Dancing. Not just dancing, but dancing Happy.
Before November 21, 2013, this didn’t mean much, as if describing someone who is feeling happy and participating in the action, dancing. Today, a musical artist by the name of Pharrell Williams has transformed a universal concept, “…Because I’m Happy.”
The 41-year-old has many titles; singer, songwriter, producer, fashion designer, art collector, philanthropist, and coach on NBC’s The Voice. Today, his most famous feat is known by that one, wonderful word: Happy.
The song premiered in the Despicable Me 2 soundtrack before being repurposed for Pharrell’s first single in his solo album G I R L. Pharrell discusses his inspiration behind the album:
Along with the song release, Pharrell created the website 24hoursofhappy.com. The website features the world’s first 24-hour music video. Captured in Los Angeles, individuals dance for 4 minutes to the song Happy and the producers compiled the clips together to create a full day of continuous, happy dancing:
The World Participates in “Happy”
Suddenly, people from all around the world joined the story. The videos were titled under the name of the country or city where it was filmed; here is a mixed compilation of just a piece of the world’s response to Pharrell’s song:
Amsterdam, Kingdom of the Netherlands
San Diego, California (Stone Ranch Elementary School)
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Pharrell’s Happy traveled far and wide, representing individuals from all walks of life and their journey about being happy. The Global Post noted over 800 versions from 94 different countries. Watch their favorite 10 videos here:
Here is a compilation made of most of the videos from throughout the world:
The Reaction
Pharrell wrote the song from an artist’s point of view; to share his feelings and musical talent about being happy. Oprah showed him a compilation of the videos, and it caused him to break down in tears.
From there, Pharrell continued to share the Happy phenomenon on Ellen and the Queen Latifah Show:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i7HeFMFJgWo
Pharrell’s “Happy” went on to win the 2014 Grammy Award for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical and 2014 BET Award for Video of the Year.
Although the “Happy” release date was about 11 months ago, the song continues to spiral throughout YouTube, bringing the world together under one Happy roof.
