October 12, 2024
by Carla Hay
Directed by Pharrell Williams
Culture Representation: The documentary film “Piece by Piece” features Grammy-winning artist Pharrell Williams and other people who know him telling his life story, in Lego anination form.
Culture Clash: Williams, a self-described music nerd, spent years struggling to break into the music industry, eventually found hitmaking success as one-half of the production duo the Neptunes and as a solo artst, and overcame a professional slump in the late 2000s for a major comeback in the early 2010s.
Culture Audience: “Piece by Piece” will appeal primarily to people who are fans of Pharrell Williams and documentaries about people who create mainstream pop music hits.
Pharrell Williams’ life story presented as a Lego animation documentary could have been a cynical and superficial cash grab. “Piece by Piece” is actually insightful, soulful and a delight to watch. It’s an entertaining kaleidoscope of sights and sounds where each interview subject’s personality shines through, despite being shown as a Lego toy.
Directed by Morgan Neville (who is also the documentary’s interviewer), “Piece by Piece” had its world premiere at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival. The documentary’s visuals are great, and the music is very engaging, but they wouldn’t be as effective if the interviews weren’t candid. For example, he admits he’s always been afraid of having success as a solo artist. Williams says he reluctantly recorded his 2003 solo song “Frontin'” after he sent it to Prince, who didn’t respond.
Williams (who was born in 1973) was raised in his birth city of Virginia Beach, Virginia. He says he was a shy and insecure child, who never felt like he fit in anywhere except when he was listening to music or watching TV. He was also a big fan of Carl Sagan’s “Cosmos” science series. “I don’t know where it’s from,” Williams says, “but I always knew I was different.” He comments on being a loner as a child: “I was detached. I was in dreamland.”
Williams says that television became a magical place where he could escape to and let his imagination run wild. Although he didn’t mind being a loner, he was sensitive about what people thought of him. Williams comments that if people thought of him, “He’s an oddball,” then “that crushed my spirit.”
Williams declares that he knew from an early age that he wanted to make music and be in the music industry, but he often felt frustrated by the lack of opportunities in Virginia Beach, compared to bigger cities such as New York City, Los Angeles or Atlanta. He describes himself as a teenager as someone who spent many hours alone in his room, feeling transported to different worlds by the music he was listening to at the time. Growing up in a beach city, Williams says he’s had a lifelong fascination with the ocean and is particularly fixated on the fictional ocean kingdom of Atlantis.
When he was a teenager, his passion for music led him to meet and befriend another self-described “music nerd” named Chad Hugo, who is also interviewed in “Piece by Piece.” Williams and Hugo had a special chemistry working together as a music producer duo called the Neptunes. They also performed as a rock duo called N.E.R.D.
Hugo’s interview for the documentary was apparently done before his legal battle with Williams. In March 2024, Hugo sued Williams over their agreement that they would co-own the Neptunes’ name. In the lawsuit, Hugo accuses Williams of trying get to sole ownership of the name without Hugo’s consent. The lawsuit is not mentioned in the documentary. In a “Piece by Piece” interview, Williams descrbes Hugo as a “saint.”
Even though Virginia Beach is not a major hub in the music industry, some of Williams’ musical peers from Virginia Beach went on to have international success as hitmakers, including hip-hop star Missy Elliott and music producer/artis Timbaland, whose real name is Timothy Mosley. They are both interviewed for “Piece by Piece.”
The hits written and produced by Williams as part of the Neptunes or as a solo artist make up the soundtracks of many people’s lives. His first breakout hit was Wreckx-N-Effect’s 1992 single “Rump Shaker,” co-written by Teddy Riley, who got to know Williams after Riley set up a recording studio in Virginia Beach. Williams remembers this recording studio being a big deal because it was rare for a major star such as Riley to choose Virginia Beach as the headquarters for the star’s music production facilities.
Williams is also a writer and/or producer for Nelly’s “Hot in Herre,” Mystikal’s “Shake Ya Ass,” Justin Timberlake’s “Rock Your Body,” Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines,” Kelis’ “Milkshake,” Gwen Stefani’s “Hollaback Girl,” No Doubt’s “Hella Good,” and Jay-Z’s “Give It to Me.” As a solo artist, Williams is best known for his Oscar-nominated song “Happy” (from 2013’s “Despicable Me 2”) and Daft Punk’s Grammy-winning 2013 smash hit “Get Lucky.”
Among the people interviewed in the documentary are artists who made hits with Williams, such as Jay-Z, Riley, Stefani, Timberlake, Snoop Dogg, Kendrick Lamar, Elliott, N.O.R.E. and Busta Rhymes. Behind-the-scenes music industry people who are interviewed include former Vibe magazine editor Mimi Valdés, who know works as a film producer with Williams; music executive Jimmy Iovine; songwriter Tammy Lucas; Deep Zen monk Kosho Loïc Vuillemin; music executive Jon Platt; and music manager Rob Walker, who introduced N.O.R.E. to the Neptunes. Williams and Valdés (who are two of the producers of “Piece by Piece”) were Oscar-nominated for Best Picture for being among the producers for 2016’s “Hidden Figures.”
Williams is particularly open about his love life and will only discuss his courtship and marriage to model/fashion designe Helen Lasichanh, whom he married in 2013. They have four kids: a son named Rocket (born in 2008) and triplets (born in 2017), whose names have been kept private. Lasichanh does a rare interview for the documentary. She describes Williams as the pursuer in their courtship, but she says it took him years before he said he was ready to commit to marriage. Williams is briefly seen in the documentary interacting with his kids as a doting father, who calls his son “sir.”
Also interviewed are Pharrell’s parents Pharoah Williams and Carolyn Williams, who says that they taught Pharrell the values of hard work. Carolyn also said on the partnership between Pharrell and Hugo: “To see them together, it was like they read each other’s minds.” Another family member interviewed is Bishop Ezekiel Williams (Pharrell’s uncle), who says that Pharrell’s paternal grandmother had a dream that Pharrell was lifted up and was given a special gift by God.
When someone has family members telling these stories, it should come as no surprise that someone might get a huge ego for it. Pharrell admits that his ego became enormous with all of his success, but he was humbled in the late 2000s, when he had a string of flops with audiences and critics. His comeback include career highs with “Happy” and “Get Lucky.”
Although Pharrell is also known for his business forays in the fashion industry, that part of his life isn’t really in the documentary. Don’t expect to hear stories about his fashion brands Bllionaire Boys Club and ICECREAM, or becoming creative director for Louis Vuitton’s men’s fashion, a position he was appointed to in 2023. His movie projects are also not gviven a spotlight in this documentary. “Piece by Piece” is a music-focused docmentary that gives some interesting stories about how Pharrell makes music, his life’s highs and lows and what other people have to say about him. Music is Pharrell’s first love. And “Piece by Piece” is a unique and charismatic way to share that love with an audience.
Focus Features released “Piece by Piece” in U.S. cinemas on October 11, 2024.