Pharrell Williams has revealed that he would choose his words differently if he made Britney Spears’ hit I’m A Slave 4 U in 2024.
The Grammy winner – who co-wrote and produced the track with Chad Hugo as the production duo The Neptunes – recently told The Hollywood Reporter that the word “slave” is not one to “play with these days”.
“And there’s many different angles, right? Obviously, what my people and my DNA and my ancestors had to endure and overcome, but then there’s also all the atrocity that happens in human trafficking every day,” Pharrell said. “So, no, that’s not something I would say.”
He added that there are “a lot” of songs that show “what was contextually acceptable at one time is no longer acceptable” in another.
“But I think that’s for the better,” he said.
Pharrell continued: “I think there are a lot of songs where I wouldn’t say half the things that I said before. As the time changes, so does mentality and hopefully it evolves to a better place. And it’s not about being politically correct, it’s about being universally aware.”
Britney’s song, which inspired an iconic performance at the 2001 MTV Video Music Awards, was initially meant for Janet Jackson before it was passed off to the Toxic singer.
The track ushered in a new era for Britney at the time – and marked The Neptunes’ first global hit.
“She was eager and ready to transition. And I put a fire under that notion. I was like, ‘Oh, that’s how you feeling? OK, let’s put this fire under that. Let’s go,’” Pharrell said of recording the song with Britney.
The US outlet noted that Britney appears in Morgan Neville’s upcoming documentary film Piece By Piece, a look at Pharrell’s life and career through Lego animation, although the artist revealed that he hasn’t spoken to the pop icon in “maybe 10-plus years”.
“I think I’ve seen her in the elevator one time. I think we were all going into the same place or something,” he said. “I can remember exactly where it was, and she had her sunglasses on, and I was like, ‘I know that’s Britney.’ Maybe she doesn’t remember me. That’s fine.’”
Aside from I’m A Slave 4 U, The Neptunes also worked with the singer on her songs Boys and Why Should I Be Sad. The latter was their last collaboration, from her 2007 album Blackout.
