Pharrell Williams continues to outdo himself. The producer/singer’s blazing single “Happy” has reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, earning him his first number one as a solo artist.
His single “Happy” also makes him the first African American artist to top the Hot 100 as a lead artist since Rihanna’s 2012 hit “Diamonds.”
According to Nielsen SoundScan, “Happy” leads in digital song sales for a second week with 402,000 downloads, marking the biggest sales week for a song outside of the Christmas season.
“Happy” began to ascend the music charts earlier this month. The Oscar-nominated song entered Billboard’s Top 10 at No. 8 the week of February 6. The following week, the popular hit jumped to No. 2, beating out two other R&B contenders (Jason Derulo’s “Talk Dirty” came in at No. 3 and Beyonce’s “Drunk In Love” fell from No. 2 to No. 8 that week) in an unofficial race for the top spot.
Williams is no stranger to topping the charts, but only previously did so as a featured artist. “Happy” marks the super producer’s fourth number one song, and is preceded by 2004’s “Drop It Like It’s Hot” (with Snoop Dogg), 2006’s “Money Maker” (with Ludacris), and 2013’s “Blurred Lines” (with Robin Thicke and T.I.).
Pharrell’s sophomore album, “G I R L,” is will release on March 3 on Columbia Records.
(Source: Billboard)
