It was an evening for the ladies. Or better yet, the queens who inspired the Q in Pharrell William’s Qream. Frosted in cherry-blossom pink, LIV was tricked out with chandeliers and lilies, and embellished with sequined pillows placed atop lavish, white chairs.
Swanky buckets cradled pear-shaped bottles of strawberry and peach Qream, designed by the hip-hop tycoon himself. This was the Miami launch party for Pharrell’s new venture — a low-calorie cream-based liqueur developed with the sophisticated woman in mind. Juice is unisex, though, he assured, so the dudes will like it too.
I finagled my way into VIP where a tower of sprinkled cupcakes awaited. Pharrell mingled with the high-profiles who came in full support. Even bad bitch Trina and skinnier-than-before Fat Joe showed face. Before the whole ordeal, I sat down with the rapper-singer-producer to talk Qream and music. You’ll be happy to know that the flavors don’t end with strawberry and peach. Soon we’ll have pumpkin spice, chocolate banana, and red velvet. You’ll be even happier to know, all girly drinks aside, Mr. Williams is back in the studio.
Crossfade: Qream with a Q is for the “queens” you say. Is there a specific kind of woman you’re targeting? Or did you have a certain woman in mind throughout the development of Qream?
PW: A professional woman. The woman that most women look up to because they have good taste in everything from the shoes to the news. We know that woman thinks about her shape. She’s very cognitive of what she puts into her body. We considered three areas. Number one was the consistency. It’s thinner and doesn’t make you feel like it’s fattening. Number two was that it has the same alcohol by volume as wine. The average woman has a glass of red wine a day, and [Qream] is significantly lower in calories. For the third consideration, we basically beat the compound down all the way down to 99.9-percent lactose-free.
Crossfade: It’s a bit ironic that you created a cream-based liqueur and you’re lactose intolerant.
PW: I also named one of my clothing lines Ice Cream too.
Crossfade: So how did you decide on strawberry and peach for flavors?
PW: It just seemed most appropriate to launch those two first. We also have pumpkin spice, chocolate banana, and red velvet coming. They’ll be seasonal.
Crossfade: What is it about Miami that made you decide to have a launch party for Qream here? And why at LIV specifically?
PW: Miami is my second home, aside from Virginia. This is my buddy Jeff Soffer’s hotel, and it just seemed most appropriate.
Crossfade: You’ve conquered music, fashion, and now liquor. Are there any other projects you have in store for us? Cologne? Lingerie?
PW: It all sounds fun. I’ll tell you that.
Crossfade: How about any upcoming projects or collaborations in your music?
PW: Everybody from Jay-Z to Jay Sean.
Crossfade: There’s been an obvious shift in mainstream music toward the electronic niche with the use of house and even dubstep. How are you embracing or even blowing off this trend?
PW: I don’t know if I’ve even considered it. We don’t follow trends. We’re supposed to make them. If you love music enough, you’ll make music that matters and that makes sense. I’m very excited about the roll out of the music I have coming. I was on the road so I didn’t get a chance to do very much in the last three years.
Crossfade: Now you’re off the road? How come?
PW: I was tired. And I wanted to make music. You can’t do it on a tour bus and on planes.
Crossfade: So now you’re back in the studio?
PW: That’s why I said everything from Jay-Z to Jay Sean. It’s all coming.
Crossfade: So you’re coming back big. When can we expect something great?
PW: Fourth quarter. You’ll hear it.