Pharrell Williams Songs That You May Not Know He Contributed

This article on Pharrell Williams Songs is originally written and posted on Billboard. Pharrell Williams songs reach accros genre and style. He is a true writer and musician.

10 Songs You Didn’t Know Pharrell Helped Write

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Pharrell Williams performs at ComplexCon 2017 on Nov. 5, 2017 in Long Beach, Calif.

Including the likes of Nelly, Gwen Stefani, Madonna, Kendrick Lamar, Frank Ocean and more.

Pharrell Williams has finally teamed back up with Chad Hugo and Shay Haley to put together a new N.E.R.D. album, which they performed at ComplexCon over the weekend in Los Angeles.

The artists featured on the forthcoming album are Rihanna, Gucci Mane, Wale, Kendrick Lamar, Future, M.I.A., Andre 3000 and Ed Sheeran — a roster that showcases some of the multiple artists that Pharrell has written and produced with in the past.

Skateboard P is embedded throughout the music industry and has been for years. There’s a reason N.E.R.D. stands for Nobody Ever Really Dies.

 

Below are 10 songs you might not have known Pharrell has his fingerprints on — either in the writing credits on beat production.

Pharrell Williams performs at ComplexCon 2017 on Nov. 5, 2017 in Long Beach, Calif.

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Gwen Stefani – “Hollaback Girl” (2005)

Gwen Stefani began her solo career away from No Doubt behind “Hollaback Girl” in 2005, which peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Pharrell would become a staying power in Stefani’s solo career, also assisting her with “Can I Have It Like That” (2006) and “Spark The Fire” (2014).

Nelly – “Hot in Herre” (2002)

“Hot in Herre” peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and remained at the top for seven weeks in a row. In June, Nelly told The Fader that he had actually turned Nellyville in prior to putting “Hot in Herre” on the record.

“I knew that we are missing something,” the St. Louis rapper said. “We missing something. We don’t have the fuse to the bomb. We called up Pharrell. Pharrell was a good friend of ours, and then he came with the Chuck Brown [beat]. … Pharrell said something about, ‘You gotta have the girls add some ‘Getting so hot.'”

Frank Ocean – “Sweet Life” (2012)

Frank Ocean is incredible,” Pharrell told VIBE. “We worked together, too. Frank Ocean, to me, is a singer-songwriter. His album itself is incredible. We met at Coachella. I told him, ‘Man, I like what you do. Let’s do something.’ And then we ended up working. He’s super talented. He is, to me, he’s like the black James Taylor.”

“Sweet Life” is track No. 5 on Ocean’s debut album channel ORANGE, which was released in 2012. On Ocean’s most recent album, Blond, Pharrell co-wrote/produced “Pink + White,” which peaked at No. 84 on the Hot 100.

Pharrell Williams performs at ComplexCon 2017 on Nov. 5, 2017 in Long Beach, Calif.

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Britney Spears – “I’m A Slave 4 U” (2001)

Originally, The Neptunes made “I’m A Slave 4 U” for Janet Jackson. But as things played out, the song ended up being responsible for Spears officially leaving teeny pop behind. “Slave 4 U” peaked at No. 27 on the Hot 100.

Ed Sheeran – “Sing” (2014)

Although Pharrell was featured in Sheeran’s “Sing” music video, but given the singer-songwriter’s extensive catalog since 2014, one could hardly be blamed for forgetting this collab took place. “Sing” was the lead single off of Sheeran’s (Multiply) album and peaked at No. 13 on the Hot 100. Sheeran detailed what it was like working with Pharrell in an interview with Music News in June 2014.

“Originally [Pharrell] tweeted ‘This Angels To Fly song is great’ a while ago and then at the Grammys, I don’t think he knew what I looked like, so I just went up to him and said, ‘I’m a massive fan, I just wanted to say that’s my tune!’ And then we swapped numbers. ‘Sing’ was from my first session with him, and when you work with Pharrell, he tends to push you: he wants you to do the best thing possible. So you don’t necessarily go for the first thing he plays you. It must have been on the seventeenth thing that he played me, and I had just dismissed everything. I just didn’t really get it. I don’t really get jazz chords and Pharrell’s very jazzy!”

Kendrick Lamar – “Alright” (2015)

Pharrell had already headed up production for Kendrick’s 2012 debut EP good kid, m.A.A.d city before co-writing and providing back-up vocals for “Alright” in 2015. Of the collaboration, Pharrell told MTV News, “I wanted to do something that felt like it was in that vein but just a little bit more colorful and add rhodes and instruments that are not usually used in that style of music, and just try to bring something a little bit more mystical. I kind of had my Tribe Called Quest hat on that day. I’m a huge Q-Tip fan.”

“Alright” peaked at No. 81 on the Hot 100 and No. 24 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songschart.

Justin Timberlake – “Señorita” (2003)

At this time, according to Complex‘s calculations, The Neptunes were attached in some capacity to 43 percent of the songs playing on U.S. radio. One of those songs was “Señorita” on Justin Timberlake‘s debut solo album Justified, which was nominated for four Grammys.

Timberlake has become a frequent Pharrell collaborator, with major speculation that Pharrell is heavily involved in JT’s next album.

“Señorita” peaked at No. 27 on the Hot 100.

Kelis – “Milkshake” (2003)

Another 2003 hit Pharrell was in the thick of, “Milkshake” is by far the most popular song associated with Kelis to this day. “Milkshake” peaked at No. 3 on the Hot 100.

In 2015, Kelis told The U.K.’s Independent, “I’ve known Pharrell since he was 15, and he wasn’t ‘Pharrell’ at the time, he was just Pharrell.”

JAY-Z – “I Just Wanna Love U (Give It 2 Me)” (2000)

One of JAY-Z‘s collaborations with Pharrell dates all the way back to the beginning of this century with “I Just Wanna Love U” from Hov’s The Dynasty: Roc La Familia. Pharrell co-wrote the song with Too $hort, Jay, Notorious B.I.G., Diddy and his Neptunes/N.E.R.D. partner Chad Hugo. Along with co-writing, Pharrell is featured on the track. “I Just Wanna Love U” peaked at No. 11 on the Hot 100.

Madonna ft. Kanye West – “Beat Goes On” (2008)

“Beat Goes On” was a true team effort with Madonna, Pharrell and Kanye West — It’s a wonder that with such starpower, the song never cracked the Hot 100. Can’t win them all.

DJ Mystical Michael

Rhode Island DJ Music Chart – Week of 6/25

Macklemore and Ryan Lewis “Can’t Hold Us” continues to top the DJ Music Charts for the fourth consecutive week. This particular chart is from DJ playlists nationwide and is different than the Billboard Hot 100, which has Robin Thicke “Blurred Lines” number 1. The top five of this week’s DJ Music Chart has Icona Pop, Selena Gomez, Justin Timberlake and Daft Punk all holding strong with Daft Punk “Get Lucky” reaching number 5 for the first time.

DJ Music Chart with Selena Gomez at Billboard Music Awards - Rhode Island Wedding DJ

DJ Music Chart for Week 6/25 – C.H.R Format

Contemporary hit radio (also known as CHR, Contemporary Hits, Hit List, Current Hits, Hit Music, Top 40, or Pop Radio) is a radio format that is common in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top 40 music charts. There are several subcategories, dominantly focusing on rock, pop, or urban music. Used alone, CHR most often refers to the CHR/pop format. The term Contemporary Hit Radio was coined in the early 1980s by Radio & Records magazine to designate Top 40 stations which continued to play hits from all musical genres such as pop music splintered into Adult contemporary, urban contemporary and other formats. The term Top 40 is also used to refer to the actual list of hit songs, and, by extension, to refer to pop music in general. The term has also been modified to describe Top 50; Top 30; Top 20; Top 10; Hot 100 (each with its number of songs) and Hot Hits radio formats, but carrying more or less the same meaning and having the same creative point of origin with Todd Storz as further refined by Gordon McLendon as well as Bill Drake. Omnilexica.com

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What is your current favorite song on the DJ Music Chart this week?

DJ Mystical Michael Rhode Island DJ & Boston DJ

973.908.8147

Rhode Island DJ Music Chart – Week of 6/10

This weeks DJ Music Chart has Macklemore and Ryan Lewis on top again with “Can’t Hold Us”. This is their second number hit this year along with “Thrift Shop”. The rest of the top five of this DJ Music Chart has just switched order from last week with Justin Timberlake, Pink, Icona Pop and Selena Gomez.

Macklemore on Top of DJ Music Chart with Rhode Island Wedding DJ

DJ Music Chart Week of 6/10

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Contemporary Hit Radio, or CHR, focuses on playing new hit songs and a limited play list. In recent years, heavily researched mass appeal oldies have joined the mix.
Modern CHR is a derivative of the Top 40 radio format that dominated the radio landscape in its heyday, the 1960s. A pure CHR format will play songs from a number of music genres including Pop, Rock, Urban and even Country. A CHR station picks the highest chart performing songs for its playlist and rotates, or repeats, the tunes in a very tight turnover that will often repeat the hottest songs every hour or two.

The Early History of the CHR Format

Early Top 40 radio, the precursor to today’s CHR format, found its foothold as TV began to dominate the media landscape and radio stations turned away from radio theater programs toward recorded music formats. Top 40 is exactly as it says it is – the top 40 hit songs of the day, targeted to a local audience. Top 40 also heralded the era of the Disk Jockey, and the local radio personality became the star along with the tight rotation of popular music. Early programming pioneers of Top 40 include Gordon McLendon, Rick Sklar and Todd Storz. The first Top 40 radio stations included, KOWH-Omaha, WABC-New York, KLIF-Dallas and KHJ-Los Angeles. Ham Chat Forum

What is your favorite song on the Current DJ Music Cart for Contemporary Hot Radio?

DJ Mystical Michael New Jersey & Boston DJ

973.908.8147

 

Rhode Island DJ Music Chart – Week of 5/21

This week’s DJ Music Chart is in the format of Contemporary Hit Radio (CHR). The top five songs are by Justin Timberlake, Pink, Macklemore, Rihanna and Demi Lovato with “Mirrors” on top of the DJ Music Chart the week of May 21, 2013
The following DJ Music Chart is based on MediaBase data and is updated weekly. MediaBase monitors more than 1500 radio stations 24-hours-a-day, 7-days-a-week, in the top 140 US metro markets. Prime Cuts Music

DJ Music Chart Week of 5/21 CHR Format

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DJ Music Chart – Contemporary Hit Radio (CHR) Format

”  A station which plays a significant amount of current popular music, whether singles or album cuts. As it is no longer unusual for a single to remain on the charts for 30-40 weeks or longer, “current” refers to music released within the last year. A more accurate description for “CHR” would be “Current Hit Radio”. This format is the descendent of the Top 40 stations popular from the 50’s through the 80’s.

Although some CHR stations base their playlists on surveys of local record sales or phone requests, most rely on published charts such as the Billboard Hot 100. As of December, 1998, the Billboard Hot 100 chart began to include popular album tracks not commercially released as singles, and began weighing a song`s airplay three times as heavily as a song`s sales.  The Billboard Hot 100 chart is therefore a measure of which songs are being played on CHR stations which, in turn, base their playlists on Billboard`s Hot 100 chart.

Contemporary Hit Radio stations tend to concentrate on specific music styles, such as Rock or Urban, or a range of styles, such as Rock/Pop/Dance or R&B/Rap/Dance. Some CHR stations play a significant amount of hits released during the past ten or fifteen years, particularly if there are insufficient current hit releases which fall within the station’s stylistic range.” New York Radio Guide

DJ Music Chart with Rhode Island Wedding DJ

In plain English, CHR Format is Pop and Top 40 Radio Music, and the genre that compromise Top 40 typically. Which song is your current favorite form the DJ Music Chart this week?

DJ Mystical Michael Rhode Island DJ & Boston DJ

973.908.8147

Rhode Island DJ Music Chart – Week of 5/13

This week’s DJ Music Chart will be the Adult Contemporary DJ Music Chart the week of 5/13/2013. Good to see Lumineers “Ho Hey” on top of the DJ Music Chart.  I am surprised to see Taylor Swift “I Knew You Were Trouble” and Fun. “Some Nights” still near the top. I guess they still get requested often and played. I won’t lie, it is still strange for me to see Rod Stewart “She Makes Me Happy” on the charts. He has reinvented himself so any times, hard to know what Rod Stewart music actually is at this point.

DJ Music Chart with  Fun Rhode Island Multicultural DJ

Here is a description of Adult Contemporary Radio Music from Wikipedia for those who are to familiar with the DJ Music Chart format.

The Adult Contemporary DJ music chart (formerly known as Easy Listening (1961–1962; 1965–1979)Middle-Road Singles (1962–1964)Pop-Standard Singles (1964–1965)Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks (1979–1982) and Adult Contemporary Singles (1983–present)) is a weekly chart published in Billboard magazine that lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary and “lite-pop” radio stations in the United States. The dj music chart is compiled based on airplay data submitted to Billboard by stations that are members of the Adult Contemporary radio panel. The chart debuted in Billboard magazine on July 17, 1961.

DJ Music Chart Adult Contemporary with Rhode Island Wedding DJ

The Billboard Easy Listening DJ music chart, as it was first known, was born of a desire by some radio stations in the late 1950s and early 1960s to continue playing current hit songs but distinguish themselves from being branded as “rock and roll” stations. Billboard had written articles about this trend during the time, and the magazine’s editors decided to publish a separate chart for these songs beginning in 1961. The magazine offered an “Easy Listening” programming guide beginning January 9, 1961, which continued until the numbered chart appeared in July. The first #1 song on the Billboard Easy Listening chart was “The Boll Weevil Song” by Brook Benton. From 1961 to 1965, this chart was compiled from the Billboard Hot 100 chart by removing songs that were deemed rock and roll by the magazine and re-ranking the remaining songs. For example, if the non-rock and roll records in the Hot 100 Top 10 were at #5, #6, and #9, then #5 would be #1 that week on the Easy Listening chart, #6 would be #2, and #9 would be #3. Beginning in 1965, the Easy Listening chart would begin to be compiled by a method similar to the one used for other Billboard singles charts: reported playlists from radio stations airing the format as well as sales data submitted by record stores. By the early 1990s, automatic song detection and barcode sales information had begun to be the norm for most of the Billboard charts, and currently the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks DJ music chart is compiled in much the same way as those for other radio formats.

The DJ Music chart was known as the Easy Listening chart until 1962, when it was renamed Middle-Road Singles. In 1964, the name changed again, this time to Pop-Standard Singles. After alternating the name of this chart twice more in less than a year, Easy Listening was again chosen as the chart name in 1965 when the change in compilation occurred. In April 1979, the Easy Listening chart officially became known as Adult Contemporary, and those two words have remained consistent in the name of the chart ever since.

In 1996, Billboard created a new DJ music chart called Adult Top 40, which reflects programming on radio stations that exists somewhere between “adult contemporary” music and “pop” music. Although they are sometimes mistaken for each other, the Adult Contemporary chart and the Adult Top 40 chart are separate charts, and songs reaching one chart might not reach the other. In addition, the term “hot AC” refers to another sub-genre of radio programming that is distinct from the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks DJ music chart as it exists today, despite the apparent similarity in name.

DJ Music Chart – Week of 5/13 – Adult Contemporary

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What is your favorite song form this DJ Music Chart?

DJ Mystical Michael Rhode Island DJ & Boston DJ

Rhode Island DJ Music Charts Week of April 29

I thought it would be helpful to post the Weekly DJ Music Charts weekly to keep you up to date on what DJs are playing in America currently. The DJ Music Chart I will post weekly will be the Contemporary Hit Radio (C.H.R.) Chart. I may post other charts from time-to-time as well.

DJ Music Charts Week of April 29 with Rhode Island Wedding DJ

Contemporary hit radio (also known as CHRContemporary HitsHit ListCurrent HitsHit MusicTop 40, or Pop Radio) is a radio format that is common in the United StatesUnited KingdomCanada and Australia that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top 40 music charts. There are several subcategories, dominantly focusing on rockpop, or urban music. Used alone, CHR most often refers to the CHR/pop format. The term Contemporary Hit Radio was coined in the early 1980s by Radio & Records magazine to designate Top 40 stations which continued to play hits from all musical genres as pop music splintered into Adult contemporary,urban contemporary and other formats. The term Top 40 is also used to refer to the actual list of hit songs, and, by extension, to refer to pop music in general. The term has also been modified to describe Top 50Top 30Top 20Top 10Hot 100 (each with its number of songs) and Hot Hits radio formats, but carrying more or less the same meaning and having the same creative point of origin with Todd Storz as further refined by Gordon McLendon as well as Bill Drake. The format became especially popular in the sixties as radio stations constrained disc jockeys to numbered play lists in the wake of the payola scandal.

DJ Music Charts Week of April 29

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Pink “Just Give Me A Reason” is currently number 1 on Billboard Charts Hot 100 with Rihanna “Stay” right behind it, but they are reversed on these DJ Music Charts. Bruno Mars “When I Was Your Man” was number 1 the week before on Billboard Hot 100. Macklemore and Ryan Lewis have two Top Ten Hits and holding strong.

What song is your current favorite on the DJ Music Charts?

DJ Mystical Michael Rhode Island DJ & Boston DJ

973.908.8147