Between her country roots and covers and her ‘Rebel Yell’-ing, no one really knows what to expect from Miley Cyrus‘ new record — except the people working on it with her. Pharrell Williams compared the project to Justin Timberlake‘s transformation from N’SYNC heartthrob to solo superstar and sang the praises of Cyrus not only as a singer, but also as a person.
At first glance, it’s hard to see exactly what (well, other than a paycheck) would compel Williams and Tyler, The Creator to work with teen pop tart Cyrus, but when Williams explains it, it makes a lot more sense. “What we all have in common is that we like new stuff, we like making music that doesn’t exist,” the former half of The Neptunes told HypeBeast. “That’s what Tyler has in common with me and what I have in common with Miley.” He added, “Put it this way, he heard her music and next thing you know he’s in the picture with her. That’s not what you would expect, but that’s what I love doing: totally surprising people.”
Despite their differences, Williams said it wasn’t too hard to get a good vibe going with the ‘Can’t Be Tamed’ singer. “Yeah, at times people were difficult, but it’s all part of the process,” he explained. “She is an old soul that was trapped in a younger situation who just bursted [sic] at the seams, and I was just happy to be there during that transformation.”
Williams pointed out that he faced similar criticism and questioning when he first started working with Timberlake, who’s “ready” to release new music himself. “I remember when they use to ask me about the same questions with Justin [Timberlake]; people be like why you going in with N’SYNC? Because there’s somebody in there that you don’t know,” he insisted. “Wait till you see what Miley’s done. Oh man!”