PHARRELL WILLIAMS
Pharrell Williams was born on April 5, 1973 in Virginia Beach, VA. He is one half of the production duo “The Neptunes” with Chad Hugo. They have produced numerous hit singles for various music megastars. He is also the lead singer and drummer in the funk-rock group, N*E*R*D, with Hugo and Shae Haley. More recently, Pharrell has done solo work as a singer and rapper, and calls his rapping persona “Skateboard P.” Pharrell and Chad met at a jazz workshop at age 12. In the 1990s, Chad and Pharrell formed a 4-piece R&B group along with Shae and Mike Etheridge, which they named “The Neptunes.” Upon entering a local contest, they were discovered by Teddy Riley. Since the late '90s, the Neptunes began scoring assignments that infiltrated mainstream music, whether it was dance-pop (Britney Spears' "I'm a Slave 4 U"), hardcore rap (Clipse's "Grindin'"), or contemporary R&B (Babyface's "There She Goes"). In 2002, The Neptunes were named "Producers of the Year" at both The Source Awards and the Billboard Music Awards. In 2003, they released “The Neptunes Present... Clones,” which topped the charts. In 2003, Pharrell released his first solo single, "Frontin.” The hit built anticipation for the N.E.R.D album “The Fly Or Die” in 2004. That same year, Pharrell won two grammys for Producer of the Year and production of Best Pop Vocal Album. In 2005, Pharrell released the single "Can I Have It Like That,” which did not do well in the US. The solo album, “In My Mind,” was released in July 2006
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