It's possible that no one had a more underrated big year than Pharrell Williams, who knocked it out of the park every time he touched anything in 2013. It made sense that, after a 2012 that saw him producing and/or serving as a featured player on almost anything that was a hit or sold well (and serving as a musical consultant on the Oscars), he'd continue his climb this year, and he certainly did. With a mic in his hand, Pharrell found himself on the two biggest songs of the year: the aforementioned "Blurred Lines" by Robin Thicke and the Daft Punk smash "Get Lucky." Without question, if the sun was shining and the weather was warm, you were hearing a song that involved Pharrell somewhere. Both songs became million sellers and allowed him to become only the 12th artist in history with consecutive number-1 singles on the Billboard Top 100. At the switchboard the former Neptunes star had a hand in producing Thicke and Daft Punk, worked on the soundtrack for Man of Steel, and recorded music for Despicable Me 2, which came with the world's first 24-hour music video. He's been nominated for seven Grammy Awards for this work this year, including Producer of the Year. Looks like he's going to continue his remarkable pace into 2014.
Freelance writer situated on the east coast of Canada. Ten years writing pop culture, sports, news, and anything else that people will read. Follow me on Twitter @matthewjryder!
