WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Aside from, y'know, Barack Obama, will.i.am is making a strong case to be Inaugural Weekend MVP. With appearances and performances at no less than three galas (and an invite to the swearing-in of our commander in chief) will is making our nation's capital his own personal playground -- so who better to take the temperature of the city on the eve of the Inauguration?

"The feeling in the city right now? It's optimism and nostalgia; remembering where we came from and where we're going," he told MTV News on Sunday (January 20). "The reason it feels historic and nostalgic is because we're writing our own history right now."

So, this weekend, will is marking Obama's second term by bringing his mother and aunt down to D.C. And though he'll be in a celebratory mood throughout, he's already thinking about the next four years; and he knows what issue he'd like to see the president tackle right away.

"What I want to see happen is science programs getting funded in every single high school and junior high school, so when Obama is not president, those programs are still going and successful," he said. "I'd like to see Apple and Dell factories be brought to the inner cities; in every project in America, there's some factory there, and it's abandoned, and I'd like to see those factories open and bring jobs to America."

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And if anyone has a line to the president, it's will. After all, he's a close, personal friend of Obama's -- pr at least close enough to consider him his "ninja."

"I think people know a lot about him. He ain't a ninja -- I mean, he's my ninja -- but he's not invisible," Will said. "He's a lot like how you see him. He's cool and fun but serious at the same time. He's approachable, he's kind, aware ... attentive when you're speaking to him. He takes his time to speak to normal folk and important folk at the same."

Stick with MTV News for Inauguration Weekend as we bring you all the latest from the D.C. presidential events, performances and parties right through the official swearing-in on Monday, January 21. And although the election's over, you can still get involved and be heard by heading over to serve.mtv.com.