Pharrell Williams sued by former producing partner

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Pharrell Williams is facing a lawsuit from his former Neptunes partner Chad Hugo, who claims his longtime friend has cut him out of their company and owes him as much as $1 million from an N.E.R.D. album.

Before Pharrell became a solo superstar, he and Hugo formed a prolific songwriting duo for years, producing massive hits like Nelly’s “Hot in Herre,” Snoop Dogg’s “Drop It Like It’s Hot,” Gwen Stefani’s “Hollaback Girl” and Justin Timberlake’s “Rock Your Body.” They also formed two-thirds of N.E.R.D., a hip-hop/rock band that enjoyed its own run of hit albums in the 2000s and 2010s.

But in a strongly-worded lawsuit filed Friday (Jan. 23), Hugo accuses Williams — his friend since their Virginia childhoods — of committing a wide range of legal wrongdoing against his former partner.

“Williams engaged in self-dealing, concealed material information, and … diverted revenues owed to plaintiff,” writes Hugo’s attorney, Brent J. Lehman of the law firm Munck Wilson Mandala. “Such willful, fraudulent, and malicious conduct warrants the imposition of punitive damages.”

Friday’s lawsuit, obtained and first reported by Billboard, isn’t the first legal battle between the two collaborators. Back in 2024, Hugo filed another action accusing Pharrell of “fraudulently” seeking sole control over the “Neptunes” name; that dispute remains pending at a federal trademark tribunal.

But the new case broadens the fight significantly, with Hugo accusing Williams of withholding royalties and refusing to hand over documents that would help Hugo figure out how much he’s owed — part of what his lawyers call a “systemic denial” of his rights as a partner. In one passage, Hugo’s lawyers say he’s potentially owed up to $1 million in damages from the 2017 N.E.R.D. album No One Ever Really Dies alone.