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Freedom (Pharrell Williams song)

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"Freedom"
Single by Pharrell Williams
from the album Despicable Me 3 (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
ReleasedJune 30, 2015[1]
Recorded2015
GenreIndie pop
Length2:43
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)Pharrell Williams & Naughty by Nature
Producer(s)Pharrell Williams
Pharrell Williams singles chronology
"Finna Get Loose"
(2015) 		"Freedom"
(2015) 		"WTF (Where They From)"
(2015)

"Freedom" (stylized as FREEDOM!) is a song by Pharrell Williams which was released for streaming on Apple Music and played by Zane Lowe on his show on Beats 1 on its launch date of June 30, 2015.[2] Part of the song was made available as a teaser on Williams' Twitter page and was also used in a promotional video for Apple Music.[3] Its music video was nominated for Best Music Video at the 58th Grammy Awards.

Critical reception

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Writing for MusicSnake, Marissa Fitzgerald gave the song a very positive review, give it 4/5 stars and stating "'Freedom' is an awesome track with a feel-good vibe and a positive message. The lyrics are uplifting and promote living a happy life without restrictions or limitations."[4] Rolling Stone describes the track, "powerful," as well as, "snappy," and, "infectious,"[5] while The Guardian describes it as, "socially conscious."[6] According to USA Today, "Williams may have found a song that captures the tenor of its time."[7]

Live performances

[edit]

Williams performed the song on his international 2015 tour,[8] including during his set at Glastonbury Festival 2015 on the Pyramid Stage on Saturday June 27.[9] Williams also performed this single at the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards and the 2015 MTV Europe Music Awards.[10] Williams performed the song on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Friday September 11. Williams also performed the song with a full orchestra during a guest appearance at Hans Zimmer's live set at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on Sunday April 16, 2017.

In other media

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Charts

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Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Belgium (BEA)[48] Gold 15,000*
Italy (FIMI)[49] 2× Platinum 100,000‡
Poland (ZPAV)[50] 2× Platinum 40,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[51] Silver 200,000‡

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. ^ McIntyre, Hugh (June 25, 2015). "Pharrell's New Single 'Freedom' Will Serve As Apple Music's First Exclusive". Forbes.
  2. ^ "Pharrell to drop single 'Freedom' exclusively on Apple Music". CTV News. June 25, 2015.
  3. ^ Dionne, Zach (June 26, 2015). "Pharrell Working With Adele, Previews His "Freedom" Video". Fuse.
  4. ^ Fitzgerald, Marissa (July 10, 2015). "Pharrell Williams: 'Freedom' Single Review". MusicSnake. Archived from the original on July 12, 2015. Retrieved July 10, 2015.
  5. ^ Blistein, Jon (June 30, 2015). "Pharrell Screams 'Freedom' on Powerful New Track". RollingStone.com. Retrieved January 21, 2017.
  6. ^ Simpson, Dave (June 14, 2015). "Pharrell Williams review – pop polymath unveils embarrassment of talents". TheGuardian.com. Retrieved January 21, 2017.
  7. ^ Mansfield, Brian (June 30, 2015). "Song of the week: Pharrell's 'Freedom'". USAToday.com. Retrieved January 21, 2017.
  8. ^ Simpson, Dave (June 14, 2015). "Pharrell Williams review – pop polymath unveils embarrassment of talents". Guardian.
  9. ^ Schwartz, Danny (June 28, 2015). "Pharrell Debuts "Freedom" At Glastonbury". Hotnewhiphop.
  10. ^ "Nicki Minaj, Justin Bieber to perform at MTV VMAs; Britney Spears to present, Kanye West to receive Vanguard Award | Atlanta Music Scene with Melissa Ruggieri". Archived from the original on August 30, 2015. Retrieved August 28, 2015.
  11. ^ "- YouTube". YouTube.
  12. ^ "Eneco. We moeten megazuinig zijn op onze planeet". YouTube. January 18, 2017.
  13. ^ "Full Event: Hillary Clinton FULL Concession Speech | Election 2016". YouTube. November 9, 2016.
  14. ^ "- YouTube". YouTube.
  15. ^ Walmart (March 18, 2019), We Dress America :30 Anthem, retrieved March 22, 2019
  16. ^ Close-Up (September 25, 2018), FreeToLove, retrieved July 4, 2024
  17. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Freedom". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved August 1, 2015.
  18. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Freedom" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  19. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Freedom" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved October 2, 2015.
  20. ^ a b "Ultratop.be – Pharell Williams – Freedom". Ultratop (in French). Ultratop Airplay.
  21. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Freedom" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved October 2, 2015.
  22. ^ "Ultratop.be – Pharell Williams – Freedom". Ultratop (in French). Ultratop Airplay.
  23. ^ "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select 50. týden 2015 in the date selector.
  24. ^ "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select 31. týden 2015 in the date selector.
  25. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Freedom" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved July 12, 2015.
  26. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Freedom" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved February 18, 2019.
  27. ^ "Digital Singles Charts – Greece". Billboard. January 2, 2013.(Subscription required.)
  28. ^ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Single (track) Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved September 10, 2015.
  29. ^ "Media Forest Week 30, 2015". Israeli Airplay Chart. Media Forest. Retrieved July 26, 2015.
  30. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Freedom". Top Digital Download. Retrieved October 2, 2015.
  31. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Pharrell Williams" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved July 11, 2015.
  32. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Freedom" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved August 14, 2015.
  33. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
  34. ^ "ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 201538 into search.
  35. ^ "SloTop50 – Slovenian official singles chart". slotop50.si. Archived from the original on March 27, 2019. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  36. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Freedom" Canciones Top 50. Retrieved July 14, 2015.
  37. ^ "Veckolista Heatseeker, vecka 30, 2015" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  38. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Freedom". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved September 27, 2015.
  39. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
  40. ^ "Pharrell Williams – Chart History: Pop Digital Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved October 10, 2015.
  41. ^ "Jaaroverzichten 2015". Ultratop. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  42. ^ "Rapports annuels 2015". Ultratop. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  43. ^ "Top de l'année Top Singles 2015" (in French). SNEP. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
  44. ^ "Single Top 100 - eladási darabszám alapján - 2015". Mahasz. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
  45. ^ "Classifiche "Top of the Music" 2015 FIMI-GfK: La musica italiana in vetta negli album e nei singoli digitali" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Archived from the original on January 11, 2016. Retrieved January 13, 2016.
  46. ^ "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 2015". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved November 11, 2019.
  47. ^ "Jaaroverzichten - 3FM 2015". Dutch Charts (in Dutch). Retrieved May 13, 2022.
  48. ^ "Ultratop − Goud en Platina – singles 2015". Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved October 2, 2015.
  49. ^ "Italian single certifications – Pharrell Williams – Freedom" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved July 2, 2018. Select "2018" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Type "Freedom" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli" under "Sezione".
  50. ^ "Wyróżnienia – Platynowe płyty CD - Archiwum - Przyznane w 2016 roku" (in Polish). Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
  51. ^ "British single certifications – Pharrell Williams – Freedom". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved August 24, 2024.
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