The 25 Best Pharrell Hooks

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This song was premiered on a Season 3 episode of Entourage during Vinny Chase's yachtastic birthday celebration. Which makes sense, given its sound. The record didn't bring Twista more Kamikaze-like success, P's breakdown for the hook is more than enough to command attention. 

The Neptunes helped the Liks carry their '90s relevance into the '00s for a brief moment, due mostly to Pharrell's hook here. This record was a perfect marriage of the duo's signature blinged-out beats and club-ready hooks, and serves as a real time capsule of how P helped change rap's sound in the 21st century.

You get a lot of range from Pharrell on this hook alone. A lot of P's choruses put you in the mood for the next party, but this one sounds like he's sitting on a stool in a tavern singing tales of cocaine and violence from the Old West. It's nice to hear that sometimes. It's a perfect setup for the rest of the song's narrative, too.

Pharrell dons the falsetto, croons like an old soul, and engages in a little back-and-forth with T.I.P. on this chorus. They've made a lot of tracks together with dope hooks, but this Urban Legend jam takes the cake.

If you need an explanation for why that's awesome, then you have no goals in life.

Busta and Pharrell stayed killing it during this era. This The Neptunes Present... Clones single had a super-illy video, and a slightly provocative chorus set to one of the Neptunes' best beats at the time. Fire, indeed.

It always seemed like P spent all his time surrounded by model chicks, so who better to sing about getting undressed? Impossibly chill and easy to sing along with, it's no wonder this single became a Top 10 hit.

Once the Neptunes became super-producers, artists and A&Rs were speed-dialing them to produce singles with crossover potential. Never one to forget his roots (just ask Clipse), Pharrell linked up with N.O.R.E. for “Nothin'” in 2002 after teaming up with him in 1998 for “Superthug.” P got on the hook and the pair scored another hit.

Pharrell and Jay-Z added another dope track to their long history of collaborations with the dreamy “I Know.” We’re not sure, but P may have been channelling Bill Wither’s classic “Ain’t No Sunshine”—a song where Withers memorably chanted “I know” over 20 times. What we do know is we liked it. Hell, we loved it.

Pusha-T might hate “When the Last Time,” but we still love it. It’s one of Clipse’s biggest chart hits and a lot of that has to do with the intergalactic beat and the club-ready chorus from Pharrell. Most of the hooks on this list have P singing, but on here he’s doing something closer to rapping and doing a deft job of it.

Pharrell, ever the enlightened gentleman, was early and often trying to help guys understand the benefits of letting girls be free and dance. The hook here so smooth it was a convincing argument, but with guys like Pharrell out there, it simultaneously reminded countless listeners there was at least one person out there who could definitely, without a doubt, steal your girl. 

Even with Pharrell spitting some of the best rhymes of his career, and a great feature from Snoop, the highlight of this single off In My Mind is still the chorus. Was his solo opus underrated? Seems that way. 

For the lead single to Jadakiss’ debut solo album, Kiss of Death, he went way more commercial than we expected (especially for a guy who fought to get off Bad Boy). The result was the Neptunes’ produced “Knock Yourself Out,” a song so steamy it had a chick moaning on the beat. P handled the hook and asked the ladies what they wanted to do—then granted permission in a seductive whisper.

Sampling Luther Vandross’ “Take You Out” (and borrowing some of its lyrics)—Hov and P set out to make a record considerably smoother than some of their previous efforts. Pharrell crooned in a high falsetto while Jigga dropped ad-libs about Scooby Doos. The record became a Top 10 hit as Jay and that boy Pharrell continued to make beautiful music.

On this single from In Search Of…, P turns the chorus into a rebellious anthem: "You can't be me, I'm a rock star/ I'm rhyming on the top of a cop car." If you can't handle the hook's intensity, then you're one of the "fuckin' posers" Pharrell was talking about.

If you're the right age, chances are you remember where you were the first time you heard this song. Which means you remember the first time you heard Pharrell's exuberant "I'm a hustler, babyyyy." Try not to sing the entire chorus in your head after reading that. Exactly. It'd be wrong to argue that anything's better.