Pharrell Williams is pushing to dismiss the lawsuit from his Neptunes partner Chad Hugo, arguing that after three years and three versions of the complaint, Hugo still hasn’t clearly identified a copyright claim that belongs in federal court. In a new filing obtained by Rolling Stone, Williams and his lawyers say Hugo named no specific songs in his original complaint, identifying only the album No One Ever Really Dies. An amended complaint later listed eight songs that were not on that album, but Hugo dropped all eight from a second amended complaint filed last month.
The latest version of the lawsuit identifies only EarthGang’s “U Gotta,” but it doesn’t say whether Hugo is claiming rights in the musical composition, the sound recording, or both, the filing argues. The eight songs Hugo previously identified and later dropped were Rosalía’s “Motomami” and “La Combi Versace”; “Cash In Cash Out”; “Love Is Not Written”; “Pure”; “Real One,” featuring Latto; and “Lost and Found” and “Freestyle,” both featuring Tyler, the Creator. Hugo’s lawyer did not immediately respond to Rolling Stone‘s request for comment on Wednesday.
The court has not yet ruled on the dismissal motion or set a possible hearing. In the lawsuit, Hugo says he and Pharrell co-founded the Neptunes and the musical group N.E.R.D., and made them into the “most influential musical forces of their generation, whose innovative, genre-blending sound helped shape modern hip-hop, R&B, and pop music.” Hugo says he contributed to the groups’ output as a writer, producer, arranger, and performer. The latest complaint still identifies the album No One Ever Really Dies, alleging that Hugo is owed damages that could exceed $1 million from that project alone.
It notes that the album debuted at Number 10 on the charts and has generated millions of streams.
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