Pharrell Williams is facing a second legal dispute, in as many years, brought by longtime business and creative partner Chad Hugo.<\/p>\n
Hugo had filed a notice of opposition in 2024 with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, disputing Williams\u2019 trademark registration filing for The Neptunes musical production duo they founded. The move at the time, according to his representative, \u201csurprised\u201d Williams<\/a>, whose goal was to prevent a third party from getting the trademark.<\/p>\n But the stakes appear to have risen. Hugo is now accusing Williams of withholding profits and financial records in a federal lawsuit filed Friday. Hugo, in the complaint, claims a \u201csystemic denial\u201d of his contractual and ownership rights in various holdings and companies related to The Neptunes and the N.E.R.D. music group, byproducts of the two musicians\u2019 decades-long, collaborative partnership.<\/p>\n A representative for Williams said a standard accounting review is already underway.<\/p>\n \u201cThe lawsuit filed is premature as there may not even be a dispute between the parties,\u201d according to a statement provided by Williams\u2019 representative on Tuesday. \u201cIf the accounting review determines that money is owed, the appropriate party will pay it. Pharrell has consistently acted in good faith. He has great respect for Chad and looks forward to resolving this in a way that honors their shared history.\u201d<\/p>\n Hugo\u2019s listed attorneys didn\u2019t answer an email by Tuesday afternoon.<\/p>\n Hugo and Williams met sometime in the late 1980s as teenagers in Virginia Beach. According to the complaint filed Friday, Williams\u2019 vocals, performative abilities and songwriting paired with Hugo\u2019s contributions of instrumental compositions and production work, and, in the early 1990s, they began operating as a professional group, The Neptunes.<\/p>\n Hugo served as the \u201cprincipal composer, arranger, multi-instrumentalist, and producer responsible for programming, instrumentation, and overall sound design\u201d while Williams \u201cmore frequently appeared as the public-facing member of the duo,\u201d the complaint says. As The Neptunes, Hugo and Williams have written and made recordings for international hip-hop and pop stars, including Jay-Z and Britney Spears, and produced hit songs such as Snoop Dogg\u2019s \u201cDrop it Like it\u2019s Hot<\/a>\u201d and Gwen Stefani\u2019s \u201cHollaback Girl.\u201d<\/p>\n In the 1990s, Hugo and Williams added a third member to their ranks, Sheldon Haley, to found N.E.R.D, which went on to record multiple studio albums and find its own commercial success.<\/p>\n The company N.E.R.D. Music LLC was formed around 2014, and an operating agreement stipulated that all members would be provided with routine statements on the company\u2019s finances with Williams, Hugo and Haley each entitled to varying percentages of touring, merchandise and trademark, and other income.<\/p>\n Hugo says in the complaint:<\/p>\n Hugo says in the complaint he has been deprived of transparency into N.E.R.D.\u2019s finances and so is \u201cunable to verify the correctness of royalties and distributions received and reasonably believes that substantial additional sums are owing but undisclosed.\u201d<\/p>\n Hugo also asserted he has a 50% ownership interest in entities related to The Neptunes. \u201cUpon review of the incomplete financial records produced by Defendant Williams,\u201d the complaint says, \u201cit appears that little revenue has been allocated to Plaintiff from The Neptunes Entities\u2019 profits, which is inconsistent with The Neptunes\u2019 evident commercial success.\u201d<\/p>\n Hugo is seeking a jury trial and unspecified damages. The trademark registration dispute is also scheduled to proceed this year.<\/p>\n\n