--- title: Pharrell Williams Kneels During Charlottesville Performance description: "If I want to get on my knees right now for the people of my city, for the people of my state, that's what that flag is for," Williams said. canonical: https://time.com/4955391/pharrell-williams-kneels-charlottesville-concert/ author: Kevin Lui article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-09-25T08:39:18.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T17:34:33.312Z article:section: Entertainment og:title: Pharrell Williams Kneels During Charlottesville Performance og:description: "That's what that flag is for," the singer said og:url: https://time.com/4955391/pharrell-williams-kneels-charlottesville-concert/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt109df96ebd516d82/6988df2b4ee262eefa30f21f/gettyimages-853251358.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: A Concert for Charlottesville og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Pharrell Williams Kneels During Charlottesville Performance twitter:description: "That's what that flag is for," the singer said twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt109df96ebd516d82/6988df2b4ee262eefa30f21f/gettyimages-853251358.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 'That's What That Flag Is For.' Pharrell Williams Takes the Knee During Charlottesville Concert by [Kevin Lui](/author/kevin-lui/) ## Kevin Lui Sep 25, 2017 8:39 AM CUT  Pharrell Williams performs with The Roots at "A Concert for Charlottesville," at University of Virginia's Scott Stadium in Charlottesville, Va., Sept. 24, 2017. Pharrell Williams performs with The Roots at "A Concert for Charlottesville," at University of Virginia's Scott Stadium in Charlottesville, Va., Sept. 24, 2017.Kevin Mazur—Getty Images by [Kevin Lui](/author/kevin-lui/) ## Kevin Lui Sep 25, 2017 8:39 AM CUT Pharrell Williams dropped to both knees during his set at the Concert for Charlottesville Sunday night, joining in protests against President Trump’s[ criticism](http://time.com/4955127/trump-twitter-nfl-kneeling-protests/ "undefined") of NFL athletes who [kneel during the national](http://time.com/4955154/nfl-kneeling-unity-trump/ "undefined") anthem in protest of police brutality and racial inequality. “I wanna get on my knees right now,” Williams said while performing at the concert, an event hosted by Dave Matthews Band promoting unity in the wake of last month’s [deadly white supremacist protests](http://time.com/4904270/will-nation-succeed-after-charlottesville/ "undefined") and clashes in the Virginia town. “If I want to get on my knees right now for the people of my city, for the people of my state, that’s what that flag is for,” the singer said, referring to the U.S. national flag. > [](https://twitter.com/angelAmyV/status/912159953422610432) _Billboard_ [reports](http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/7973919/pharrell-williams-takes-knee-charlottesville-concert "undefined") that the gesture, greeted with cheers from the audience, came toward the end of Williams’ set, which included his hits “Get Lucky” and “Blurred Lines.” The singer, who is from Virginia Beach, did mention Trump or his comments. He then performed his wildly popular track “Happy,” telling the audience that it was how he felt about performing in his home state. Williams’ protest came hours after Stevie Wonder [did the same](http://time.com/4955090/global-citizen-festival-2017-stevie-wonder-knee/?xid=homepage "undefined") at the Global Citizen Festival in New York’s Central Park. “Tonight I’m taking a knee for America,” Wonder said. “But not just one knee, both knees. Both knees in prayer for our planet, our future, our leaders of the world and our globe. On Sunday, [more than](http://time.com/4955104/nfl-players-kneel-anthem-trump/ "undefined") 200 NFL players took the knee or silently protested the national anthem before their games in defiance of the President, who [denounced](http://time.com/4954684/donald-trump-nfl-speech-anthem-protests/ "undefined") such protests and [called](http://time.com/4955104/nfl-players-kneel-anthem-trump/ "undefined") for athletes who took part to be fired or suspended. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4955391/pharrell-williams-kneels-charlottesville-concert/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4955391/pharrell-williams-kneels-charlottesville-concert/"},"headline":"'That's What That Flag Is For.' 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