NEW YORK - In the basement of a trendy downtown hotel, Fergie sits waiting at the head of a large wooden table, scribbling notes on a yellow legal pad.

The sexy, spicy element of the Black Eyed Peas apologizes for wanting to meet in this stuffy room rather than a nearby trendy Asian restaurant. The 31-year-old is preoccupied with her solo debut CD The Dutchess, hoping it will prove she's more than just a pretty Pea. Containing torch songs, bouncy pop, reggae and even techno, the album has germinated for years.

Lyric-wise, The Dutchess offers a more introspective Fergie, a woman willing to talk about her loves, her critics and her former meth addiction. "I think it's important to represent who I am in all facets," she says. "That's why I've talked about my struggle with drugs. I don't want to talk about it all the time because it's not a part of my life anymore but I'm not running from it."

The album's saucy first single, "London Bridge," sat atop the Billboard singles chart for three weeks. The rest of the CD - co-written by Fergie and produced by Ron Fair, DJ Mormile and Will.i.am, the Peas' lead lyricist - features samples from Little Richard and The Commodores. Guests include Ludacris and Rita Marley.

Fergie, born Stacy Ann Ferguson and raised in Whittier, Calif., emerged at age 7 in the kiddie TV band Kids Incorporated, later graduating to the pop girl group Wild Orchid in the 1990s.

She started off a kind of apprenticeship with the Peas, adding her booming, soulful backing vocals to what would be the band's third album, Elephunk, which had hits including "Where's the Love" and the Grammy Award-winning "Let's Get It Started." By the time Will.i.am - together with bandmates Taboo and Apl.de.ap - left for a tour of Australia in 2003, Fergie was their fourth member. In 2005, the group's Monkey Business turned into another multiplatinum success.

Fergie thinks she'll be able to open up even more on the next Black Eyed Peas album - no, she insists, they're not breaking up - because her solo CD will let fans "get me and know who I am."

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