Pharrell Williams takes a breath and considers how the past years have developed for him: ten Grammy Awards and a number of hit singles including a song that has caused countless fans to express how they are "happy".
And the key, says the 43yearold known simply as Pharrell, has been taking advantage of audiences' (听众的) need for heartfelt personal stories.
"I think we've entered a new singersong writer time," said the American singer and producer. "People want a story. They want a story they can connect to. It's not about what you have or what you don't have; it's more about your journey and your viewpoint that's important to people."
Pharrell said he noticed a change in audiences'tastes over the past year in particular with the sudden success of his song Happy, which received little fanfare upon its release but has turned into an international hit. Countless videos populate sites like YouTube with people from Portugal and China to Abu Dhabi and Iran singing and dancing along to the song.
After seeing how far his song travelled, the singer broke down in tears during a televised interview with the famous talk show host Oprah Winfrey.
"It's just encouraging to people who have something to say, something to express," he said.
The success has made Pharrell realize that people are searching for personal and emotional links (情感纽带), perhaps as a means of getting away from the modern technological world we're living in today.
"People want to feel. There's too much thinking to deal with，" the singer said. "We're different from what we were 15 years ago. The only thing we have left that reminds (提醒) us that we are humans is feeling. It's the most important thing ever."
