After dominating the vocals on his Rock/ Hip-Hop group N.E.R.D’s two albums and releasing his solo summer mega hit “Fronting” off of The Neptunes presents…Clones (2003) Pharrell has had his fans eagerly anticipating a solo project for some time now, fortunately it doesn’t disappoint. One part Hip-Hop, one part R&B, the album is all Pharrell. The aptly titled In My Mind plays like a soundtrack to it’s creator’s daily thought patterns, ranging in moods and subject matter, the album’s nearly perfect arrangement and production effortlessly ties in the many faces of Pharrell. The way the album gradually progresses from up-tempo party tracks to more passionate introspective tracks is reminiscent of Michael Jackson’s masterpiece Off The Wall (1979). Like Quincy Jones, Pharrell sets off the album with a catchy radio ready single, “Can I Have It Like That?” featuring Gwen Stefani, that instantly grabs the audience’s attention, riding on its energy and momentum for the remainder of the album. Then near the halfway point Pharrell uses the eight-minute double track “Young Girl/ I Really Like You” featuring Jay-Z to subtly shift the direction of the album to something a little more emotionally personal, the way Jones gracefully slowed things down between the title track and “Girlfriend” in the middle of his project. Unfortunately for him, Pharrell doesn’t have a blindingly gifted young prodigy laying down the vocals. In My Mind’s sole major weakness lies in the fact that Pharrell is not the most talented rapper or singer, but like most producers who touch the mic he makes due over his own beats. Ultimately, Pharrell takes Quincy Jones’ disco beats; funk guitars and mainstream pop and drags them down to the basement creating a very enjoyable, very entertaining and very modern work of art.