After the lukewarm reception of 2006’s In My Mind, Williams took an eight-year sabbatical from solo projects, instead dominating the charts indirectly through production work for and collaborations with big-name artists such as Frank Ocean, Daft Punk, and the recently controversial Robin Thicke. G I R L reunites Williams with Daft Punk and features other heavyweights such as Justin Timberlake, Alicia Keys, and Miley Cyrus.
During this time, Pharrell also worked on scoring Universal Pictures’ Despicable Me and Despicable Me 2. The soundtrack of the latter includes “Happy,” a funky anthem meant for dancing — or at the very least, clapping — for which the first ever 24-hour music video was released. Clap along here and pre-order G I R L now on iTunes.
Article by Linda Choi