Watch N.E.R.D. Act Like Squares in 'Squeeze Me' Video
by Brittany Spanos
Pharrell Williams has found a lot of luck in his solo career with making tracks for children’s movies. For the soundtrack of the upcoming The Spongebob Movie: Sponge Out of Water, though, the producer gets his pop-rock trio N.E.R.D. back to partake in some goofy, nautical fun in the new clip for their single “Squeeze Me” as well as two other new tracks.
Shay Haley, Chad Hugo, and Williams can be seen getting two-dimensional in the video for “Squeeze Me,” a track released in December that had been their first recording since 2010’s Nothing LP. The video comes on the heels of the Spongebob Movie's soundtrack, released today on iTunes and Spotify, which features two other light and fun N.E.R.D. songs named for prominent Spongebob Squarepants characters “Patrick Star” and “Sandy Squirrel.”
On the playful, funky and sing-along-ready “Patrick Star,” Pharrell sings “look at who the smart guy is now” about the film’s perpetual sidekick:
"Sandy Squirrel," about the "squirrel living in the sea," is more romantic but just as tropical and aquatic as the other tracks from the album, which features Spongebob singing the rest of the non-N.E.R.D. tracks.
In 2013, Pharrell saw his contribution to the Despicable Me 2, “Happy,” become a huge hit, solidifying the success of his solo career. This past month, he can be heard on the Paddington soundtrack, singing “Shine” with frequent collaborator Gwen Stefani.
N.E.R.D., an offshoot of Williams and Hugo’s production duo the Neptunes, first called it quits in 2005 over disputes with their label Virgin Records. They reunited in 2008, releasing Seeing Sounds on Williams and Hugo’s Star Trak Entertainment. Following 2010’s Nothing, the band has kept a low profile as Williams has pursued solo projects as both a producer and performer.
