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Happy (Pharrell Williams song)

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"Happy"
Song

"Happy" is a song performed by American singer and producer Pharrell Williams, from the Despicable Me 2 soundtrack album. The song will also be included on his second studio album which will be released in 2014. The song was written and produced by Williams. It was released on November 21, 2013 alongside a long-form music video presented via the website 24hoursofhappy.com. The song was reissued on December 16, 2013 by Back Lot Music, under exclusive license to Columbia Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment.[4] The song has topped the charts in Australia, Belgium, France, Germany, New Zealand, Portugal, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and the Netherlands and peaked within the top ten of the charts in Italy, Hungary and Denmark.

Production

"Happy" was written, produced and performed by Pharrell Williams, with backing vocals by Rhea Dummett, Trevon Henderson, Ashley L. Lee, Shamika Hightower, Jasmine Murray and Terrence Rolle.[5] The track was digitally edited and arranged by Andrew Coleman and Mike Larson, who also recorded it, with assistance from Matthew Desrameaux, at Circle House Studios in Miami, Florida. The song was later mixed by Leslie Brathwaite at Music Box Studios in Atlanta, Georgia.[5]

Composition

"Happy" plays for 3 minutes and 53 seconds,[1] in common time and at a tempo of 160 beats per minute. It is in the key of F minor, with Pharrell's vocal range spanning from an F3—F5.[6]

Music video

To coincide with the single release, the website 24hoursofhappy.com was launched featuring a visual presentation of "Happy" advertised as being "the world's first 24 hour music video". The video consists of the four-minute song repeated with various people dancing and miming along. Williams himself appears 24 times on the hour, and there are a number of celebrity cameos including Odd Future (1:48pm), Steve Carell (5:08pm), Jamie Foxx (5:28pm), Ana Ortiz (5:32pm), Miranda Cosgrove (5:40pm), JoJo (6:16pm), Kelly Osbourne (1:28am), Magic Johnson (5:36am), Sérgio Mendes (10:32am) and Jimmy Kimmel (11:48am). The minions from Despicable Me 2 make several appearances throughout the film, including one scene at 3:00am, in which Pharrell and the minions dance in a movie theatre that is playing the scene from Despicable Me 2 in which "Happy" appears. The site allows users to navigate to various points in the 24-hour timeframe, including all 360 four-minute segments and each hourly segment with Pharrell. An official four-minute edit of the video was also released on YouTube.

Release and reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Rolling Stone[3]

The single was released on November 21, 2013. Prior to its release, around early October, the song catapulted to number one in the Netherlands, partially as a result of radio station 3FM airplay and subsequent on-line downloads, as well as featuring in a Transavia commercial.[7]

"Happy" has been nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song.[8] The winner of this award will be announced at the 86th Academy Awards ceremony on March 2, 2014.

Credits and personnel

Recording[2]
Personnel[2]
  • Pharrell Williams – songwriter, producer
  • Rhea Dummett – backing vocals
  • Trevon Henderson – backing vocals
  • Ashley L. Lee – backing vocals
  • Shamika Hightower – backing vocals
  • Jasmine Murray – backing vocals
  • Terrence Rolle – backing vocals
  • Mike Larson – recording, digital editing, arrangement
  • Matthew Desrameaux – recording assistant
  • Andrew Coleman – digital editing, arrangement
  • Leslie Brathwaite – mixer
  • Reuben Cohen – mastering

Chart performance

Release history

Region Date Format Label
Worldwide[37] May 22, 2013 Streaming
Australia[38] November 21, 2013 Digital download Back Lot Music
Austria[39]
Belgium[40]
Canada[41]
Denmark[42]
Finland[43]
France[44]
Germany[45]
Greece[46]
Italy[47]
Japan[48]
Latin America[49]
Netherlands[50]
New Zealand[51]
Norway[52]
Spain[53]
Sweden[54]
United Kingdom[55]
United States[1]
United States[56] January 13, 2014 Adult contemporary Columbia Records
United States[57] January 21, 2014 Contemporary hit radio

References

  1. ^ a b c d Happy (From "Despicable Me 2") - Single by Pharrell Williams. iTunes US. Retrieved November 23, 2013.
  2. ^ a b c (Media notes). Back Lot Music, Columbia Records. 2013. {{cite AV media notes}}: Missing or empty |title= (help); Unknown parameter |name= ignored (help)
  3. ^ a b c Rosen, Jody (June 7, 2013). Pharrell, Happy. Rolling Stone. Retrieved November 23, 2013.
  4. ^ "iTunes - Music - Happy (from 'Despicable Me 2') - Single by Pharrell Williams". iTunes.apple.com. 16 Dec 2013. Retrieved 1 Jan 2014.
  5. ^ a b 24hoursofhappy.com. Retrieved November 23, 2013.
  6. ^ Pharrell Williams "Happy" Sheet Music. musicnotes.com. Retrieved November 23, 2013.
  7. ^ Oitmann, Pierre (October 11, 2013). "Pharrell Williams scoort eerste solo-nummer 1-hit" (in Dutch). NU.nl news. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  8. ^ 2013 Nominations, December 2013.
  9. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Happy". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  10. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Happy" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved November 23, 2013.
  11. ^ a b "Pharrell Williams – Happy" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved November 23, 2013.
  12. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Happy" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved November 29, 2013.
  13. ^ Media Forest - Weekly Charts: Bulgaria. mediaforest-bulgaria.com. Retrieved January 17, 2014.
  14. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Happy". Tracklisten. Retrieved November 29, 2013.
  15. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Happy" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved November 29, 2013.
  16. ^ a b "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Rádiós Top 40 játszási lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved January 16, 2014. Cite error: The named reference "Hungary" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  17. ^ "Chart Track: Week 01, 2014". Irish Singles Chart.
  18. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Happy". Top Digital Download. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
  19. ^ Luxembourg Digital Songs : Jan 18, 2014. Billboard biz. Retrieved January 17, 2014.
  20. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Pharrell Williams" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved November 23, 2013.
  21. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Happy" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved November 23, 2013.
  22. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Happy". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved December 23, 2013.
  23. ^ "Listy bestsellerów, wyróżnienia :: Związek Producentów Audio-Video". Polish Airplay Top 100. Retrieved January 20, 2014.
  24. ^ Portugal Digital Songs : Nov 30, 2013. Billboard biz. Retrieved November 29, 2013.
  25. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  26. ^ GAON Download Chart : 2013년 1월 1주차 (in Korean). gaonchart.co.kr. Retrieved January 3, 2014.
  27. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Happy" Canciones Top 50. Retrieved January 15, 2014.
  28. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Happy". Singles Top 100. Retrieved January 10, 2014.
  29. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Happy". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved December 3, 2013.
  30. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  31. ^ "Pharrell Williams Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  32. ^ "Pharrell Williams Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
  33. ^ JAAROVERZICHTEN - SINGLE 2013 (in Dutch). dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved December 25, 2013.
  34. ^ "ARIA Australian Top 50 Singles Chart". ARIA Charts. January 13, 2014. Retrieved January 11, 2014.
  35. ^ id MUST BE PROVIDED for UK CERTIFICATION.
  36. ^ THE FIELD id (chart number) MUST BE PROVIDED for NEW ZEALAND CERTIFICATION.
  37. ^ Bella, Sarah (May 22, 2013). Pharrell Williams Streams ‘Happy’ From ‘Despicable Me 2′. Music Feeds. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  38. ^ Happy (From "Despicable Me 2") - Single by Pharrell Williams. iTunes Australia. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  39. ^ Happy (From "Despicable Me 2") - Single von Pharrell Williams (in German). iTunes Austria. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  40. ^ Single by Pharrell Williams. iTunes Belgium. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  41. ^ Single by Pharrell Williams. iTunes Canada. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  42. ^ Happy (From "Despicable Me 2") - Single by Pharrell Williams. iTunes Denmark. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  43. ^ Happy (From "Despicable Me 2") - Single by Pharrell Williams. iTunes Finland. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  44. ^ Happy (From "Despicable Me 2") - Single par Pharrell Williams (in French). iTunes France. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  45. ^ Happy (From "Despicable Me 2") - Single von Pharrell Williams (in German). iTunes Germany. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  46. ^ Happy (From "Despicable Me 2") - Single by Pharrell Williams. iTunes Greece. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  47. ^ Happy (From "Despicable Me 2") - Single di Pharrell Williams (in Italian). iTunes Italy. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  48. ^ ファレル・ウィリアムス Happy (From "Despicable Me 2") - Single (in Japanese). iTunes Japan. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  49. ^ Happy (From "Despicable Me 2") - Single by Pharrell Williams. iTunes Latin America. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  50. ^ Happy (From "Despicable Me 2") - Single' van Pharrell Williams (in Dutch). iTunes Netherlands. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  51. ^ Happy (From "Despicable Me 2") - Single by Pharrell Williams. iTunes New Zealand. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  52. ^ Happy (From "Despicable Me 2") - Single by Pharrell Williams. iTunes Norway. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  53. ^ Happy (From "Despicable Me 2") - Single de Pharrell Williams (in Spanish). iTunes Spain. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  54. ^ Happy (From "Despicable Me 2") - Single av Pharrell Williams (in Swedish). iTunes Sweden. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  55. ^ Happy (From "Despicable Me 2") - Single by Pharrell Williams. iTunes United Kingdom. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  56. ^ "Hot/Modern/AC Future Releases". All Access Media Group. Archived from the original on January 13, 2014.
  57. ^ "Top 40/M Future Releases". All Access Media Group. Archived from the original on January 13, 2014.
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