Chad Hugo accuses Pharrell Williams of 'fraud' amid trademark dispute over 'Neptunes' name

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Pharrell Williams and his childhood friend Chad Hugo are involved in a legal tussle as the latter accused the ‘Happy’ crooner of ‘fraudulency.’

The duo songwriter of hit ‘The Neptunes’ is battling it out after Williams was allegedly involved in seeking sole control over the trademarks.

Hit songs of Pharrell Williams and pal Chad Hugo 

They have both been part of the early 2000 most loved songs, which include Nelly’s 'Hot in Herre,' Snoop Dogg’s 'Drop It Like It’s Hot,' Justin Timberlake’s 'Rock Your Body,' and Gwen Stefani’s 'Hollaback Girl.'

According to Hugo’s attorney, Kenneth D Freundlich, Pharrell, and his company tried to register trademarks for 'The Neptunes' name. He claimed it violates their longtime agreement on splitting equally, per RadarOnline.

“Throughout their over thirty year history, [Hugo] and Williams agreed to, and in fact, have divided all assets,” reads the filing.

“By ignoring and excluding [Hugo] from the any and all applications filed by applicant for the mark ‘The Neptunes,’ applicant has committed fraud in securing the trademarks and acted in bad faith.”

Pharrell Williams' response to Chad Hugo's accusations

In response, Williams’ representative told Billboard, ‘The Light is Coming’ creator has done nothing wrong.

“Pharrell is surprised by this. We have reached out on multiple occasions to share in the ownership and administration of the trademark and will continue to make that offer,” the spokesperson said.

Adding, “The goal here was to make sure a third party doesn’t get a hold of the trademark and to guarantee Chad and Pharrell share in ownership and administration.”

Hugo raised the issue after three of Williams’ applications to register 'The Neptunes' as a trademark back in 2022. This included the name on streaming music, music videos and other content, and live performances.

Williams' company, PW IP Holdings LLC, also proudly owns some of the artist’s registrations for his brands, like his band N.E.R.D. and his Miami Goodtime Hotel.

Hugo's lawyer responded to Williams' claim of doing nothing illegal on Monday, April 1.

“If Pharell’s [sic] intent was to include Chad in the filing, he should have registered it in the name of their jointly owned company Neptunes, LLC and not in his own name,” he said.

“This was a land grab in a long-simmering dispute that has yet to be resolved," Freundlich told the outlet.

Williams and Hugo created 'The Neptunes' in 1992. They were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame recently in 2022.