Fergie On Casting Kim Kardashian In Her ‘M.I.L.F. $’ Video And Getting ‘Primal’ At Taco Bell

As a member of Black Eyed Peas, Fergie sang on (and co-wrote) some of this generation’s most unstoppable bangers: don’t pretend you didn’t love it last time you heard ‘I Gotta Feeling’ on the dance floor. Stacy “Fergie” Ferguson also launched a successful solo career with her punningly-titled 2006 album ‘The Dutchess’, which spawned the hits ‘Glamorous’, ‘Big Girls Don’t Cry’ and ‘London Bridge’. A decade later, she’s revived that solo career pretty explosively with ‘M.I.L.F. $’, a trap track whose must-see video features famous mums including Ciara, Chrissy Teigen and Amber Valletta, as well as one Kim Kardashian West covering herself in milk. Once you realise the song’s meant to be pronounced “MILF Money”, it makes more sense. Anyway, when NME calls L.A.-based Fergie on the phone, she’s polite, chatty and much more cheerful than we’d be if a journalist rang us up at 8.52 in the morning.

Where did the idea for ‘M.I.L.F. $’ actually come from?
“It came actually when I was first pregnant. I was working with [producer] Polow Da Don at the time on a 2 Chainz track called ‘Netflix’. And Polow kind of crawled in my head and said, ‘Fergie, you gonna change people’s views of artists who have babies.’ I’d never thought of that before, but I don’t wanna hide who I am; I’m all about being who you are and owning that. And so ‘M.I.L.F. $’ was my way of doing that with a wink to the audience and being sexual and flirty and fun and a little bit naughty, but with a quirky sense of humour about it. When I was breastfeeding, my husband would come in and say, ‘The milkman is here!’ which helped me with the lyrics because all these different milk puns would come into my head. Like, the club in the video is called ‘M.I.L.F. Shakes’. This song has been marinating, if you will, for about three and a half years now!”

As well as being flirty and tongue-in-cheek, it feels quite empowering in a way. Like, you can still be sexy when you have kids and maybe aren’t 22 any more.
“Well, I envisioned it to have a good message – a liberating message. Just because you’re a mom, that doesn’t mean being a mom has to be the only thing that defines you. You can be a politician; you can be a teacher; you can be sexy, flirty and fun and naughty once in a while. You can be all these great things other than just being a mom, and still be a fantastic mom at the same time. Being a mom is my first priority, but it’s not the only thing I am.”

Advertisement

The video’s most infamous scene shows Kim Kardashian covering herself in milk. Did she need much persuading?
“No, she was actually aboard right away! I mean, she totally got it and was just super-cool about it. The video was such a blast to shoot: it was like a girls’ weekend out with all the girls shooting their different segments at the same time. I’d be in one room doing choreography while [Victoria’s Secret model] Alessandra Ambrosio was in the other room doing her ‘Got M.I.L.F.?’ ad. I’m actually now working on some ‘M.I.L.F. $’ spin-off videos. We shot so much footage of all the different girls that was just so beautiful that each girl could really have her own video.”

During your live sets, you do a few rock covers: Heart’s ‘Barracuda’, Led Zeppelin’s ‘Black Dog’, The Rolling Stones’ ‘Start Me Up’. Can we expect a rock element on your upcoming album?
“Hmm… I’ve got a few pieces I’m playing with, but we’ll see how much makes it onto the album. It’s definitely gonna be a mixture – the album is a cornucopia of different sounds. It’s not a full rock album, but there’ll definitely be a little bit of that on there. I love doing those songs on stage, though, they’re always super fun. It’s definitely part of who I organically am, so I like bringing it out on stage.”

Finally, I have to ask about the classic couplet from your 2006 hit ‘Glamorous’: “I still go to Taco Bell / Drive through, raw as hell.” Obviously it was your quirky way of telling us you were still grounded, but 10 years later, do you still go to Taco Bell?
“I absolutely do. It’s a binge meal for me, so I don’t do it all the time, but when I do, I go hard.”

Do you worry about people thinking, “Oh, she still goes to Taco Bell – like in the song.”
“Ha! But no, I don’t! Because at that point I’m completely in binge mode and all I’m thinking about is how many hot sauces I can grab. Seriously, in that situation, I’m, like, primal. That’s how serious I am about fast food.”

Advertisement

‘M.I.L.F. $’ by Fergie is out now.

You May Also Like

Advertisement

TRENDING

Advertisement

More Stories