"Reach for the Stars" (and their instrumental-driven version subtitled "Mars Edition" and "NASA Edition"), is a song written, produced and recorded by American recording artist
will.i.am
William James Adams Jr. (born March 15, 1975), known professionally as will.i.am (pronounced "Will-I-am"), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer. He is the founding and lead member of the musical group Black Eyed Peas.
...
in commemoration of the landing of the
''Curiosity'' rover on the planet
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin at ...
. First released on August 28, 2012 as a promotional single, the song also appears on the deluxe edition of his fourth studio album ''
#willpower'' (2013). "Reach for the Stars (Mars Edition)" became the first song in history to be broadcast from another planet, completing a journey of more than 300 million miles between Mars and Earth.
Background and development
"Reach for the Stars" was written in February 2011, after NASA asked will.i.am to write and produce a song for the ''Curiosity'' rover's landing on Mars. The songwriter said that the experience with NASA administrator
Charles Bolden
Charles Frank Bolden Jr. (born August 19, 1946) is a former Administrator of NASA, a retired United States Marine Corps Major General, and a former astronaut who flew on four Space Shuttle missions.
He graduated from the United States Naval ...
discussing the possibility of broadcasting a song from Mars was "surreal", The song is part of NASA's educational outreach, with will.i.am stating that the song "aims to encourage youth to study science." Rather than produce a song via the computer, will.i.am said that he wanted to show "human collaboration", which featured a 40-piece orchestra. He added that "people in my field aren't supposed to try and execute something classical, or orchestral, so I wanted to break that stigma,
nd have somethingthat would be timeless and translated in different cultures."
NASA confirmed during the
Mars Science Laboratory
Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) is a robotic space probe mission to Mars launched by NASA on November 26, 2011, which successfully landed ''Curiosity'', a Mars rover, in Gale Crater on August 6, 2012. The overall objectives include investigati ...
launch tweet-up on November 24, 2011 that it partnered with will.i.am to deliver a song for ''Curiosity''s landing. After being uploaded to the rover, which landed near the equator of Mars, the song was broadcast live from the planet, completing a journey of more than 300 million miles (approximately 482 million kilometers).
It became the first song in history to be broadcast from another planet and the second song to be broadcast in space, after
the Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...
' "
Across the Universe" was beamed into space by NASA in 2008.
Track listing
* Digital download
# "Reach for the Stars (Mars Edition)" – 4:21
Credits and personnel
* will.i.am – co-writer, producer, recording
* Jordan Miller – vocals
*
Lil Jon
Jonathan H. Smith (born January 17, 1971) better known by his stage name Lil Jon, is an American rapper, producer and former frontman of the rap group Lil Jon & the East Side Boyz. He was instrumental in the emergence of the hip hop subgenre cr ...
– background vocals
*
Dr. Luke
Lukasz Sebastian Gottwald (born September 26, 1973), known professionally as Dr. Luke, Tyson Trax, and Made in China, is an American record producer and songwriter. His professional music career began in the late-night television sketch comedy ...
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Producer
Release history
See also
*
Music in space
References
{{Will.i.am
2012 singles
Will.i.am songs
Interscope Records singles
2012 songs
Songs written by will.i.am
Songs written by Dr. Luke
Song recordings produced by Dr. Luke
Music in space