Hats off to happiness
His headwear may have been big, but in 2014 we searched 'pharrell happy' 40x more than his hat. In fact 'happy' soared higher than ever before.
Pharrell
A very lucky year
Daft Punk's smash hit Get Lucky saw the resurgence of Pharrell, and this year his new album GIRL topped the search charts and lifted the mood of the world.
The hat with its own Twitter account
When it came to global 'hat' searches this year, Pharrell's was high on the list after its dazzling debut at the Grammys, even topping the prestigious 'graduation hat.'
The Mountain Hat, aka the Buffalo, was designed in 1982 by Vivienne Westwood and has become Pharrell's signature look, causing a dramatic rise in searches to buy our own.
24 Hours of Happy: The world’s longest music video features a different dancer in a new location every four minutes. This year, it was one of the most popular music videos in search.
Copy cat
Sporting a miniature version of the famous hat at this year’s MTV Movie Awards, Grumpy Cat sparked search frenzy with an instant peak for 'buy grumpy cat'.
Frighteningly youthful looks
Some people thought they'd discovered his big secret, as searches for 'pharrell vampire' rose 10x over last year, followed by a flurry of memes.
Feeling good or looking good?
In a surge of positivity, searches for 'happy' were 3x higher than for 'selfie' this year.
Top countries searching for 'happy' in 2014:
- Bolivia
- Philippines
- India
- Pakistan
- United Arab Emirates
"I never expected any of this. The only thing I expected to do was continue to be the guy standing next to the guy."
In a BBC interview, Pharrell reflects on the continued rise in his popularity, which inspired searches for him in 2014 to jump higher than ever before.