Overview
- Pharrell filed a motion to dismiss on October 6 that says Hugo’s complaint is vague and fails to name the specific compositions or sound recordings at issue.
- Hugo is suing for an accounting of unpaid money and a judicial declaration of which song rights he owns from work as The Neptunes and N.E.R.D.
- Hugo’s pleadings have changed three times, with an earlier draft listing eight songs that were later dropped and the latest complaint naming only EarthGang’s “U Gotta” without saying whether composition or master rights are claimed.
- Pharrell asks the court to dismiss the federal copyright claims and to reject or send Hugo’s state-law claims for breach of fiduciary duty and an incomplete accounting to state court if the federal counts fail.
- The dispute builds on decades of commercial partnership and a 2024 fight over The Neptunes name, and a dismissal would force Hugo to seek money and accounting through state law while prolonging a bitter split between longrunning collaborators.