Pharrell Williams was heckled by a group of animal protesters last night and offered them a hug as a way to keep the peace.
According to footage captured by Famease Media, while outside of the GQ Men Of The Year party at the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles, California, Williams – who is the men’s creative director of Louis Vuitton – was heckled by a group of animal protesters, with one yelling at him “What type of person still uses fur?”
The ‘Get Lucky’ singer responded with “I don’t. God bless you”, while the protester proceeded to hold up a sign that showed the impact of fur use on animals. The musician tried to go in and give the protester a hug but was rejected, with the protester saying: “Fuck no! you’re an animal abuser.”
Pharrell Williams not so happy fighting with protestors over a fur coat at the GQ Men of The Year Party #GQ #pharrelwilliams #gqmenoftheyear#famease pic.twitter.com/TlbbKcmfSV
— Famease (@Fameasemedia) November 15, 2024
After being rejected for a hug, Williams proceeded to repeat “God bless you” while the protesters kept yelling at him for his fur use. Security stepped in and whisked the musician away into his car while he kept repeating “God bless you”.
This is not the first time Williams has been heckled by a group of animal rights protesters. At the London screening of Piece By Piece – his LEGO biopic – last month, protesters who were representing animal rights activist group PETA unfurled a banner that read: “Pharrell: Stop Supporting Killing Animals For Fashion”.
The protesters specifically called out Williams’ work as Louis Vuitton’s men’s creative director, saying: “Stop the torture, stop the pain, LVMH you are to blame.” They also chanted, “Animals want to live – just like us” and “Animals are not fabrics, they’re not handbags…Fashion is violence.”
Williams, who was battling laryngitis, responded in a hushed voice: “God bless you. Rome wasn’t built in a day and the changes that they see, they don’t happen overnight. It takes a lot of planning and we are working out those things. They wanted to be heard so we heard them.”
The moment animal rights protesters disrupted Pharell William as he was about to talk about his animated biopic “Piece by Piece” before its UK premier at the @BFI #LFF closing gala at Festival Hall tonight
If you’re a @Pharrell fan or even if you’re not, the film is a must see https://t.co/8xpyZdE7wJ pic.twitter.com/RjNPcjRvxf
— Stefan Simanowitz (@StefSimanowitz) October 20, 2024
In September, a similar incident happened at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) when a protester also interrupted that screening.
Following the incidents, PETA went on to explain the specifics of their protest against the ‘Happy’ singer. The organisation’s senior campaigns manager Kate Werner said in a press release: “While Pharrell’s life story is told in this navel-gazing film, animals are confined in filth on farms before their heads are bashed in and their skin is ripped off while they’re still conscious – all so pieces of their bodies can be made into Louis Vuitton’s fleeting fashion pieces.
“PETA is calling on Pharrell to use his power for good, stop being complicit in cruelty, and push Louis Vuitton into the 21st century by refusing to use wild-animal skins and fur.”
PETA have since responded to Williams’ claims, saying, “dropping these cruelly derived materials is something he could do in a heartbeat, and so far, nothing has changed.” They also note that other major designers, including Mulberry, Victoria Beckham, Chanel, Burberry, Diane von Furstenberg and Vivienne Westwood, have banned using animal skins in their fashion houses.
In other news, Morgan Neville – the director of Piece By Piece recently revealed why the film does not feature William’s Grammy-award-winning 2013 track ‘Blurred Lines’.
