Will.i.am would love to say "I told you so" to all the people who bashed the Black Eyed Peas in the past. But he won't -- even though the group just made history on the Billboard charts.

"There's a part of me that wants to be cocky," the 34-year-old Peas leader said. "There's a part of me that wants to call out all of my other peers and competitors. But I'm not like that."

This week the foursome, who have had their share of critics, will have topped Billboard's Hot 100 singles charts for 20 consecutive weeks, the most ever by an act. "Boom Boom Pow" and the song that dislodged it, "I Gotta Feeling," have been at the top of the charts for 12 and eight weeks, respectively.

Though the band members had big hits over the years, "Boom Boom Pow" was their first No. 1 single. Will.i.am says he's surprised how successful the song became.

"I knew that 'Boom Boom Pow' would be big in the clubs, but I didn't know it would be that potent with the outside world," he said. "I didn't know that teachers would say, 'I like that song.'"

"Boom Boom Pow" and "I Gotta Feeling" have sold 3.8 million and 2.1 million digital downloads, respectively, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The band's CD, "The E.N.D.," has nearly gone platinum, selling over 900,000 units since its June release.

But the success is not pure luck, Will.i.am said. The band did heavy research by partying at underground nightclubs and events.

They chose "Boom Boom Pow" as the first single after the response it received at a Grammy party this year. After its success, they used the same idea for their current hit.

He said the group will use the same strategy for the third single, the groovy "Meet Me Halfway."

Will.i.am said he's not sure how to take it all in.

"If people like the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and Michael Jackson have these No. 1s, but yet we just broke a record, how am I supposed to take that? Because we came from the under, under, underground," he said.