For the better part of two decades, has produced some of the biggest and most influential tracks in pop music. He’s one of the best beat-makers, producers and behind-the-scenes-guys in the business, but does he have a habit of starting songs the same?
of the intros to some of Pharrell’s tracks, and you’ll notice that they all start by looping the beat of the first bar four times before going into the track.
“It’s not a bad technique – for one thing, you get to the melody quicker, and that is a sure-fire way of making your song memorable and radio friendly,”
But Discopop also says that he’s “rubbish at starting songs.” This might be a bit of an overstatement. It’s annoying that three of these highlighted tracks come from the same album — his 2014 release “Girl.” It’s a bit lazy to repeat this type of intro three times on the same album. But otherwise, given that he uses this technique on 10 other songs for mostly-different artists, in the span of more than 10 years, it’s a little forgivable.
Still, this is an interesting observation. Listen to the Pharrell intros below, but beware, you’ll never un-hear it.
1) SWV – Right Here
2) Jay-Z – Frontin’
3) Kelis – Milkshake
4) Snoop Dogg – Drop It Like Its Hot
5) Robin Thicke – Blurred Lines
6) Shakira – Why Wait
7) Frank Ocean – Sweet Life
8) Pharrell Williams – Brand New
9) Paloma Faith – Can’t Rely On You
10) Pharrell Williams – Happy
11) Pharrell Williams – Hunter
12) Jay-Z – I Wish
13) Pharrell Williams – Gust Of Wind
See photos of Pharrell at the 2014 Grammys below:
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