Cee Lo Green originally recorded Pharrell's Happy

Pharrell Williams' Oscar-nominated, chart-topping Happy was initially set to be a hit for Cee Lo Green.

Williams reveals the Forget You singer actually recorded the upbeat track, but the "powers that be" at his record label decided it wasn't the right fit for the R&B star.

The hitmaker tells radio host Howard Stern, "Cee Lo Green wanted to do it... and he did do it. He sounded amazing on it... He burns my version!

"But... the powers that be, at the time, did not see it fit for him. Some folks on his team just felt that the priority should be on his album at the time (Cee Lo's Magic Moment), so they elected not to do that song.

"It's not his fault, he was totally down with it... He was one of the most gracious people about it when it (Happy) came out."