Before everyone gets their knickers in a twist, ADHD is a serious issue, blah blah blah, but yes there’s treatment for it and no, it’s not life threatening, so lighten up. Anyway, it might explain why will.i.am is so f-cking annoying all the time – he suffers from the disorder.
Will’s had ADHD for years, but he doesn’t take Ritalin or any other drugs for it. Instead, music is his cure and he’s learned how to control it. Incidentally, sometimes things like ADD/ADHD and related issues can actually be a positive thing for artists, and since he’s rich and inexplicably famous now, it seems to have all worked out for him.
From The Mirror:
“I have ADHD. I’ll admit it. Did you hear about the elephant that got into that fight with a gorilla? Sorry, that’s my ADHD kicking in.
“I’ve got all this stuff in my head at the same time as I’m doing stuff and I don’t know how to stop or slow down. But it’s all good because I know how to control it.”
The American music producer has revealed how music, not anti-hyperactivity drug Ritalin, is his cure for the condition.
He says: “For every obstacle there’s some type of solution. So if you have ADHD it’s your passion point. One thing I learned about ADHD is that it’s hard to keep your attention and you can’t sit still and you’re always moving and thinking about a whole bunch of things.
“But those traits work well for me in studios and in meetings about creative ideas. I’ve figured out a place for it. If you listen to the songs I write, they are the most ADHD songs ever. They have five hooks in one and it all happens in three minutes. I figured out a way of working with it.”
And Will, whose new album #willpower is out now, also manages to avoid feeling down through his love of music.
He added: “If I was stuck at a different job I’d be horrible and wouldn’t survive. Music is my therapy and my straitjacket. Music keeps me sane and keeps my mind on something. It’s fragile up there.
“My mind would wander, and if it wanders then that’s not good because I could scare myself thinking of weirdo stuff. Music brings control to my thoughts. It’s not escape – it’s just order. I’m making order out of a disorder.”
To be honest, I’m not at all surprised by this revelation. will.i.am is always so all over the place and hyper that it kinda makes sense. I’m trying to be nice today (heh), so I’ll just say good for him for figuring it all out.