At this stage in the game, you might not love the Neptunes. Hell, if you hear Pharrell’s “Frontin’” or Hove’s “Excuse Me Miss” too many times at the Labor Day cookout they may not even be tolerable anymore. Don’t worry. Fo-real and Chad understand your plight. “I’m not really gonna do too many of those records [in the future],” insisted Pharrell, in a recent Entertainment Weekly story. “I don’t want to OD. I’ve never really been the kind of person to stick with the same thing.”
This Fall, however, you’re going to see the Virginia Beach boys doing their thing—a lot. The tandem that blessed clubs with such inferno-starters as Mystikal’s “Shake Ya Ass,” Usher’s “U Don’t Have To Call” and Nelly’s “Hot In Herre” is dropping their second album, Star Trak Presents: Clones, this month. Pharrell’s releasing a Snoop Dogg-inspired DVD, Dude, We’re Going To Rio, in October. And in November, the chart-smashing duo’s coming back with another project under their N.E.R.D. pseudonym, the rock-heavy Fly or Die. All of that and the crew is still packing’em in with the Roots and Talib Kweli on the Sprite Liquid Mix Tour.
Needless to say, if the hard-to-catch Chad Hugo sounds a bit winded in the following interview, a little compassion is in order. Dude’s doing promotions, making beats incessantly and counting stacks of paper to the ceiling. Haters, you can…get back to hating….now.
How did two kids from Virginia end up being the biggest producers of the past decade?
Me and Pharrell met during music education classes when we were kids. We’ve had that foundation of learning to read and actually write music. We grew up in a formal training [environment]. Well, not formal, but formal enough to where we learned to read notes and everything. We’ve always had those fundamentals of making music. And we just have a love for hip hop basically. We just took what we learned and flipped it. We’re not just a bunch of kids making beats. To us, it’s like a bunch of kids making songs.
The blips and baps have grown synonymous with a Neptunes track. Were you all obsessed with arcade games and science fiction as kids?
Umm, I think it was those things that take you to another world. We’ve always been fond of ficticiuous environments. When we were a band a long time ago, we did funky Parliament-Funkadelic record covers. Those kinds of records take you to another level, with their chord changes. Even in the days of the Wu-Tang Clan, they took you to that kung-fu world. You might not have been into martial arts but after you heard them, you’d be into it. So, with us, we always try to take you to a different world when you hear our beats. Some of it may be blip-boppy, some of it may be different. I think music should always take you out of reality.
Y’all definitely do that…Now, there was a time when I thought you all had found your niche and were sticking with a particular sound, but then you all produced the Clipse’s album, Lord Willin’, and tracks like Common’s “Come Close.” Do you ever worry about cuts sounding the same?
It really depends on that given amount of time. I think you’re always going to get that kind of signature; that’s what makes an artist an artist. You know a Van Gogh’s a Van Gogh. You know a Picasso. You can tell by the way it looks, “Yeah, that’s a Picasso.” So, musically, that’s how it is. Pharrell is ultimately a drum player. When I met him, he was playing drums. When he met me, I was playing keyboards and the saxophone. And he was a lyricist. So, I think in those worlds –from the rhythmic sense to the melodic sense—we learned from each other. He’s playing more keyboards and I’m playing more guitar and drums. We’re always learning from each other. Those two combinations—that’s what makes us us. Depending on the artists, some songs require more rhythm. With the Clipse, some of their rhymes were real broken down, really strictly beats. The Common song, for example, was more melodic. As producers, we’re like a band, switching different lead singers.
We mentioned the Clipse’s album, but what’s been your favorite project to work on thus far?
My favorite project to work on thus far? Hmmm, that would have to be Justin Timberlake. The reason that I say that is because during that time, I wouldn’t say we had conquered hip hop, but we were destined to be on hip hop radio. I find joy in reaching different audiences. [Justin’s] project was like the first that I could actually switch to a pop station. There was gratification with just branching out and doing something different. It was still the Neptunes but now your parents could buy us.
Aside from Ms. Kelis, have you all done anything R&B?
Umm, we’re working on it right now. We have this one girl who’s featured on the Clones album. Her name is Vanessa Marquez. And we’re working on a little bit more.
Will you all be working with Mr. Kelis, Nas, anytime soon?
Will we? We have already. We did a song with him on the Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle soundtrack called “The Flyest.” And we’re going to work on more shit.
Tell me about the Clones project, aside form it having everybody from Ludacris, Busta Rhymes, Jadakiss and Dirt McGirt on it.
It does have the who’s who. And it also has the soon-to-be who’s who. It’s kind of our way of putting out the Star Trak name, the Star Trak label. You know how Puffy did Bad Boy? This is our Star Trak. It has everything from hip hop to a little R&B and it actually has some alternative stuff on there too. It has a little bit of everything.
Now, Chad, riddle me this: why don’t we see and hear from you more often?
I think it has to do with timing. Sometimes I just don’t have time to do it. I may not be able to do everything, but I have time to do the most important things and that’s to make the music. Now, if that includes doing some public appearances, and I have the time for it, hell yeah. But it’s just a matter of circumstances. Pharrell sings hooks. I may not take advantage of that. Pharrell is an artist himself. He goes the extra way to express his artistry, which is all good. People may have the instinct of automatically comparing us in that way but it just happens to be that way.
So, what’s the reception been like thus far on the Sprite Liquid Mix Tour?
Well, the tour just got started, and to be honest, I’m in the studio while they’re on tour. But that’s just how it is. I’m actually going to Japan and Australia to promote the Clones album while the guys are on tour. That’ll kind of answer your question; we do whatever it takes to keep the ball rolling. We just rotate our duties to keep it happening.
This Fall, however, you’re going to see the Virginia Beach boys doing their thing—a lot. The tandem that blessed clubs with such inferno-starters as Mystikal’s “Shake Ya Ass,” Usher’s “U Don’t Have To Call” and Nelly’s “Hot In Herre” is dropping their second album, Star Trak Presents: Clones, this month. Pharrell’s releasing a Snoop Dogg-inspired DVD, Dude, We’re Going To Rio, in October. And in November, the chart-smashing duo’s coming back with another project under their N.E.R.D. pseudonym, the rock-heavy Fly or Die. All of that and the crew is still packing’em in with the Roots and Talib Kweli on the Sprite Liquid Mix Tour.
Needless to say, if the hard-to-catch Chad Hugo sounds a bit winded in the following interview, a little compassion is in order. Dude’s doing promotions, making beats incessantly and counting stacks of paper to the ceiling. Haters, you can…get back to hating….now.
How did two kids from Virginia end up being the biggest producers of the past decade?
Me and Pharrell met during music education classes when we were kids. We’ve had that foundation of learning to read and actually write music. We grew up in a formal training [environment]. Well, not formal, but formal enough to where we learned to read notes and everything. We’ve always had those fundamentals of making music. And we just have a love for hip hop basically. We just took what we learned and flipped it. We’re not just a bunch of kids making beats. To us, it’s like a bunch of kids making songs.
The blips and baps have grown synonymous with a Neptunes track. Were you all obsessed with arcade games and science fiction as kids?
Umm, I think it was those things that take you to another world. We’ve always been fond of ficticiuous environments. When we were a band a long time ago, we did funky Parliament-Funkadelic record covers. Those kinds of records take you to another level, with their chord changes. Even in the days of the Wu-Tang Clan, they took you to that kung-fu world. You might not have been into martial arts but after you heard them, you’d be into it. So, with us, we always try to take you to a different world when you hear our beats. Some of it may be blip-boppy, some of it may be different. I think music should always take you out of reality.
Y’all definitely do that…Now, there was a time when I thought you all had found your niche and were sticking with a particular sound, but then you all produced the Clipse’s album, Lord Willin’, and tracks like Common’s “Come Close.” Do you ever worry about cuts sounding the same?
It really depends on that given amount of time. I think you’re always going to get that kind of signature; that’s what makes an artist an artist. You know a Van Gogh’s a Van Gogh. You know a Picasso. You can tell by the way it looks, “Yeah, that’s a Picasso.” So, musically, that’s how it is. Pharrell is ultimately a drum player. When I met him, he was playing drums. When he met me, I was playing keyboards and the saxophone. And he was a lyricist. So, I think in those worlds –from the rhythmic sense to the melodic sense—we learned from each other. He’s playing more keyboards and I’m playing more guitar and drums. We’re always learning from each other. Those two combinations—that’s what makes us us. Depending on the artists, some songs require more rhythm. With the Clipse, some of their rhymes were real broken down, really strictly beats. The Common song, for example, was more melodic. As producers, we’re like a band, switching different lead singers.
We mentioned the Clipse’s album, but what’s been your favorite project to work on thus far?
My favorite project to work on thus far? Hmmm, that would have to be Justin Timberlake. The reason that I say that is because during that time, I wouldn’t say we had conquered hip hop, but we were destined to be on hip hop radio. I find joy in reaching different audiences. [Justin’s] project was like the first that I could actually switch to a pop station. There was gratification with just branching out and doing something different. It was still the Neptunes but now your parents could buy us.
Aside from Ms. Kelis, have you all done anything R&B?
Umm, we’re working on it right now. We have this one girl who’s featured on the Clones album. Her name is Vanessa Marquez. And we’re working on a little bit more.
Will you all be working with Mr. Kelis, Nas, anytime soon?
Will we? We have already. We did a song with him on the Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle soundtrack called “The Flyest.” And we’re going to work on more shit.
Tell me about the Clones project, aside form it having everybody from Ludacris, Busta Rhymes, Jadakiss and Dirt McGirt on it.
It does have the who’s who. And it also has the soon-to-be who’s who. It’s kind of our way of putting out the Star Trak name, the Star Trak label. You know how Puffy did Bad Boy? This is our Star Trak. It has everything from hip hop to a little R&B and it actually has some alternative stuff on there too. It has a little bit of everything.
Now, Chad, riddle me this: why don’t we see and hear from you more often?
I think it has to do with timing. Sometimes I just don’t have time to do it. I may not be able to do everything, but I have time to do the most important things and that’s to make the music. Now, if that includes doing some public appearances, and I have the time for it, hell yeah. But it’s just a matter of circumstances. Pharrell sings hooks. I may not take advantage of that. Pharrell is an artist himself. He goes the extra way to express his artistry, which is all good. People may have the instinct of automatically comparing us in that way but it just happens to be that way.
So, what’s the reception been like thus far on the Sprite Liquid Mix Tour?
Well, the tour just got started, and to be honest, I’m in the studio while they’re on tour. But that’s just how it is. I’m actually going to Japan and Australia to promote the Clones album while the guys are on tour. That’ll kind of answer your question; we do whatever it takes to keep the ball rolling. We just rotate our duties to keep it happening.
