Twenty first year aeronautics students were given free tickets to a will.i.am gig at the Royal Albert Hall gig last week, after being spotted in their boiler suits taking an end of year picture outside the venue earlier that day.

Apparently impressed by the group’s aesthetic, the concert’s director approached and offered the students 20 free tickets to the sold out gig if they turned up that night in their boiler suits. He attempted to lure the young aeronautics students by describing will.i.am’s investment in NASA robotics projects.

When the students returned that evening, in their boiler suits, they were allowed to walk up the red carpet (which was black), were directed to the VIP room and were greeted with canapes and Prosecco.

They were interviewed by the director before the gig, which was filmed by will.i.am’s team.

Wojciech Kowalski

They then saw the show from the arena, right next to the stage. A couple of them even managed to bag a selfie with the man himself.

One student told FELIX that it was an “unforgettable experience”, with another adding: “I arrived late and it was so easy to find my mates: I just asked ‘have you seen blue people like me?’ and everybody was able to indicate the direction with a big smile.”

The free gig was to promote will’s new wearable tech venture, ‘dial’, a smartwatch with an AI, about which he cracked wise throughout the night in breaks between songs.

The night included cameos from old members of the Black Eyed Peas, Ricky Wilson of the Kaiser Chiefs and Tinie Tempah.