Decade of the Year: 2002: The Neptunes (#13 through 8)

The Neptunes signature sound became as recognizable in the early 2000's as Jam & Lewis's new jack swing did in the late 80's, and at times, like another predecessor (and influence-turned-contemporary) Timbaland, they even managed to branch out and deviate from their fundamental core with fun retro-flavored updates of sonic innovations from earlier eras. Their retro revisionism gave way to some of their own innovations with percussion sounds and Middle Eastern-influenced melody, all of which not only helped carve out a permanent place for them on the Top 40, but also in the hearts and minds of post-hipster fanboys (ahem).

Their sound incorporated various new jack elements - punchy drums, soul piano - and early on was closer to the more organic sound of Teddy Riley (whom Pharrell once worked with) than to the aforementioned Jam/Lewis. They also appeared to be influenced the atmospheric keyboard and oddball percussion techniques used by Timbaland and other modern hip hop producers, as well as the hard, minimalist sci-fi gangsta funk of Dr. Dre, resulting a crisp, danceable hip-pop sound that retained a legit rap edge.

The Neptunes also threw in their own touches like acoustic guitars, live drums, distorted vocals, and of course Pharrell's ubiquitous falsetto. Ultimately - sadly - it was that ubiquity that did them in. Need a slightly harder edged sound for a huge mega-artist looking to expand its fanbase? A crossover pop hit for a hip hop star eager to maintain some artistic and/or street cred? Want some underground eccentricity added to your standard issue rap sound? Neptunes, Neptunes, Neptunes, ad nauseum.

Timbaland has always been able to take a step back, reorganize, and successfully shapeshift into delivering a new trend, all the while laughing at imitators who were embarrassing themselves with old hat techniques that had been perfected years ago, and then discarded. The Neptunes, like other R&B pioneers Jam/Lewis, Riley and Babyface, despite their innovations, were not able to do so, eventually becoming their own parody and soon disappearing from public consciousness. As such, they've barely sniffed the charts since the mid-00's.

Riding a wave of eye-opening successes for artists as diverse on the musical spectrum (and popularity scale) as Mystikal and Britney Spears, 2002 marked the peak of the production duo's powers, culminating in over a dozen charting songs and most importantly seven appearances on the DOTY list. The fact that they literally own all slots from #13 through 8 is a testament to their dominance in the early part of the decade.

For the curious/uninitiated/nostalgic, a look back...

#13 - "When The Last Time"