T.I. recently recalled Pharrell’s help producing his debut album I’m Serious, for which he took a pay cut. While the Neptunes producer charged about $100K per song in certain instances around this time, he set that aside for Tip. During his conversation with Shannon Sharpe on Club Shay Shay, the Atlanta native expressed his gratitude for P.
“Pharrell was the first superstar, A-list producer, who would say, ‘You know what? I like this guy, I’m going to work with him,” he said. “I’m going to give him access to my skillset, my talents, my efforts.’ He did that my first album,” adding that he originally reached out to the Virginia Beach artist to work together.
“But at the same time he said ‘yes,’ he was getting $100k a track and I couldn’t afford to pay that,” the 42-year-old continued. “So he had to kinda like, in the sense of sports, he had to take a pay cut so we could play together. And, he was gracious enough to do that; time and time and time again. Until, we grew.”
However, Sharpe questioned whether Skateboard P really raked in that cash back then. “That’s what he was getting,” T.I. joked. “Maybe more. He’s getting blank checks at this point.”
On Episode 29, we talked about how there’s a bunch of @Tip and @TheNeptunes / @Pharrell collabs that were on mixtapes or were tracks that didn’t make albums. Here’s a thread of our favorites:
pic.twitter.com/YUwcGWVHIZ
— Neptunes Sunday Podcast (@NeptunesSunday) January 27, 2023
Also, the “Live Your Life” star clarified the extent to which the producer contributed to the 17-track album. “If you get twelve tracks from Pharrell on one album, it’s usually going to be on his album. However, if you did two or three, you know what I’m saying. You can expect to part ways without the consideration.
“Exceptions are made for exceptional circumstance,” the MC concluded. “And, he found reason to make the exception and he fit into my cap; my first half — we just started to develop a relationship and we’ve been working together ever since. That’s one of the dopest producers I’ve worked with. Jazze Pha as well.”
Meanwhile, the trap innovator also said how much he “values and respects” legendary producers he’s worked with like Dr. Dre and Swizz Beatz. In fact, he considers himself a fusion of a lot of different rappers and leaders who came before him.
Still, what did you think of Pharrell getting a pay cut, but helping produce T.I.’s debut album regardless? Whatever the case, let us know in the comments down below. Also, as always, come back to HNHH for the latest stories and moments of camaraderie from the hip-hop game.