Pharrell Williams
By All Music Guide
By All Music Guide
As the duo took on more work, Williams voice became increasingly familiar. He was now more likely to provide the chorus and the background vocals of the same song, in addition to appearing in the video. (Hear/see Jay-Zs Excuse Me Miss and Snoop Doggs Beautiful for two examples.) It wasnt until the summer of 2003 that he truly stepped out on his own. He released his first solo single, Frontin. Produced with Hugo and featuring a guest verse from Jay-Z, the song built anticipation for The Neptunes Present... Clones, a compilation of all-new tracks from artists produced by the duo. Frontin was a ubiquitous summer hit and kept Williams momentum running up to the release of Hugo and Williams second funk/ ock-oriented N.E.R.D. album, released in March 2004. Williams first solo album, In My Mind, survived a number of delays and was finally issued in July 2006.
