Pharrell Williams has experienced stratospheric success in his career. The 13-time Grammy-winning artist, who currently heads Louis Vuitton menswear, is the epitome of a multihyphenate. However, he wasn’t always so prolific.
Long before his former production duo, The Neptunes, and band N.E.R.D. were topping the music charts, Williams was just another day worker getting fired from McDonald’s. Three separate times, to be exact.
“McDonald’s was my first and only job,” the Virginia native told BBC Radio 2 during a recent interview. “I got fired three times. I was eating the chicken nuggets.”
To be clear, consuming the product on the job only resulted in one of his three firings.
“The first two times, it was just because I was lazy,” he admitted. “The third was like, ‘What are you doing? You’re just sitting there eating nuggets?’”
Luckily for him, success with The Neptunes, which he formed with childhood friend Chad Hugo in 1992, was just around the corner. After Williams hung up his apron for good, he would go on to eventually form N.E.R.D. in 1999 with Hugo and drummer Shay Haley.
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Over the next decade, Williams ruled the music scene with hits he produced, including Clipse’s “Grindin,’” Snoop Dogg’s “Drop It Like It’s Hot,” Nelly’s “It’s Getting Hot in Herre,” and Gwen Stefani’s “Hollaback Girl.” All the while, N.E.R.D gained its own loyal fandom with party-ready hits like “Lapdance,” “She Wants to Move,” and the aptly named “Rock Star.” As a solo artist, the “Happy” artist continues to be a hitmaker.
In the film “Piece by Piece,” currently in theaters, LEGO bricks illustrate Williams’ life story from childhood through his successful music career.
The polymath has also been fruitful in his personal life. While he is largely a private person, the husband and father of four has made a few public appearances with his family. After welcoming his son, Rocket, in 2008 with Helen Lasichanh, the pair married in 2013. In 2017, the family welcomed triplets.
With his latest reveal, Williams can officially join the list of “wildly successful people who have been fired before.” He’s in good company; the list includes fellow collaborator Tyler, the Creator, SZA, Oprah Winfrey, and more.
