Pharrell ft Gwen Stefani - Can I Have It Like That

Pharrell Williams is the coolest personality in hip-hop. He's insanely cool. He's the hero of music in recent times. Everything he has ever done is refreshing. I cannot stop telling people that he was half of the brains behind Britney's I'm A Slave 4 U. That song was too far ahead of its time, and it became underappreciated. When Pharrell worked his magic again on Kelis' Milkshake and Justin Timberlake's Like I Love You, those songs became hits. Everything that he's ever got involved in has a superbly wicked rhythm that's addictive and unique. I'm in awe of his work.

Pharrell took his time before releasing this track to accompany his debut album, In My Mind, featuring seven hip-hop and seven R&B tracks. He has starred as a guest vocalist for many a hit, including Snoop Dogg's Beautiful and Jay-Z's Excuse Me Miss and Britney's Boys.

Enter the new single Can I Have It Like That, which was recently performed at the American Music Awards. The song has a bassline that wouldn't sound out of place on the soundtrack of Mission Impossible and Pharrell's rap is uniquely witty. My favourite line has got to be, "Shit pop ya bottles toast to screen cheers! Getcha 2-step cuz it's the record of the year!" You can check out the rest of the lyrics here. Pharrell clearly knows what he's got on his hands, because this is one hot track. Also, Gwen Stefani sings a single line over and over again in the song, and instead of sounding mind-numbingly boring, she brings her character in to spice up the testosterone-laced track. It is guaranteed to get the ladies in the club singing along with her. Pharrell is one smart ass.


Here's an excerpt of a review by Dan Gennoe:

What different worlds R&B and hip hop would be without Pharrell Williams. As half of golden production duo The Neptunes - not to mention one third of rock-rap trio N.E.R.D. - he's consistently reinvigorated both genres...

If the rest of the album is anything like "Can I Have It Like That", its release will be accompanied by the deafening sound of producers jaws hitting the floor. The first of the album's hip hop tracks, it's staggering for its simplicity. A demonic double bass loop, a jazz break beat, a quick call and response with Stefani and Williams's nonchalant rap is all it takes. And it's the starkness that does it...

It's impressive to think that having come-up with more new sounds that the rest of hip hop put together, he's still got a ton of new ideas up his sleeve.

If there's one person that could change the face of hip hop and R&B, Pharrell would be the one.