Other than a short stint in the SpongeBob Movie Soundtrack in 2015, N.E.R.D. (No-one really ever dies) has not released any music in the past seven years. Their last album, The Best Of, was released January of 2011 as a compilation of their hits. Before that, their album Nothing was released in 2010. A hiatus from music is nothing new for the band though-they disbanded in 2005 and later regrouped in 2008. The band was initially formed in 1999.
Pharrell Williams, well known for his collaborations with Snoop Dogg (“Drop It Like It’s Hot”), Daft Punk (“Lose Yourself To Dance,” “Get Lucky”), Robin Thicke (“Blurred Lines”) and Calvin Harris (“Feels,” “Heatstroke”) etc. first began collaborating in 1999. Williams formed N.E.R.D. with his childhood friends Chad Hugo and Shay Haley. Williams and Hugo transformed their style of pop production that they used under the moniker The Neptunes, for something edgier when they added Haley to the mix. They created a unique brand of funky and poppy R&B which flourished in the 1990s and early 2000s.
After a seven year hiatus, the group has turned to R&B princess, Rihanna, for some support on their single titled, “Lemon.” The song is equally club and car friendly, with fresh beats, catchy bars, and a smooth groove. The video features a young woman fiercely stomping and gracefully shaking her way through a warehouse thrift shop. The woman is a striking blend of masculine and feminine, which mirrors how the beat highlights both a high pitched “girlish” tone and lower “boyish” one. Let’s hope this isn’t the last we will see/hear from N.E.R.D.!
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