The Elder Statement : Pharrell Williams

Showing posts with label Pharrell Williams. Show all posts

Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Is anything NOT "racist"?

Zach Braff Apologizes After 'Racist' Tweet Comparing Pharrell's Grammy Outfit To The Wizard Of Oz

By David Mccormack and Wills Robinson, Feb. 11, 2015, Dailymail.com

Scrubs actor Zach Braff has apologized after a tweet he sent on Sunday night comparing Pharrell’s bellboy outfit at the Grammys to the flying monkey in The Wizard of Oz got him into trouble.

For the performance of his award-winning song Happy, singer/producer Pharrell wore a bellboy-type hat and jacket that provoked much online debate.

While many viewers tweeted about Pharrell’s likeness to the bellhop in the movie The Grand Budapest Hotel, others wondered if – given his political-charged performance – the outfit was a reference to black bellhops.

Braff joined the online debate when he jokingly shared a side-by-side picture of Pharrell and the flying monkey from the 2013 The Wizard of Oz-remake – Oz The Great and Powerful.

'Grammys are time-delayed in LA (?!) but someone just sent me this: #IWoreItBetter,’ he tweeted.

Read more: www.dailymail.co.uk

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Sunday, September 21, 2014

Life in a caliphate

elderstatement.com September 21, 2014 'Happy' , Associated Press 0 Comments

Iranian Youth Sentenced For Making Dance Video To Pharrell Williams' 'Happy'

By Associated Press, Sept. 19, 2014, Billboad.com

A defense lawyer in Iran says six young Iranian men and women videotaped dancing to Pharrell Williams' "Happy" and the video's director have been sentenced to suspended jail terms and lashes.

Lawyer Farshid Rofugaran said Friday the seven have been sentenced to six months in jail and 91 lashes each, though the verdict won't be carried out unless the defendants commit crimes and are found guilty in the future. He says the suspended jail term is the punishment for acting in the video and the lashes are over ignoring Islamic norms.

Read the full story: www.billboard.com

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Thursday, May 22, 2014

'Happy' Video Arrests Highlight Tensions In Iran --Latest on religion of peace

elderstatement.com May 22, 2014 "Happy" , Arrest 0 Comments

Screen shot from Iranian "Happy" video

By Ali Akbar Dareini and Adam Schreck, May 21, 2014, APnews.com

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - An Internet video (no audio) of six young Iranian men and women dancing to Pharrell Williams' "Happy" has led to their arrests, showing how far Tehran will go to halt what it deems to be decadent Western behavior - despite the views of its moderate president.

Criticism outside Iran was predictably swift Wednesday, with calls for freedom for the jailed youths zipping around social media. Williams tweeted: "It's beyond sad these kids were arrested for trying to spread happiness."

A tweet posted Wednesday evening on President Hassan Rouhani's account seemed to address the controversy, even if it stopped short of mentioning the video or the arrests directly.

"#Happiness is our people's right," it said. "We shouldn't be too hard on behaviors caused by joy."

The widely followed account appears to reflect Rouhani's positions. Iranian media in the past quoted Rouhani as saying the account is authentic. At the same time, a senior Rouhani adviser said last year that the president had such an account only during the presidential campaign and that Rouhani's views are represented by his official website.

Other social media posts suggested at least some of the dancers had already been released, although there was no independent confirmation from authorities.

The case was another reminder of the tensions that exist at the highest levels of Iranian power, with hard-liners determined to maintain the status quo while moderates try to push through change - be it improved relations with the West or a loosening of morality clampdowns at home.

Hard-liners are increasingly challenging Rouhani as the country negotiates a nuclear deal with world powers. The president campaigned for greater cultural and social freedoms in his bid to succeeded Mahmoud Ahmadinejad last year.

As recently as Saturday, he articulated a moderate stance about the Internet, which remains tightly regulated by Iranian authorities.

Sites such as YouTube and Facebook are blocked by censors, though many young and Web-savvy Iranians use proxy servers or other workarounds to bypass the controls.

"We should see the cyberworld as an opportunity," said Rouhani, according to the official IRNA news agency. "Why are we so shaky? Why don't we trust our youth?"

Hard-liners accuse Rouhani of failing to stop the spread of what they deem "decadent" Western culture in Iran. Last week, hard-liners marched over women not wearing hijabs and dressing provocatively.

While Rouhani pursues a policy of social and cultural openness, hard-liners say the government should be tough to those who challenge interpretations of Islamic norms. They accuse Rouhani of showing leniency and too much tolerance toward those who question Islamic sanctities or women who are not sufficiently veiled.

Read the full story: www.m.apnews.com

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Friday, May 16, 2014

Why Pharrell Believes In 'The New Black' --Doesn't see himself as a victicrat.

elderstatement.com May 16, 2014 Oprah Winfrey , Pharrell Williams 0 Comments

Pharrell Williams

By Priya Elan, Apr. 22, 2014, Theguardian.com

As if to confirm that he has reached an otherworldly level of fame, Pharrell Williams has aligned himself with an entirely new race of human being. The ubiquitous star spoke to Oprah last week, blubbed while watching fan videos of Happy but, most curiously, defined himself as The New Black. "The New Black doesn't blame other races for our issues," said Pharrell, one of the world's most successful musicians, to Oprah, billionaire queen of the world. "The New Black dreams and realises that it's not pigmentation: it's a mentality and it's either going to work for you or it's going to work against you. And you've got to pick the side you're going to be on." It's a comment that not only suggests he has a library full of Deepak Chopra books under that hat, but that also highlights how daft it is when a millionaire attempts to speak for an entire race.

In response, writer and blogger Feminista Jones created the Twitter hashtag #whatkindofblackareyou?. Via email, Jones says that while it's admirable to believe that black people can now transcend race, Pharrell's comments are ultimately a "slap in the face" to people who do not fit in with his narrow ideas.

Read the full story: www.theguardian.com

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