Chad Hugo filed a lawsuit against Pharrell, accusing Skateboard P of withholding Neptunes and NERD royalties.
On January 23, Hugo’s lawyers sued Farrell in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. The lawsuit alleges that P breached fiduciary duties and “systematically denied Plaintiffs’ contractual rights and ownership rights in the Company and the Neptune entities” by concealing the production duo’s accounting information.
Hugo claims that from 2019 to 2021, he participated in nearly 50 studio sessions. However, Farrell “denied Plaintiffs their share of publishing and recording royalties and falsely attributed all of Plaintiffs’ contributions without proper attribution or compensation,” the lawsuit states.
In addition, Hugo also claims that he is owed up to $1 million in royalties from NERD’s 2017 album “No One Ever Very Dies”, as well as a percentage of merchandise sales. He is seeking a jury trial.
The lawsuit has been brewing for several years. Back in April 2024, Chad filed legal action against Pharrell for allegedly fraudulently trying to seek exclusive control of the Neptunes trademark.
“Pharrell is surprised by this,” Pharrell’s spokesperson told Billboard at the time. “We have been contacted multiple times to share ownership and management of the trademark and will continue to make this offer. The goal is to ensure that no third party acquires the trademark and that Chad and Farrell share ownership and management.”
XXL has reached out to Pharrell’s attorney for comment on the new lawsuit.
