will.i.am: 'Sex isn't extracurricular'

will.i.am has insisted that he only has sex with women that he loves.

The Black Eyed Peas frontman confessed that he did not begin exploring his sexuality until the age of 19 and to this day does not consider sleeping with someone to be an "extracurricular activity" to be performed with casual partners.

"To me, sex isn't like an extracurricular activity that you do because you're [feeling amorous]," he explained to Elle. "Because I was raised around girls, I think I've adopted that perspective on sex.

"When you're with somebody and you love them, then you're going to do it and you're going to do it a lot. On tour, the band started calling me G.S., for the Good Samaritan."

Asked at what age he lost his virginity, he responded: "I walked before I crawled. You can ask my mum. That applies to a lot of things in my life, and that indirectly answers that question."

The Black Eyed Peas recently announced that they have begun working on their next album and will begin recording following their summer European tour.

The group also plans to open a music academy in New York for teenagers between 13 and 19 and will offer courses in voice and multimedia.