With a new album on the way, people are starting to wake back up to that old N.E.R.D. sound. With two tracks already surfaced (and two of the standouts), it’s interesting to see how the group got to this journey and they explained it all on Beats 1 recently. In talking to OTHERtone, Pharrell speaks on the dark time that they had making past albums and how pleasing the label was getting in the way of their creativity. Even in the album titles, you could tell they were not in the greatest state of mind.
But Skateboard P wouldn’t have it any other way. He says that depression has helped him get to where he is today and the band back together.
He also talks about how “Lemon” was originally for Puff Daddy and how Rihanna finally got on the track, as he added a punk infusion to it after the fact. He was also thankful he got Andre 3000 to make an appearance on the album as well.
You can catch the talk with N.E.R.D. on Beats 1 above.
OS REWIND: N.E.R.D & Rihanna – Lemon [Music Video]
OS REWIND: N.E.R.D. Debuts New Album in LA featuring André 3000, Kendrick Lamar, Future & More