Why is Pharrell Running Around Nashville in an American Aquarium Hat?
Superstar pop R&B artist and producer Pharrell Williams spent the better part of last week in Nashville performing with the vocal troupe Little Big Town, and the entire time he’s been repping for an unlikely band: alt-country/Americana outfit American Aquarium. A favorite among fierce followers of earnest songwriting, the North Carolina-based band has been a critical favorite for years, and an adopted member of the Texas music scene. Now they’re inadvertently getting national pub because Pharrell picked their hat over others to wear during his recent Nashville appearances.
What remains a mystery is if Pharrell actually listens to American Aquarium. But if he does, the fandom might have started with the hat. He didn’t pick it up at a recent American Aquarium show; it was supplied by another independent artist Nikki Lane—the owner of the toney and well-known vintage shop High Class Hillbilly in Nashville.
“His stylist contacted Nikki to see if we had anything in stock at High Class Hillbilly,” says Macy, the manager of High Class Hillbilly. “We carry vintage, and we do normally carry vintage trucker hats from the 70’s. We had just sold out of all of them, and he was looking specifically for trucker hats. So Nikki sent over her own personal collection, and that was the one he picked.”
Fans first picked up on Pharrell wearing the hat when pictures from the red carpet of last Wednesday’s CMT Awards surfaced, but that wasn’t the first time, or the last time Pharrell would wear the hat as part of a high-profile appearance. On Tuesday night (6-8), Pharrell made his Grand Ole Opry debut with Little Big Town, and was wearing the hat. The when he took the stage with Little Big Town as part of the final night of CMA Fest on Sunday (6-12), Pharrell was still wearing the hat.
“Pretty neat,” BJ Barham of American Aquarium said after the CMT Awards. “Thanks to the fabulous Nikki Lane and her wonderful High Class Hillbilly line for connecting the dots.”
Pharrell is known for regularly repping independent artists with his apparel, and for his hats specifically. On the Grammy Awards in 2014, his now famous mountaineer hat was the talk of the show, and had Arby’s tweeting about it. It was later auctioned off to charity, with Arby’s posting the highest bid.
American Aquarium’s BJ Barham has a solo album called Rockingham that is set to be released on August 19th.
READ: American Aquarium Recalls Florida Georgia Line Opening For THEM
Whiskey Pete
June 13, 2016 @ 9:22 am
He so fits in now.
Trigger
June 13, 2016 @ 9:54 am
Who’s saying that? So far the only one I’ve seen is you.
Whiskey Pete
June 13, 2016 @ 10:47 am
Uh, I don’t think you’re getting my joke. I’m just poking fun at this Pharrell guy.
Tunesmiff
June 13, 2016 @ 5:09 pm
Not till he turns it around and wears it bass-ackwards…
Warthog
June 13, 2016 @ 9:32 am
Why is Pharrell running around Nashville at all? Why the hell did Pharrell play the Grand Ole Opry? Why is Pharrell collaborating with Little Big Town? Why does Little Big Town get a shit ton of awards at all the country award shows? What are there so many country award shows? Why is there no country music at country award shows? Why is there no country music on country radio?
I miss Stevie Gaines
June 13, 2016 @ 9:40 am
Oh my Grand slam!
Trigger
June 13, 2016 @ 9:53 am
I’ve been asking these question here for the better part of a decade now. Pharrell didn’t belong on the Grand Ole Opry. Pharrell is collaborating with Little Big Town because they’re a pop band anyway. Little Big Town wins a shit ton of awards because of the inside politics of country music, and there are a ton of country music awards shows that now predominately feature pop artists because it makes the industry lots and lots of money. We all know these answers.
But those ships have sailed. I wrote an entire piece on this last week that few read, and specifically broach Pharrell, Little Big Town, the move of pop into country, et al:
https://www.savingcountrymusic.com/the-trojan-horse-of-countrys-purely-pop-singles-squirreled-away-as-album-cuts/
All these things must be battled against on the various fronts, but that doesn’t change the fact that Pharrell reaching out to a locally-owned vintage store, which happens to be owned by an independent country artist, to obtain a hat by a cool band and deciding to wear it all week isn’t a cool story for those involved. If country’s mainstream acts would put out similar efforts to rep smaller bands they enjoy, there probably wouldn’t be as many problems in country music at the moment. That is what Keith Urban and Jake Owen did with Sturgill Simpson, and it helped push him to the top. I don’t particularly like either of those dudes’ music, but it helped, and they deserve credit for that. Justin Timberlake’s support of Chris Stapleton is how he got to the top. I don’t expect the same for American Aquarium at the moment, but it can’t hurt.
If radio and awards shows aren’t going to support bands like American Aquarium, then someone has to. It’s a sad commentary that it has fallen to someone like Pharrell. But at least someone stepped up to the plate, and saw the value of giving attention to someone who normally doesn’t get it on such big stages.
That’s my opinion.
PETE MARSHALL
June 13, 2016 @ 4:16 pm
Great comment! you are the star of the day!
DimM
June 13, 2016 @ 10:49 am
All i see is five little big clowns on the Opry.
Boatwrong
June 13, 2016 @ 11:22 am
Hey, at least American Aquarium is good. Better than Little Big Town or whichever pop band Pharrell is hanging out with. It’s also a better hat than his famous “Arby’s” hat. Met the guys in AA at a show in Greenville. Good, down to earth guys.
seak05
June 13, 2016 @ 11:56 am
Philosophical question: Why is pop-country terrible, but American-country not only ok, but celebrated? Personally, I like good music, and I like traditional country: but is Chris Stapleton’s record really that much more traditionally country than Marrin Morris?
Of course, nobody is really buying traditional country music, and the music industry is a business, so until people start actually buying traditional country music, you’re not going to get much of it..
Spoony
June 13, 2016 @ 12:54 pm
Because it isn’t played on top 40 country radio, that’s why. People aren’t going to buy things they don’t even know exist. I’m so thankful I got turned onto the Texas music scene a few years ago.
Trigger
June 13, 2016 @ 3:14 pm
“Is Chris Stapleton’s record really that much more traditionally country than Marrin Morris?”
Yes. Without question.
“Of course, nobody is really buying traditional country music”
Incorrect. Go look at the album charts. People are buying traditional country music OVER mainstream pop country. More people may be listening to mainstream pop country, but they’re streaming it, which creates less revenue for the songwriters, industry, and artists. Traditional country fans actually still buy albums. Also, last year was the first year that consumers spent more money on older, backlisted music than new music, meaning older music is making more money than the newer stuff, even with the overwhelming success of some artists like Adele and Taylor Swift.
seak05
June 13, 2016 @ 6:30 pm
Itunes isn’t a perfect representation of sales, but right now the album charts are:
Chris (who I dunno still feels more Americana/Blues to me than traditional country)
Blake
Dierks
Wanderlust
Same Hunt
Marrin
And the number 1 song is HOLY
But maybe I’m just overreacting to the fact that Jennifer Nettles isn’t really selling (despite getting radio airplay) and Elvira didn’t hit the itunes chart at all after the CMT awards, while Dierks, & even Stapleton got awards show bounces.
RD
June 13, 2016 @ 12:57 pm
At some point, you can’t pour any more money into your ’86 Chevy Celebrity Wagon, and you just have to push it off the rock into the quarry.
Coyote
June 13, 2016 @ 1:25 pm
It’s almost like he is making the statement of “I’m sorry that I am helping Little Big Town ruin country music even more, but hey I’m wearing a cool camo hat of an independent country artist that I bought from another independent artists store! That makes everything cool right!” Even though it might seem cool that he is supporting a great band, I would rather he have just stayed out of Nashville all together. Once Little Big Town’s record becomes a success on country radio, because obviously that’s where it’s going, it will just break down the floodgates for an even greater extent of these collaborations. Maybe the next move will be a Pit Bull and FGL collaboration. Haha it just makes me laugh when CMT plays CMT crossroads. There is absolutely no road to cross anymore. If Karen Morris was on there with say Megan Train or would people really tell a distinct stylistic difference between the two that doesn’t exist outside the pop realm. It’s looking pretty bad out there. I think the industry is overcompensating the market witj pop to undermine the success of Chris Stapleton.
Trigger
June 13, 2016 @ 3:28 pm
The only reason there is any mainstream success for Chris Stapleton to begin with is because a pop star, Justin Timberlake, took Stapleton under his wing and promoted him. What has country radio done for Chris Stapleton? Just about as much as they have done for American Aquarium.
I don’t think Pharrell had any agenda, and I don’t think he’s trying to apologize for anything. He’s not privy to the interworkings or turmoil in country. He does this kind of thing in many of the places he goes to. Pharrell is not looking to release a country record. If anyone has an agenda, it is Little Big Town, the Grand Ole Opry, and the CMT Awards.
Coyote
June 13, 2016 @ 3:43 pm
Makes sense right after I posted I thought about it a bit more and realized that but it was too late to change anything. I know pop and country collaborations arent always a bad thing. Is there any word on when Justin Timberlake is supposed to release his country record?
Orgirl1
June 16, 2016 @ 3:26 pm
I agree, I don’t think Pharrell has an agenda, but the others do. However, he shouldn’t have been on the Opry stage. I like him from the Voice but I would think that he would be more respectful.
Coyote
June 13, 2016 @ 1:32 pm
Pop and Country music seem to be merging more and more and pretty soon when they merge theres just going to be one boring mindless and straight highway.
unrandom stranger
June 13, 2016 @ 2:09 pm
A friend of mine said “When you take the steel guitar out of country music, it’s like you’re cutting off country’s balls.”
Jimsouls
June 13, 2016 @ 3:06 pm
Why are some people so intent on segregating.our music? One of the great things about American music is how the various genres fit together.There’s no such things as “pure” country music. So stop trying to keep it so white and antiseptic.
Spoony
June 13, 2016 @ 6:59 pm
I’ve read dumb things in the comments section here before, but that’s the most retarded one yet. The genre of Ernest Tubb does not fit together with the genre of Michael Jackson.
PETE MARSHALL
June 13, 2016 @ 7:23 pm
Are you going to review Little Big Town “Wanderlust” cd?
Sadie
June 13, 2016 @ 7:47 pm
How very LA to have it chosen for you, at least the stylist had good taste.
PETE MARSHALL
June 13, 2016 @ 10:31 pm
C.M.T. is Certified moron television
Trigger
June 14, 2016 @ 2:47 pm
Frankly, I’m disappointed at the amount of negativity sewn in this comments section coming from many different directions. When we’ve just experienced the largest single shooter massacre in American history and you run an entertainment website, it’s really tough to know what to do. You can try to tell stories that involve the shooting somehow, but this just feels exploitative. If you write anything negative towards someone (like a bad album review), you feel like you’re disrespecting the seriousness of the moment.
I thought this was a story that was very interesting, and an opportunity for us to focus on a positive in music. Unfortunately, so many folks have chosen to focus on the negative aspects of it. Think if you were a member of American Aquarium, and your name, something you’ve worked at for years, has just been introduced to potentially millions of people by Pharrell wearing your hat. For some bands like American Aquarium, who may never get a chance to play a massive stage or appear on national TV, this is a huge moment for them, maybe the biggest they’ve ever had. It’s an element of validation. They aren’t focused on what Pharrell’s intentions are, or if it symbolizes the “segregation” of American music. These are all separate issues, and important ones. But I just don’t understand why so many people want to focus on them here. Let’s be happy that a worthy band is being repped by a superstar, and focus on the other stuff separately.