Europe’s Love Affair with Nerd-Chic Pharrell Williams

27th June 2008

UK (and it seems all of Europe) are in a state of frenzy over Pharrell Williams. Seen prancing about London Town (pictured above), Pharrell recently hopped across the pond to the UK to give credence to the new collection from his clothing label, Billionaire Boys Club and Ice Cream, at London’s Harvey Nichols.

Pharrell gave an energy-packed performance that wowed a rather fashionable audience of Jourdan Dunn, Jade Parfitt, Jasmine Guinness, Mischa Barton and Immodesty Blaize at Harvey Nichols’ Fifth Floor restaurant.

Just a few latitudes south of London, the folks at Milan Fashion Week were also getting a taste of Pharrell and N*E*R*D’s avant-garde brand of music at Dolce & Gabbana’s SS09 menswear collection.

N*E*R*D’s new album, Seeing Sounds, possesses a very soft-rock, summery vibe that meshes well with Europe’s edgy fashion/club scene and evidently the runways of Milano. Pharrell’s crooning provided a musically urbane landscape for Dolce & Gabbana’s pajama-clad models as they sauntered down the runway.

But the U.S. couldn’t leave Europe to gobble up every bit of talent Mr. Williams has to offer. The man of the moment was on the cover of Paper Magazine’s June/July music issue parading his new purple croc Hermès tote (which also made a cameo in Madonna’s new video, “Give It 2 Me,” that features Pharrell).

On the topic of flying the nerd-chic flag proudly, Pharrell shared this with Paper Magazine:

“It’s not that I’m necessarily proud of being a nerd,” he says, as if he isn’t the coolest one around. “It’s who I am.”

Given the success of N*E*R*D, Billionaire Boys Club and Ice Cream, and his soon to be jewelry line with Louis Vuitton, the nerd-chic moniker speaks for itself.