Things You Didn't Know About Pharrell

By Constant Gardner, Joyce, and Katie K

Pharrell Williams’ influence loomed large over the music of summer 2013, with the singer and producer having had a hand in two of the season’s most heavily-played songs, Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines” and Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky,” not to mention Jay Z’s Magna Carta Holy Grail, Azealia Banks’ “#ATM Jam” the Despicable Me soundtrack, and lots more.

We’ve already looked at the numerous and varied songs that we might forget to thank Pharrell for, but there is so much more that is interesting about this restlessly creative musician, businessman, entrepreneur, and artist. So, from the sculpture encrusted with 23, 000 rubies that he designed to the fact he lost his virginity to a McDonalds co-worker at 16, here are things you didn’t know about Pharrell.

Teenage virgins like to talk their shit even though they're virgins, and Pharrell, in an interview with Playboy, admitted that he did the same at 16. But, unlike the fate of most boastful young men, his McDonalds coworker—a "28 or 29"-year-old lady—changed his then-sexless life. Fake it 'til you make it, right?

And clearly, he still loves McDonalds to this day—just look how hard he tries to get this Parisian airport Mickey D's to open at 6 a.m. after a flight back from Malaysia.

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Bionic Yarn is a company that Pharrell invested in in 2009 and now part-owns. Set up by outdoor advocates Tyson Toussant and Tim Coombs, the idea is to recycle used plastics like old drinks bottles into something useful and usable. Using things like "science" and "technology," and words like "double helix," the company make a type of thread that has been used in bags, jackets, jeans and more. Watch Pharrell talk about the brand below.

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Amongst endless artistic and business endevaours ranging from music to fashion to investment, Pharrell found time to write some new theme music for Chelsea Handler's talk show, Chelsea Lately. As well as that, or maybe to thank him for the theme tune, when Pharrell went on the show he politely asked the host if he could grab her ass, an offer that she was quick to accept.

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This is amazing. On being asked how often he has to just toss some music he's been working on because it's not coming together, Pharrell told the following anecdote about the beats he made for Michael Jackson, which eventually became Justin Timberlake's debut solo album Justified.

"Like, (Britney Spears') “I’m a Slave 4 U” was made for Janet Jackson. Justin Timberlake’s first album — all those songs, with the exception of “Like I Love You,” were songs I made for Michael Jackson. His manager didn’t like them. Somehow I think Michael didn’t like them either, though. Because when I finally met him, he sang all those songs back to me, and said, “Those songs should have been for me.” And he just laughed ... He just fell on the couch, and he was really tall — six-foot-something. Filled up the whole couch. And he fell, rolled on the floor, kicking like a kid, laughing. But he sang those songs to me and he sang them just like Justin. And then he sang “You Don’t Have to Call” to me, and what was so interesting was all of them had Michael bridges. Like on the bridge of “You Don’t Have to Call,” the way I’d written it, I was trying to capture what Michael had already done with Quincy Jones and Rod Temperton, in the late seventies, early eighties. He sang those songs to me. So he kinda knew, but at the time they just weren’t good enough. But they were songs for him."

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While Pharrell himself is heavy into skateboarding, and even launched and backed the ICECREAM skate team, it's his brother who has really taken to the sport. Cato Williams is pro skater, and, naturally, part of the ICECREAM skate team. I guess having Pharrell as a brother has advantages.

Last month, Pharrell and his longtime girlfriend Helen Lasichanh got married in a secret ceremony that was held in France. The event was kept incredibly private, with only around 50 people, comprised of friends and family, in attendance. Sorry, ladies.

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With three of the last couple of the most interesting, inventive, and influential producers in a group together, alongside rapper Magoo, Surrounded By Idiots certainly seems to be somewhat of a misnomer, but that was their group name back in the early 90's. Unfortunately, this super-super-super-group disbanded before ever making a song, but just the fact that it even existed is pretty damn cool.

"Tim was sick back then, he was doing Anita Baker and Michael Jackson loops.'' - Chad Hugo

After having met Chad Hugo at that band camp for gifted kids, the duo got lucky when New Jack Swing producer Teddy Riley set up his studio right next to Princess Anne High School where Pharrell was a student. Their big break came when the two of them performed in a school talent show that Riley organized, impressing him, and subsequently getting invited down to his studio.

"The Neptunes played -- they were a band then. Chad was the D.J., the keyboard player and the saxophone player all at once. It was like R&B meets techno/new wave/hip-hop. It sounds the way they sound now.'' - Teddy Riley

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All great partnerships have to start somewhere, and Pharrell met future Neptunes production partner Chad Hugo in a 7th grade summer band camp for gifted kids. Young Pharrell played the keyboards and drums, while Hugo played tenor saxophone, and the two young musicians were also in a student marching band, where Hugo was the student conductor.

''Have you seen that movie 'School of Rock'? That was us, except we played jazz standards like Herbie Hancock's 'Watermelon Man.' '' - Chad Hugo

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For someone as busy as Pharrell, it's not always easy to find a place or time to just unwind. However, when asked if he does have a spot he prefers to go to when he wants to collect himself and think about things, Pharrell revealed that he simply enjoys browsing around bookstores by himself. Other favorite places Pharrell has to clear his mind? When he's flying on his jet, which he feels "being that high in the air just seems to make things super clear," and when he's in the shower.

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If Pharrell's ever in a bad mood, he apparently turns to A Tribe Called Quest, whom he thinks are "brilliant." His favorite albums from the group are People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm and Midnight Marauders.

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Even though he's "not even much of a collaborator," Pharrell would love to work with The Purple One, as well as Eminem. He envisions that him and Em could "do something crazy together," although the kind of crazy Pharrell was talking about is probably not the kind of crazy that YouTube user DjDrOzz managed to come up with in his pretty terrifying, clunky-as-hell Eminem, Kelis, Kanye West, Twista & Pharrell Williams mash-up.

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No one would think to question Pharrell's music talent or business acumen, but when you read that he's "fascinated by the work of Dr. V.S. Ramachandran, a professor of neuroscience and psychology at the University of California," you might figure this is a passing interest or a throwaway remark. You would, however, be wrong.

In a pretty in-depth talk for Interview Magazine, Pharrell and Dr Ramachandran discussed topics like synesthesia and how music affects the mind, and also reveal that the Dr visited Pharrell in the studio to watch him working on songs. Furthermore, from P's eloquent comments on the mind, the work of astrophysicist Carl Sagan and lots more, it's clear that he really is a very clever guy.

"When you have an idea, it has to be expressed from your sixth sense, which is, in my opinion, your mind. You have the gustatory, olfactory, visual, auditory, and kinesthetic. When you combine them all, that is a unit that is aware. But then there’s a “super consciousness,” which is like instinct and intuition, which I feel gives us a seventh sense—that’s the thing that you can’t really describe. It’s where hunches come from, or gut feelings." - Pharrell Williams

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Pharrell may be a music-producing superhero multi-millionaire, but he's really just one of us. When he's got a bit of downtime, he throws on an episode of Adventure Time and eats some Cinnamon Toast Crunch. You know, normal people shit.

When asked about oral sex in a Playboy interview: "Head is incredible, but I get off eating pussy, too."

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