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Pharrell Williams · S2 E2
The Apprenticeship
Learning the craft from the king of New Jack Swing
Princess Anne High School, Virginia Beach, 1992. The hottest producer in America has built a $3 million studio directly across the parking lot from Pharrell Williams' school.
SWV, Right Here (Human Nature Remix) (1993). Produced by Teddy Riley. Pharrell's first vocal appearance on a hit record: he's the voice chanting the group's initials throughout the track. It peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100.
The Intern
Pharrell starts as a gofer. Fetching coffee, running errands, learning to keep his mouth shut while the masters work. He keeps suggesting chord changes and drum patterns during sessions, and keeps getting told to be quiet.
“When I first took a liking to The Neptunes, I knew that they were something. They were so far ahead of their time it was like they were on Mars.”
— Teddy Riley
TAP TO REVEAL: What was Pharrell's rap name in high school?
Princess Anne High School, Virginia Beach
Pharrell's high school, separated from Future Recording Studios by a parking lot. The most improbable commute in music history: from algebra class to a world-class recording studio in under five minutes.
Rump Shaker. Wreckx-N-Effect
The 1992 hit where teenage Pharrell wrote Teddy Riley's rap verse in under 40 minutes. It peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and sold 4 million copies. Pharrell got no credit on the sleeve.
What famous Michael Jackson song did Pharrell's mentor Tammy Lucas co-write?
Two teenagers are learning to write songs in a woman's living room and sneaking across a parking lot to a world-class studio. Next: the first real credits and a sound nobody has heard before.
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