In My Mind

Pharrell Williams’ monumental solo debut

Little have never heard of the today’s most successful hip-hop and R&B producers Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo known as Neptunes and N.E.R.D. The author and producer of such hits as Nelly’s Hot In Here and Britney Spears’ I’m A Slave For You, Pharrell Williams has worked on Justin Timberlake’s album Justified. Kelis’ career is also the result of Neptunes’ ideas fulfilled. Pharrell has appeared in a number of songs and videos including Britney Spear’s Boys and one of the recent hits with Snoop Dogg and Justin Timberlake Sings. Naturally it’s high time to make a solo effort, and In My Mind is Pharrell’s debut album. It consists of seven R&B and seven hip-hop tracks, the lead single being Can I Have It Like That featuring Gwen Stefani. She is not the only guest star on the album – Pharrell William’s has also invited such hip-hop icons as Slim Thug, Snoop Dogg, Jay-Z, Nelly, Kanye West and Lauren to join him on the new record, which has resulted into a monumental creation. The lyrics on In My Mind are witty and at times provoking and the transcription though having some intangible traits of Neptunes’ work is absolutely incomparable. The megastar’s solo debut is just the way it should be – confident, stylish and doomed to success.

In My Mind – a profound achievement

The distinct division into two parts makes In My Mind twice interesting both for Pharrell Williams’ fans and for those who would like just to get a really good hip-hop album. The opening hit Can I Have It Like That with Gwen Stefani has already won the acclaim of many and is being played on the dance floors all around the world. Raspy Shit has a richest possible sound, with Pharrell’s alluring vocals. Yet to realize what this young man is really capable of the amazingly melodious song Angel suits the best – on this track we hear a mature and gifted singer putting all his soul into the music and making it touch the listeners most deeply. Baby featuring Nelly is another standout of In My Mind as well as Number One on which Kanye West adds some more confidence. The sexy song Take It Off reveals once again Pharrell Williams’ sensuality as well as the following relatively slow track Stay With Me (Dim The Lights), collaboration with Pusha Tour Father. The closer Skateboard P Presents Show You How To Hustle with the participation of Lauren leaves no doubt of Pharrell’s realizing who he is and making use of it being sure of himself in any situation. Whichever track you choose has its own peculiarities and all of them taken together form a really profound achievement by Williams.

A real musical king of the present days

Being such a success as a producer and songwriter Pharrell Williams has made a grand step forward and proved the whole world that he can be something more. He has taken part in a huge number of musical projects but In My Mind turns out to be the most responsible and the one in which Pharrell has a personal interest. Since he has an inborn feeling of someone else’s talent and sees the perspectives far ahead he ought to possess the talent himself, which is confirmed by the debut record. Williams has managed to abstract from Neptunes’ style and create the album that establishes him as an independent and self-sufficient artist not devoid of a stellar background in a number of other spheres. The master of playing a variety of instruments and the producer of enormously popular platinum albums, Pharrell Williams can be called a real musical king of the present days. Of course for many his name is still associated with that of Chad Hugo, the two men are just inseparable and there is no reason for them to take different roads. Yet In My Mind has probably started a new era in Pharrell Williams’ life and only the time will show what is going to come of it.