In recognition of the 40th birthday of everyone's favorite genius producer not named Kanye [or Timothy], here is list of the Top 5 Pharrell-assisted hooks——in no particular order——as determined by me, my iTunes and embedding-enabled YouTube videos. I went with hooks because there are way too many beats or songs by the Neptunes/Pharrell to narrow down into a readable list. I even threw in the song from way back that started it all. Check these out and bump some N.E.R.D. today for God's sake.
1. Snoop Dogg feat. Pharrell - Beautiful
Beautiful really ushered in the musical partnership between Snoop and the Neptunes that would ultimately bring us classics such as
Drop It Like It's Hot, From tha Chuuuch to da Palace, Pass It, Pass It and...
2. Snoop Dogg feat. Pharrell - Let's Get Blown
This is definitely my favorite Snoop/Neptunes track and I doubt it'll ever leave my iTunes despite having background vocals from.......Keyshia Cole? Sorry, I hope that doesn't ruin the song for you because it definitely almost did for me.
3. Jay-Z feat. Pharrell - Excuse Me Miss
Say what you want about
The Blueprint 2 but
I enjoyed it [a lot, actually]. Pharrell definitely left his mark on the album with four Neptunes-produced songs, with
Excuse Me Miss being the best of the group. No matter where you are when you hear this song, this is a hook that you just
have to sing along to. Incredible hook. Oh, and the rest of the song is cool, too.
4. Clipse feat. Pharrell - Gangsta Lean
Gangsta Lean was probably my favorite song on
Lord Willin', even above
Gridin'. While the better song might be debatable, what cannot be argued is the fact that this is one of the great Pharrell features in history. Random sidenote....Where are Philly's Most Wanted these days? Anybody?
5. Clipse feat. Pharrell, Ab-Liva & Rosco P. Coldchain - Cot Damn
I still think this is one of the most underrated Clipse songs of all time, not saying that there are many, but still. Pharrell's hook is what sticks out initially but this is just a dope song overall. Even
WITH Ab-Liva and Rosco P. Coldchain, and that's saying a lot. Check that out, my blog's first Roscoe P. Coldchain reference. I'm distinguished now.
Bonus: Ma$e feat. Puff Daddy - Lookin' At Me
Okay, so I realize that it's not
technically Pharrell singing this hook but this is the song that started it all. Plus, the Neptunes did the beat and in hindsight, wouldn't you much rather have had Pharrell on this hook instead of Diddy? Yeah, me too.
Also,
Complex put out a list of the
Top 25 Pharrell Hooks a couple years back but I didn't actually read it, though. Because, you know, slideshows are annoying.
Happy Birthday, P.
