Songwriter and Neptunes producer Pharrell Williams has been announced as the keynote speaker for 2010 Midem conference in France.
Williams will deliver the keynote in Cannes, France, where Midem takes place each year.
The event, which is officially recognized as the world’s largest music industry trade show, will feature Williams on January 23, where he will address the impact of technology on the music industry and his vision of the future for the business.
In related news Williams has been tapped to produce the orchestral score for the upcoming cartoon Despicable Me, along with Oscar Award winners, Hans Zimmer and Heitor Pereira.
The 3-D cartoon is being released by Universal Pictures and features the voices of actor’s like Steve Carrell, Russell Brand, Julie Andrews, Danny McBride and others.
“I love cartoons and animation, and I’ve never seen such incredible 3-D CGI,” Williams said. “To score Despicable Me along with Hans and Heitor and write original songs for the film is a dream come true.”
Despicable Me is due in theaters July 9th, 2010.