Pharrell joined The Fader’s The FADER Uncovered podcast with Mark Ronson, and on the episode the legend talked about Jay-Z’s unique style of making music, and how Hov would repeat his bars back to him in falsetto because that’s how he’d think them up.
“He’s not good because he’s just made good records, no, he’s really like a character,” Pharrell explained. “He’s an odd guy. If you ever spoke to him, have a conversation with him, it’s not a regular conversation. Or when he writes and he’s just sitting there mumbling to himself, in falsetto, by the way.”
At the 21:28 mark of the interview, Pharrell continued by mimicking the way Hov would rap in falsetto when making songs, using the verse from their hit track “I Just Wanna Love U (Give It 2 Me)” as an example.
“When he writes a rhyme, he doesn’t go, ‘When the Remy’s in the...’ He doesn’t do that,” he says. “He goes, ‘Yo, yo, when the Remy’s in the system, ain’t no tellin’ will I fuck em’, will I diss em’, that’s what they yellin’ I’m a pimp by blood.’ And he taps you on the shoulder and takes it back again. He writes in falsetto.”
He added, “That’s odd and different and weird and amazing and makes him a character.”
Pharrell went on to say that he has no idea why he would do that before recording, but that he would do it all the time. Later on in the interview, the two talked about how Pharrell and Hov had a symbiotic relationship.
You can listen to the rest of the podcast episode down below.
