N.E.R.D, which stands for ‘No one Ever Really Dies’, is the rock band wing of hip-hop super-producers The Neptunes’ musical mansion. Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo are joined by Shay Haley for this project, which has so far seen two gold-selling albums while reviewers rack their brains trying to describe their unique sound.
In the late 90s/early 00s, Willams and Hugo’s production alter-ego The Neptunes helped to redefine pop music with their distinctive style which blurred the lines between pop, R&B and hip-hop. In 2001 they worked with pal Haley to release In Search Of…, which contained a unique mix of various elements of rock, pop, R&B and hip-hop. After a 2001 European release, it was re-recorded to sound rockier for a worldwide release, and met with mostly positive reviews. It won the Shortlist prize, awarded to the best album to sell less than half-a-million in the US, despite just breaching that sales mark in the week before the awards ceremony.
In 2004 N.E.R.D. released their second album, Fly or Die, this time emphasising their commitment to the rock ethos by learning how to play rock instruments for the recording. Again it was released to mostly good reviews, though some critics weren’t wholly convinced. It also became a gold-selling album, and in the UK the group enjoyed chart success when “She Wants to Move” hit No.5.
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| Editor | Edits |
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| Friend | 3 |
| DanceOrDie | 2 |
| preejum | 1 |
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