Pharrell Williams had no idea where his love of music would take him.
Between the release of his album, ‘G I R L,’ having the No. 1 song on the Billboard Charts longer than any other this year with ‘Happy,’ his judging role on ‘The Voice’ and being nominated for an Oscar, among other things, Pharrell has taken 2014 by storm. Due to his success as an artist, producer and innovator, he receives the honor of having a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Right before accepting the award on Dec. 4, the honoree, who owns the 2,537th star, listened to a number of people speak of his achievements, including comedian and talk show host Ellen DeGeneres.
“Pharrell is a genius, and I have been lucky enough to know Pharrell since he was a N.E.R.D.” she told the crowd. “And he’s grown into a superstar.”
She also cited some of his famous tracks with humor that got everyone, including Pharrell, chuckling, and read a poem inspired by his name. “His lyrics have inspired me and gotten me through some tough times,” she said with a straight face. “When the cops do get at me, I drop it like it’s hot. When I hear milkshakes bring it to the yard, that’s my story. That’s my life.”
Pharrell, a wordsmith who’s known not just for his lyrics but for giving some great speeches, didn’t disappoint. He gave props to his grandma, who bought him his first snare drum; his teachers, who he called “the folks that conspired to get me here;” and his longtime Neptunes collaborator, Chad Hugo. Skateboard P was extremely gracious and humbled for the honor.
“I just wanted the opportunity to create something that was good enough for people to hear on the radio, along with Chad Hugo,” he said during his speech.
After thanking a laundry list of people, he makes sure to tell everyone that the star is a great honor, but that it’s not the thing that defines him.
“Last but not least, today I’m being grounded, and it’s such an honor,” he said in closing. “But I don’t need this star as much as I love it and appreciate it and jump up and down on my bed to a peanut butter and jelly sandwich with my wife later. But I don’t need to be grounded with this star to tell you why I’m really grounded. I’m really grounded because everyone around me is so much more better than I am, so much more talented than I am, so much more reliable than I am. They’re so good, they levitate. And when everyone around you levitates, you have no choice but to be grounded.”
Watch the superstar accept his star above.
Alberto E. Rodriguez, Getty Images
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