group performed at the Super Bowl XLV halftime show.

The album's second single was "Just Can't Get Enough" and was released in February 2011.

The music video was filmed in Japan one week before the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.

The third single "Don't Stop the Party" was released in May 2011.

In July 2011 the group announced they were taking a break.

The Black Eyed Peas were ranked 12th on the Billboard's Decade-End Chart Artist of the Decade, and 7th in the Hot 100 Artists of the Decade.

In May 2014, Taboo released his solo single, "Zumbao", which is "all about having fun[...]being infected by positive energy."

The music video for the song features a handful of YouTube talent including DeStorm Power, STRSkillSchool, freestyle footballer Séan Garnier, Mandy Jiroux, and Megan Batoon.

In November 2016, Taboo released the single "The Fight" about his successful battle against testicular cancer.

The track was made in partnership with the American Cancer Society, for which Taboo is a global ambassador.