Pharrell almost had a shot at working with Michael Jackson in the early 2000s. The Virginia producer reflected on that moment during a recent interview on N.O.R.E. and DJ EFN’s Drink Champs podcast. Jackson came up after Pharrell revealed that Prince rejected one of the songs he sent to the legendary singer. It was here that Pharrell shared that almost all of Justin Timberlake’s debut solo album, Justified, was originally written for the King Of Pop.
“John McClain was his manager at the time,” Pharrell said. “We sent him pretty much all the stuff y’all are hearing on the Justified album. That’s all the Michael stuff.” He added, “All but one song, they were all written for Michael.”
Unfortunately for Pharrell, Michael Jackson and his team were not too fond of the music that was sent to him. “John McClain was like, ‘Man Michael don’t want that sh*t,’” Pharrell recalled. “‘He want that sh*t you’re giving Noreaga….he want that ‘Superthug,’” referencing Pharrell and N.O.R.E.’s iconic 1998 track from the latter’s self-titled debut album.
Elsewhere in the podcast, Pharrell shared his feelings on Drake and Pusha T’s beef. “It still breaks my heart to this day, because I would’ve loved to have heard those guys on a song together or heard a joint project together. I would’ve loved to twist that,” he said.
You can watch the full Drink Champs interview with Pharrell in the video above.