On a rainy day in Paris, Pharrell Williams was at the headquarters of Louis Vuitton living the dream, at an office he prefers to call "a dream space."Last February, Williams was appointed the Men's Creative Director.He oversees a staff of 200, and has already launched four new collections.
His most recent, at UNESCO, paid tribute to the variety of the human race.Asked what is most satisfying watching his designs come down the runway, Williams said, "You're gonna hate this answer: All of it!" he laughed.
"Come on, man.It's a dream!" For more than three decades he's been helping to make some of pop music's biggest hits, from Nelly's "Hot in Herre" to Gwen Stefani's "Hollaback Girl," while helping to bridge the gap between pop culture and high fashion.
He says the runway is just another way for him to show people who he is: "I always want to evoke a sense of joy, 'cause I feel like the world, there's a deficit of joy." Sanneh asked, "But I imagine you do still have to pay attention to, 'Are people buying these clothes that I made?'""Sure; that's when you start questioning the success," Williams said."But like, man, you gotta enjoy it.
If you enjoy it, nine times out of ten, somebody else gonna enjoy it."Now there's something new to enjoy: "Piece by Piece," an animated Lego movie about Williams' life, directed by the award-winning documentarian Morgan Neville.Last month, at the Toronto Film Festival, Williams said he still can't believe he got to make this film.
"I'm from a marginalized community where we often hear the word 'no' all the time," he said."For whatever reason, [for 'Piece by Piece'], we got a lot of yeses.""This seems like one of your superpowers is getting people to say 'yes' to things they might otherwise say 'no' to," said Sanneh.
"It wasn't that hard; it's just harder for people who look like me," Williams replied."But when we tell it in Lego, now it's universal.
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