Pharrell Williams recently sat down with BTS‘s leader RM for Rolling Stone’s “Musicians On Musicians” interview. Throughout their conversation, the pair exuded quite a comfortable dynamic. RM asked away different questions regarding his artistic process and journey, while Pharrell offered him an experienced perspective.
At one point during the interview, Pharrell shared that he had felt a loss of purpose in his career around 2006. He had put out the album In My Mind, and it didn’t perform as well as he had hoped commercially.
He said that: "It just didn’t do what I was used to at that time, and that really hit me hard. So that made me start to think about purpose and things having real true DNA and not just aesthetic purpose, but real true meaning and something that could be meaningful to people, but at the same time, still fun."
He proceeded by saying that there was a shift in his perspective as a musician, where he no longer appeased his own ego while creating music. His intention was clear: he wanted to make his art the absolute best it could get.
Determining the future will is very important for an artist. Even for ordinary people because many people take their whole life to find what they want to do. Pharrell is lucky to have identified his future musical journey.
meanwhile, Pharrell asked RM about his journey of self-discovery and where he is now and RM replied that he is still in the learning phase. He is exploring many aspects of his artistic instincts and that is when he expresses his fear of losing his passion for music in the process because there are many things that exist in his mind.
RM revealed that: "Sometimes as I grow up — and I’m between my chapter one and two, like I said, the group and solo; maybe I’m between music and maybe [visual] art, between that. So sometimes I really feel afraid, like, ‘What if I don’t like music anymore?"
RM has an endless passion for the visual arts. He spends a lot of his time researching exhibitions, art paintings and visiting museums around the world. That's why he feels confused when standing in the crossroads of life.
But we all know that music has become an indispensable pillar in his life. Because even the thought of giving up music scared him, he really loved the sounds as much as the color pictures.
RM honestly shared that he sometimes gets scared thinking that a day might come when music isn't his priority. Luckily, Pharrell brought his anxiety to a near-instant halt by reassuring him that it's common in artists:
Williams: Yeah. That’s temporary.
RM: Oh, really? I’m relieved.
Williams: Yeah. Then all of a sudden you go, “Whoa. It’s the only thing I want to think about.” It’ll happen.
This part of the conversation also caught the attention of fans, who felt that the firm reassurance from a senior artist he was looking forward to was probably all RM needed during his transition. change this career.
Pharrell ends the conversation with a helpful piece of advice that can ease all of RM's worries once and for all: "You know what? I would just say continue to move forward. Continue to be curious. And don’t put any kind of pressure on what it is that you do by saying . . . No absolutes, like “Oh, I will never do music again,” or “I will never . . . ” I wouldn’t do any of that…Just stay along for the ride. Just keep going."
His advice is really helpful and that's what shows that he really is a sunbae that can help RM have a bright direction for his future. RM and BTS are on a journey to find their own musical color and there's nothing wrong with them standing in the middle of a turn. What we need to do is support and wait for them!
