Neptunes 19 years old? Been produce since 97?

[Swookillah]

  I dont understarnd who the Neptunes are.  I saw an MTV article on them and i was suprided to see that one of them is a chinese guy.  I know that their names are Pharrel Williams and Chad Hugo.  So who is this faggot Shay guy whos always singing the hook and making cameos in Neptunes produced tracks. He's in songs like: Tha Lik's - Best Of You, Jay-Z - I just wanna love you (not in video, but sound like he singing the hook), Mystical - Shake ya Ass.  Does he produce or just sing?
  Next how long have these guys been around? I was flipping through the credits of my Mase cd "Harlem World" (i bought when i was a kid) and I was shocked to see them  credited for the song "Lookin At Me".  Some guy was tellin me that they produced the Noregena song "Super Thug (What)".  But i was watching a Britney Spears press conference and they asked her what it was like working with the Neptunes, and she said it was cool because there only like 18, 19 years old.  So that would mean they've been producing big name people since there like 16!
 I know they suck but can someone clear up who they are exactly because this information i have of them doen's fit.

[Murrow]

I don't know - They weird.

All that stuff you wrote, they did.

[Siberian_Wolf]

That 'faggot ass' is Pharrell Williams himself. Yes he does sing. Chad Hugo is darker-skinned and he never barks a single word.

First time I heard em was Got Your Money by ODB. They aint 19 years old. At least Chad aint. He looks like the same age as Daz.

[SugeFight]

  I dont understarnd who the Neptunes are.  I saw an MTV article on them and i was suprided to see that one of them is a chinese guy.  I know that their names are Pharrel Williams and Chad Hugo.  So who is this faggot Shay guy whos always singing the hook and making cameos in Neptunes produced tracks. He's in songs like: Tha Lik's - Best Of You, Jay-Z - I just wanna love you (not in video, but sound like he singing the hook), Mystical - Shake ya Ass.  Does he produce or just sing?
  Next how long have these guys been around? I was flipping through the credits of my Mase cd "Harlem World" (i bought when i was a kid) and I was shocked to see them  credited for the song "Lookin At Me".  Some guy was tellin me that they produced the Noregena song "Super Thug (What)".  But i was watching a Britney Spears press conference and they asked her what it was like working with the Neptunes, and she said it was cool because there only like 18, 19 years old.  So that would mean they've been producing big name people since there like 16!
 I know they suck but can someone clear up who they are exactly because this information i have of them doen's fit.

The 19 year old youre speaking about is Britney's dance instructor I believe.

[West Coast Veteran]

That 'faggot ass' is Pharrell Williams himself. Yes he does sing. Chad Hugo is darker-skinned and he never barks a single word.

Chad is Filipino. I don't think he's darker skinned. He's the Asian guy that never says shit. Pharrell is like Puffy always wanting to be in the spotlight.

[Swookillah]

Britney Spears was like it was fun working with them cause they only like 18, 19 years old, and we burped and cracked jokes.  So how could they produce since the was 16?

[Alex_Wreck]

Britney Spears was like it was fun working with them cause they only like 18, 19 years old, and we burped and cracked jokes.  So how could they produce since the was 16?

Easy, they could make beats at 16.... who says they cant?

[Wizard Whitebeard]

First of all, the Neptunes do not "suck."  After only a few years in the game they now have a catalogue of hits that would put most producers' to shame.  And I know you're gonna say, "Who cares about radio hits, that doesn't have anything to do with quality."  This is true, and recently it has become almost a fad to have a Neptunes-produced track on your album (or a Neptunes remix, reminiscent of the "Bad Boy Remix" phenomenon of the mid '90s), and their production has gotten repetitive and less creative lately as a result of how many tracks they've been commissioned to do.  But it's also true that they have had a number of OUTSTANDING productions for various artists including Jay-Z, Kelis, ODB, Nore, Mystikal, Ludacris...I could go on.

The Neptunes actually started working as a major production team around 1995 and did decent tracks for everybody from SWV to MC Lyte.  They kept a low profile and just kept working until they finally broke through to the mainstream with their beats for Ma$e's "Lookin' at Me" & Noreaga's "Superthug" in 1997.  They had a couple of semi-hits before that but "Superthug" is basically the song that established the Neptunes and their now-familiar sound.  

Pharrell is the most musical of the crew, handling most of the programming/instruments as well as his recent transition into the vocal spotlight (mostly doing hooks for other rappers like you said Wolf).  Chad is the technical wiz and he knows his shit when it comes to studio equipment, drum machines and keyboards.  There are a couple of other semi-members who I honestly know almost nothing about.  Shea is some black guy who tags along with them and Harvey is a white rapper who you might have heard on their song "Lapdance."  This song was released as the first single from their debut album "In Search Of..." which they planned to release under the name N.E.R.D., but was scrapped in order to re-record the whole thing with live instruments and some new songs.  I have the original promo version and it is not that good, it's obvious why they chose to re-do it.  I really think they should learn from Puffy's mistakes and stick to producing.

Lastly, no they are not 19 years old.  These guys are in their late 20s although they dress like teenagers.  I know for a fact Pharrell is 27, I'm not sure about Chad but I know he has to be close to that because in interviews Pharrell has said they were in band together back in school.  Anyway they have basically been in the game since '91 when they were discovered by Teddy Riley at a talent show in Virginia Beach.  Teddy gave them their break & Pharrell co-wrote the song "Rump Shaker" with him in 1992 at the age of 18.  After that he was in a group with Timbaland and Tim's brother Sebastian called Surrounded by Idiots.  This is the point where I think Pharrell created his sound, if you'll notice it is like a less-complex variation of the Timbaland sound (layered keyboards, few samples, syncopated beats and distorted drums).  After SBI broke up Pharrell and Chad started the Neptunes and focused on producing music full time, leading them to where they are today.

Sorry that was so long but hopefully that answered some of your questions.

[Murrow]

I think The Neptunes are nothing but party producers...they are very shallow - there's that word again.

They need to become more diverse to become great producers...but maybe that's their style.  Peace.

[Wizard Whitebeard]

They need to become more diverse to become great producers

Definitely.

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

Neptunes? Live Insturements? LMaO!



These to words can NOT go together...