Before Pharrell became a Grammy-winning producer, songwriter, artist and fashion designer he is today, he had only one job.
“McDonald’s was my first and only job,” he told BBC Radio 2. “I got fired three times. I was eating the chicken nuggets.”
“The first two times it was just because I was lazy,” he further explained. “The third was like, ‘What are you doing? You’re just sitting there eating nuggets?’”
Pharrell previously shared the same story with The Hollywood Reporter, noting his laziness was a result of being inspired.
“I was lazy, but I was lazy for a reason, because I wasn’t inspired,” he said. “But when I got inspired, I’m now a workaholic, man.”
The experience showed him the importance of finding something you do enjoy.
“Think about something that you love to do, so much so that if you could do it for the rest of your life and never make one penny from it, you would still do it as long as your bills could get paid…,” Pharrell said. “If you could figure out a way that you can do a job connected to something that you love, you’ll love showing up every day. You’ll come to work early on Monday, and you’ll leave late on Friday.”
He added, “If you can also find a way to service humanity while you’re doing that — well, now you have a dream job that you would do literally for free, but you get paid for it. You’re a part of a bigger team, and you’re doing something that is contributing to the community or your city or your state or the world. That’s the key.”
Pharrell had a full circle moment when he helped produce McDonald’s “I’m Lovin’ It” jingle in 2003.
Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
