Pharrell Williams facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Pharrell Williams
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Williams in 2024
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Pharrell Lanscilo Williams
April 5, 1973 Virginia Beach, Virginia, U.S.
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| Education | Northwestern University (dropped out) |
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| Years active | 1992–present |
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| Spouse(s) |
Helen Lasichanh
(m. 2013) |
| Children | 4 |
| Relatives | Timbaland (cousin) |
| Awards | Full list |
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Pharrell Lanscilo Williams (born April 5, 1973), also known as Pharrell, is an American musician, record producer, singer, songwriter, rapper, and fashion designer. He first became famous as half of the music production team the Neptunes. He formed this group with Chad Hugo in 1992. Many of their songs reached the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100 music chart. Four of these songs even hit number one!
Pharrell and Chad also started a rock and hip-hop band called N.E.R.D. in 1999 with Shay Haley. Pharrell was the lead singer for this band. Many people see him as one of the most important producers in modern popular music.
In 2001, Williams and Hugo started their own record label, Star Trak Entertainment. Pharrell's first solo song, "Frontin'" (with Jay-Z), came out in 2003 and reached number five on the Billboard Hot 100. He later released his first solo album, In My Mind, in 2006.
In 2013, Pharrell worked on two huge hit songs. He produced and sang on Robin Thicke's "Blurred Lines", which went to number one. He also sang on Daft Punk's "Get Lucky", which was a big hit and won a Grammy Award. Later that year, his song "Happy" became a massive success. It was from the movie Despicable Me 2 and also reached number one. "Happy" was the main song from his second album, Girl, released in 2014.
Pharrell has won many awards, including 13 Grammy Awards. He was also nominated for two Academy Awards. One was for "Happy" as Best Original Song. The other was for Best Picture as a producer of the movie Hidden Figures. In 2014, he started his own company called I Am Other. This company is a record label and also helps with his other projects, like his fashion brand, Billionaire Boys Club. Since 2023, he has been the men's creative director for the famous fashion brand Louis Vuitton.
Contents
Early Life and Music Beginnings
Pharrell Lanscilo Williams was born on April 5, 1973, in Virginia Beach, Virginia. He was the oldest of three sons. His mother, Carolyn, was a teacher, and his father, Pharoah, was a handyman.
Pharrell met Chad Hugo when they were in seventh grade at a summer band camp. Pharrell played the drums, and Chad played the tenor saxophone. They both went to Princess Anne High School and were part of the school band. After high school, Pharrell went to Northwestern University for two years but then left to focus on music.
Forming The Neptunes and N.E.R.D.
In the early 1990s, Pharrell and Chad Hugo formed a hip-hop group. They later created a four-person R&B group called the Neptunes with friends Shay Haley and Mike Etheridge. They performed at a high school talent show and were discovered by producer Teddy Riley. His studio was right next to their school. After finishing school, the group signed a deal with Riley.
As The Neptunes, Williams and Hugo became very successful producers. They produced hit songs for many famous artists. These included "I Just Wanna Love U (Give It 2 Me)" for Jay-Z in 2000 and "Hot in Herre" for Nelly in 2002. They also worked with singer Kelis on her first two albums. In 2001, Pharrell, Hugo, and Haley released their first album as the band N.E.R.D., called In Search of....
The Neptunes produced songs for Britney Spears's album Britney in 2001. In 2002, they produced almost all the songs on Clipse's album Lord Willin'. They also worked on Justin Timberlake's first album, Justified, producing hit singles like "Señorita" and "Rock Your Body". In 2003, The Neptunes released their own album, Clones, which featured many artists. At one point, surveys showed that The Neptunes had produced a huge percentage of the songs played on the radio! In 2004, they produced Snoop Dogg's hit song "Drop It Like It's Hot", which also featured Pharrell's vocals.
Solo Success and Big Collaborations
In 2005, The Neptunes produced Gwen Stefani's hit song "Hollaback Girl", which quickly reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100. In 2006, Pharrell released his first solo album, In My Mind. It reached number 3 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart. The Neptunes continued to produce for artists like Clipse and Gwen Stefani.
Pharrell also worked with Madonna on her album Hard Candy in 2008. N.E.R.D. released their third album, Seeing Sounds, that same year. In 2009, Pharrell worked with Shakira on several songs for her album She Wolf.
Despicable Me and Global Hits
In 2010, Pharrell helped create the music for the animated movie Despicable Me with composers Hans Zimmer and Heitor Pereira. N.E.R.D. also released their fourth album, Nothing, that year.
A huge year for Pharrell was 2013. He worked with the French electronic group Daft Punk on their songs "Get Lucky" and "Lose Yourself to Dance". "Get Lucky" became a number one hit in the UK and number two in the U.S. He also wrote and produced Robin Thicke's song "Blurred Lines", which became a number one hit in many countries.
Pharrell wrote three new songs for the movie Despicable Me 2 (2013): "Just a Cloud Away", "Happy", and "Scream". "Happy" became a worldwide sensation. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song. In November 2013, Pharrell released the first-ever 24-hour music video for "Happy," featuring many celebrity cameos.
In February 2014, Pharrell announced his second album, Girl, which was released in March 2014. He then went on a European concert tour called the Dear Girl Tour.
New Ventures and Recent Projects
In March 2014, Pharrell became a new coach on the TV show The Voice. He also helped compose the music for The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014). In May 2014, he put together an art show in Paris, France, named after his album, Girl. The show featured works by famous artists like Takashi Murakami.
In 2015, Pharrell sang three songs for the movie The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water. He also performed "Happy" at the Grammy Awards with Hans Zimmer. In 2015, a court decided that the song "Blurred Lines" was too similar to Marvin Gaye's 1977 song "Got to Give It Up". Pharrell and the other creators had to pay the Gaye family $7.4 million.
In 2019, Pharrell and the city of Virginia Beach started a music and cultural festival called Something in the Water. The festival featured many popular artists. Pharrell also produced five songs for the movie The Lion King (2019).
Pharrell's life and career are the subject of an animated documentary film called Piece by Piece, which came out in 2024.
Artistry and Style
Musical Influences
Pharrell has said he doesn't have direct musical influences. However, he admires many musicians, including Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, and Marvin Gaye. He also mentioned that A Tribe Called Quest's album People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm (1990) made him see music as true art.
Pharrell has also shared that he has synesthesia. This means he experiences music in a unique way, like seeing colors or shapes when he hears sounds. This helps him create his art.
Signature Sound: The Four-Count Start
Throughout his career, Pharrell has been known for his "four-count loops" or "four-count starts" at the beginning of the songs he produces. This is like a little musical countdown before the main beat drops. He explained in an interview that this was not planned. It just happened when he was trying to start a song on the beat without using a metronome.
Fashion and Business Ventures
In 2005, Pharrell teamed up with Japanese fashion icon Nigo to create the streetwear brands Billionaire Boys Club and Ice Cream footwear. He also designed eyewear and jewelry for Louis Vuitton in 2008.
Pharrell started a non-profit organization called "From One Hand To AnOTHER" (FOHTA) in 2008. In 2012, he launched his social media company, I Am Other. In 2014, he started a long-term partnership with the sports brand Adidas. His "Human Race" collection with Adidas was released in 2016. He also collaborated with G-Star Raw on a denim collection made from recycled ocean plastic.
In 2020, Pharrell launched Humanrace, his own skin care brand. In 2022, he was announced as the Chief Brand Officer for Doodles, a company known for NFTs.
On February 14, 2023, Louis Vuitton announced that Pharrell would be their new men's creative director. This is a very important role in the fashion world. He showed his first collection for Louis Vuitton in June 2023.
Personal Life
Pharrell married his longtime partner, model and fashion designer Helen Lasichanh, on October 12, 2013. They have four children together. Their son, Rocket, was born in 2008, and they welcomed triplets in January 2017. The song "Rocket's Theme" from the Despicable Me movie was written for their son.
In 2005, Esquire magazine voted Pharrell the "Best Dressed Man in the World." He is a big fan of the science fiction series Star Trek. He often uses the Vulcan salute hand gesture to represent his record label, Star Trak. Pharrell also loves to skateboard and even has a half-pipe in his home.
In 2011, Pharrell announced that he was building a $35 million after-school center in his hometown of Virginia Beach. In 2019, he offered internships to 144 students at Promise Academy in Harlem, New York City.
Discography
Solo albums
- In My Mind (2006)
- Girl (2014)
Collaboration albums
- With N.E.R.D.
- In Search of... (2002)
- Fly or Die (2004)
- Seeing Sounds (2008)
- Nothing (2010)
- No One Ever Really Dies (2017)
- With the Neptunes
- Clones (2003)
Filmography
- Despicable Me (2010) – Composer
- Despicable Me 2 (2013) – Composer
- The Voice (2014–16) – Himself (Coach)
- The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014) – Co-composer
- The Simpsons (2015) – Himself (voice role)
- Hidden Figures (2016) – Producer, composer
- Despicable Me 3 (2017) – Composer
- The Grinch (2018) – Narrator (voice role)
- Sing 2 (2021) – Alfonso (voice role)
- Despicable Me 4 (2024) – Composer
- Piece by Piece (2024) – Himself (voice role); producer, composer
- Mufasa: The Lion King (2024) – Composer
Tours
- Dear Girl Tour (2014)
Awards
Images for kids
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Pharrell Williams performing at the 2014 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.
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Pharrell Williams at the Global Citizen Festival in Hamburg, July 2017.
See also
In Spanish: Pharrell Williams para niños
- List of people with synesthesia
