Pharrell Lanscilo Williams, often known mononymously as Pharrell, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, rapper, record producer, and fashion designer. He first became known as one half of the hip hop and R&B production duo the Neptunes, which he formed in 1992 with Chad Hugo. 15 of their productions peaked within the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100, which includes four songs that peaked atop the chart. He also formed the alternative band N.E.R.D. with Hugo and drummer Shay Haley in 1999, for which Williams serves as lead vocalist. He has been considered one of the most influential music producers of the 21st century for his impact on popular music.
"Boys" is a song by American singer Britney Spears from her self-titled third studio album (2001). It was written and produced by Chad Hugo and Pharrell Williams. A version of the song titled "The Co-Ed Remix" and featuring guest vocals from Williams was released as the fifth single from Britney on June 24, 2002. The new version also served as the second single from the soundtrack of Austin Powers in Goldmember. "Boys" is a R&B and hip hop song, including funk influences. The remix carries a slower tempo than the album version, and both versions were noted by critics to be reminiscent of music by American artist Janet Jackson. Some critics praised Spears and Williams' chemistry, as well as the production on the track, while others did not think the song worked well.
Heitor Teixeira Pereira, or Heitor TP, is a Brazilian composer, songwriter, musician, arranger, and record producer. In his career, Pereira has recorded with the band Simply Red and several famous musicians, such as Elton John, Rod Stewart, k.d. lang, Milton Nascimento, and Jack Johnson; and currently works as a film score composer, as well as a musician at Hans Zimmer's studio, he is best known for being the composer of the Despicable Me franchise. Although primarily a guitarist, he also provided backing vocals live for the Simply Red song "Thrill Me". He also collaborates with film directors Chris Renaud, Pierre Coffin, Kyle Balda, Raja Gosnell, and Cal Brunker.
The discography of Pharrell Williams, an American recording artist and record producer, consists of two studio albums, two extended plays (EPs), three mixtapes, 30 singles.
Despicable Me 2 is a 2013 American animated comedy film produced by Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment, and distributed by Universal. It is the sequel to Despicable Me (2010) and the second installment in the Despicable Me franchise. The film was directed by Chris Renaud and Pierre Coffin, produced by Chris Meledandri and Janet Healy, and written by the writing team of Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio. It stars the voices of Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Benjamin Bratt, Miranda Cosgrove, Russell Brand, and Ken Jeong. The film follows retired supervillain Gru as he is recruited by secret agent Lucy Wilde to investigate the theft of a powerful mutagen by El Macho, a supervillain who seeks to achieve world domination.
Despicable Me: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the soundtrack to the film of the same name, and it was released on July 6, 2010. It features new songs from the film written, performed, produced and/or composed by Pharrell Williams, and performances by Destinee & Paris, The Sylvers, Robin Thicke, The Bee Gees, and David Bisbal. A soundtrack album including the many other songs that appear in the film has been unofficially unreleased.
Despicable Me 3 is a 2017 American animated comedy film produced by Universal Pictures and Illumination, and distributed by Universal. It is the sequel to Despicable Me 2 (2013), the third main installment, and the fourth overall installment in the Despicable Me franchise. The film was directed by Pierre Coffin and Kyle Balda, co-directed by production and character designer Eric Guillon, and produced by Chris Meledandri and Janet Healy, from a screenplay by the writing team of Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio. It stars the voices of Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Trey Parker, Coffin, Miranda Cosgrove, Steve Coogan, Jenny Slate, Dana Gaier, Nev Scharrel, and Julie Andrews. In the film, Gru teams up with his long-lost twin brother Dru to stop Balthazar Bratt, a former child actor of the 1980s, from destroying Hollywood after his show was canceled years ago.
"Get Lucky" is a song written and performed by French electronic music duo Daft Punk featuring American singer Pharrell Williams and American musician Nile Rodgers. Daft Punk released the song as the lead single from their fourth and final studio album, Random Access Memories, on 19 April 2013. Before its release as a single, it was featured in television advertisements broadcast during Saturday Night Live, after which Rodgers and Williams announced their involvement in the track. "Get Lucky" is a house-inspired disco, funk, and pop track with lyrics that, according to Williams, are about the good fortune of connecting with someone, as well as sexual chemistry. Upon release, it received widespread acclaim from music critics, who praised Williams's vocals and Rodgers's guitar riffs.
"Happy" is a song written, produced, and performed by American singer-songwriter Pharrell Williams, released as the only single from the soundtrack album for the film Despicable Me 2 (2013). The song was first released on July 2, 2013 with the soundtrack, and it was released as a single on November 21, 2013, alongside a long-form music video. The song was reissued on December 16, 2013, by Back Lot Music under exclusive license to Columbia Records, a division of Sony Music. The song also served as the lead single from Williams's second studio album, Girl (2014). An official remix features American rapper Sky Blu of LMFAO.
Girl is the second studio album by American musician Pharrell Williams. The album was released on March 3, 2014, by Williams' label I Am Other and Columbia Records. Girl was Williams' first studio album since his 2006 debut, In My Mind. It contains appearances by Justin Timberlake, Miley Cyrus, Daft Punk, JoJo, and Alicia Keys.
"Come Get It Bae" is a song written, produced, and performed by American singer-songwriter Pharrell Williams, with guest vocals from Miley Cyrus, from the former's second studio album Girl (2014). "Come Get It Bae" was released on March 6, 2014, through Columbia Records as the third single from the album.
"Shine" is a song written and recorded by American singer Gwen Stefani featuring Pharrell Williams, who also produced the song. Originally intended for Stefani's band No Doubt, it is a reggae pop and ska song that is featured in the 2014 live-action/animated film Paddington. The lyrics revolve around the lead character Paddington Bear's journey to London and his identity crisis. Stefani initially disagreed with Williams' choice to use direct references to Paddington in the lyrics, but praised this decision after watching the film with her children. She reported that her involvement with the recording was inspired by her then-husband Gavin Rossdale and her children's connection to England.
"Freedom" is a song by Pharrell Williams which was released for streaming on Apple Music and played by Zane Lowe on his show on Beats 1 on its launch date of June 30, 2015. Part of the song was made available as a teaser on Williams' Twitter page and was also used in a promotional video for Apple Music. Its music video was nominated for Best Music Video at the 58th Grammy Awards.
Minions: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the soundtrack album to the 2015 film Minions, a spin-off/prequel and the third installment overall in the Despicable Me franchise, directed by Pierre Coffin and Kyle Balda, the latter in his feature directorial debut. The original music is composed by Heitor Pereira who previously worked on Despicable Me (2010) and Despicable Me 2 (2013), where he composed the score with Pharrell Williams. Minions, however is the first film in the franchise, without the involvement of Williams and Pereira taking over the sole credit as the composer. The soundtrack for the film was released, alongside the film, on July 10, 2015, by Back Lot Music.
"Show Me Your Soul" is a song recorded by P. Diddy, Lenny Kravitz, Pharrell Williams, and Loon. The song was released by Bad Boy and Universal as the fourth single from the soundtrack album for the 2003 film Bad Boys II, an action comedy movie directed by Michael Bay, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, and starring Martin Lawrence and Will Smith. All instrumental parts were performed by Lenny Kravitz and Pharrell Williams. The song was aired on Soul Train on November 15, 2003. Chris Robinson directed the music video. The song "Dirrty" by Christina Aguilera was referenced in the lyrics.
Despicable Me 3 (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack album to the 2017 film Despicable Me 3, the fourth installment in the Despicable Me franchise and the sequel to Despicable Me 2 (2013). Pharrell Williams produced the soundtrack album, and also contributed five original songs for the film. The other tracks consisted of several pop singles from the 1980s performed by Michael Jackson, Madonna, Nena, A-ha and few songs and themes from the previous installments. The soundtrack for Despicable Me 3 was released on June 23, 2017, featuring sixteen tracks, and was led by two singles – "Yellow Light" and "There's Something Special" – which was made available through digital download and streaming on June 8 and 13, prior to the album release. Heitor Pereira, who worked on the previous installments, had composed the film's music. Despicable Me 3 (Original Motion Picture Score), which featured Pereira's original score of 38 tracks, was released by Back Lot Music on June 30.
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish is the soundtrack to the 2022 film Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, a sequel to Puss in Boots (2011). The album was released on December 16, 2022, by Back Lot Music, and featured musical score composed by Heitor Pereira, who replaced Henry Jackman, the composer of the first film. It featured five songs performed by Antonio Banderas, Dan Navarro, Gaby Moreno and Pereira, with his score accompanying the remainder of the album.
"Double Life" is a song written, produced, and performed by American musician Pharrell Williams. Originally previewed on Williams's YouTube channel on May 8, the song was released by Columbia Records as a single for the soundtrack of the film Despicable Me 4 on June 14, 2024.
Despicable Me 4 (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack accompanying the 2024 Illumination-produced animation film Despicable Me 4, the fourth main and the sixth overall installment in the Despicable Me franchise and a sequel to Despicable Me 3 (2017). Released through Back Lot Music on June 27, 2024, it featured 44 tracks, primarily based on the film's original score composed by Heitor Pereira and the cover of Tears for Fears' 1985 single "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" performed by the film's cast.
