Marilyn Monroe (Pharrell Williams song)

"Marilyn Monroe"
Single by Pharrell Williams
from the album Girl
Released March 10, 2014 (2014-03-10)
Format CD single
Recorded 2013
Genre Funk[1]
Length 5:51
Label
Writer(s)
Producer(s) Pharrell Williams
Pharrell Williams singles chronology
"Aerosol Can"
(2014)		 "Marilyn Monroe"
(2014)		 "Come Get It Bae"
(2014)

"Marilyn Monroe" is a song by American singer and songwriter Pharrell Williams. It features additional spoken vocals from English TV personality Kelly Osbourne. The song was released on March 10, 2014 as the second single from Williams' second studio album Girl (2014). It was written by Williams, while the string intro was written by American violinist Ann Marie Calhoun.

Composition
"Marilyn Monroe" (2014)
A 29-second sample of "Marilyn Monroe", an R&B and funk song.
Problems playing this file? See media help.

The opening track on Williams' second studio album, Girl (2014), "Marilyn Monroe" begins with an orchestral string introduction.[2] The song's production is characterized by Williams' signature "skittering" beat and "bumping" bass line,[3] and its lyrics discuss "helpless romantics and the perfect lady."[3] Its chorus contains references to several female historical figures,[4] including actress Marilyn Monroe, Egyptian queen Cleopatra, and French heroine Joan of Arc.[3] In the song's lyrics, Williams dismisses all three as "[meaning] nothing to [him]" and laments that he "just [wants] a different girl."[3] Kelly Osbourne provides spoken backing vocals on the song.[3]

Release

In an interview with New York radio station Power 105.1, Williams revealed that "Marilyn Monroe" would be released as the second single from G I R L.[5] On March 10, 2014, the single was added to the playlist of British urban contemporary radio station BBC Radio 1Xtra along with the Williams song "Brand New".[6] Prior to its single release, the song had debuted at number 52 on the Dutch Single Top 100 chart.[7] Professional dancer Khadija Nicholas was hired by Pharrell to pose for the single's cover.[8]

Track listing

  1. "Marilyn Monroe"
  2. "Marilyn Monroe" (instrumental)

Music video

The music video for the song, directed by Luis Cerveró, was released on April 23, 2014.[10]

Credits and personnel

Charts

Chart (2014) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[12] 29
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[13] 11
Belgium Dance (Ultratop Flanders)[13] 6
Belgium Urban (Ultratop Flanders)[13] 4
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[14] 38
Belgium (Ultratip Wallonia)[14] 1
Belgium Dance (Ultratop Wallonia)[14] 10
Denmark (Tracklisten)[15] 28
France (SNEP)[16] 27
Germany (Deutsche Black Charts) 2
Germany (Official German Charts)[17] 25
Ireland (IRMA)[18] 35
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[19] 13
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[7] 18
Scotland (Official Charts Company)[20] 27
Slovakia (Rádio Top 100)[21] 58
Slovakia (Singles Digitál Top 100)[22] 45
South Africa (EMA)[23] 9
South Korea (Gaon International Chart)[24] 6
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[25] 25
UK R&B (Official Charts Company)[26] 5
US Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (Billboard)[27] 9
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[28] 29

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/Sales
Australia (ARIA)[29] Gold 35,000^

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

Release history

Region Date Format Label
United Kingdom[6] March 10, 2014 Urban contemporary radio
Australia[30] April 7, 2014 Contemporary hit radio
Italy[31] April 29, 2014 Sony
United Kingdom[32] May 12, 2014
Germany[9] May 30, 2014 CD single

References

  1. ↑ Batey, Angus (February 21, 2014). "We Heard Pharrell's New Album & This Is What It Sounds Like". NME. Retrieved May 15, 2015.
  2. ↑ Kelly, Chris (February 27, 2014). "GIRL – FACT Magazine: Music News, New Music". Fact. Retrieved March 4, 2014.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Kaufman, Gil (March 6, 2014). "Pharrell's 'Marilyn Monroe' Is So Not What You Think It's About". MTV. Viacom Media Networks. Retrieved February 26, 2014.
  4. ↑ Copsey, Robert; Corner, Lewis (March 3, 2014). "Playlist: 10 tracks you need to hear - Coldplay, Pharrell and more". Digital Spy. Hearst Magazines UK. Retrieved March 10, 2014.
  5. ↑ "LISTEN: Pharrell Williams addresses album cover criticism". iHeartRadio. February 28, 2014. Retrieved March 10, 2014.
  6. 1 2 "Radio 1Xtra Playlist". BBC Radio 1Xtra. BBC. Archived from the original on March 10, 2014. Retrieved March 10, 2014.
  7. 1 2 "Dutchcharts.nl – Pharrell Williams – Marilyn Monroe" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  8. ↑ Wilson, Julee (April 24, 2014). "Pharrell's 'Marilyn Monroe' Cover Girl, Khadija Nicholas, Is A Brown Bombshell (PHOTOS)". The Huffington Post. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
  9. 1 2 "Marilyn Monroe [Single]" (in German). Amazon.de. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  10. ↑ Gottlieb, Steven (July 23, 2014). "Pharrell Williams 'Marilyn Monroe' (Luis Cerveró, dir.)". Video Static. Retrieved August 17, 2014.
  11. ↑ Kaufman, Gil (February 25, 2014). "Pharrell Reveals Final G I R L Track List". MTV. Viacom Media Networks. Retrieved February 26, 2014.
  12. ↑ "Australian-charts.com – Pharrell Williams – Marilyn Monroe". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  13. 1 2 3 "Ultratop.be – Pharrell Williams – Marilyn Monroe" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved March 22, 2014.
  14. 1 2 3 "Ultratop.be – Pharrell Williams – Marilyn Monroe" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved March 22, 2014.
  15. ↑ "Danishcharts.com – Pharrell Williams – Marilyn Monroe". Tracklisten. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
  16. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Pharrell Williams – Marilyn Monroe" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved March 17, 2014.
  17. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Pharrell Williams – Marilyn Monroe". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved May 11, 2014.
  18. ↑ "Chart Track: Week 23, 2014". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved October 28, 2014.
  19. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Pharrell Williams search results" (in Dutch) Dutch Top 40. Retrieved March 29, 2014.
  20. ↑ "Archive Chart: 2014-05-31". Scottish Singles Top 40. Retrieved October 28, 2014.
  21. ↑ "SNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 201426 into search. Retrieved October 28, 2014.
  22. ↑ "SNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Singles Digital Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 201426 into search. Retrieved July 4, 2014.
  23. ↑ "EMA Top 10 Airplay: Week Ending 2014-06-24". Entertainment Monitoring Africa. Retrieved July 29, 2014.
  24. ↑ "Gaon International Digital Chart". Gaon. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  25. ↑ "Archive Chart: 2014-06-07" UK Singles Chart. Retrieved April 27, 2014.
  26. ↑ "Archive Chart: 2014-06-07" UK R&B Chart. Retrieved April 27, 2014.
  27. ↑ "Pharrell Williams – Chart history" Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 for Pharrell Williams. Retrieved May 11, 2014.
  28. ↑ "Pharrell Williams – Chart history" Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs for Pharrell Williams. Retrieved May 11, 2014.
  29. ↑ ARIA Australian Top 50 Singles Chart at the Wayback Machine (archive index). ARIA Charts. July 7, 2014. Retrieved July 5, 2014.
  30. ↑ Jolly, Nathan (April 7, 2014). "Chart Wrap: Pharrell and INXS break ARIA chart records". The Music Network. The Entertainment Media Group. Retrieved April 7, 2014.
  31. ↑ "In radio dal 29 aprile 'MARILYN MONROE', il nuovo singolo di PHARRELL WILLIAMS" (in Italian). Sony Music Italy. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  32. ↑ Lane, Daniel (May 11, 2014). "This Week's New Releases 11-05-2014". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 18, 2014.
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