The Neptunes are no more.
During a conversation with The Hollywood Reporter for their September cover story, Pharrell admitted that he and his former friend Chad Hugo are no longer talking to each other. “But I love him, and I always wish him the absolute best, and I’m very grateful for our time together,” he told THR. However, he told the outlet that Chad is still voicing himself in Pharrell’s upcoming Lego biopic Piece by Piece.
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Earlier this year, Hugo took Williams to court, accusing the latter of trying to monopolize the naming rights to The Neptunes. Chad took issue with Pharrell attempting to to register trademarks under their production moniker and in turn violating their agreement to split everything equally. Apparently, Pharrell tried to file three separate trademark applications for The Neptunes under his company PW IP Holdings LLC: one for streaming music, another for music videos, and another for live performances.
Williams and Hugo shared a dozen Grammy nominations from 2002-08. That includes two wins: producer of the year, non-classical and best pop vocal album for their work on Justin Timberlake’s Justified.
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In other news, Pharrell was asked about working with Beyoncé over the years and the upcoming presidential election. When asked about how her career has evolved, he said he was “grateful to be a part of her story and her journey and her trajectory,” while alluding to either having something in the works with the superstar, or at the very least being aware of what’s coming next from her. “Just get ready,” he said without elaborating further.
In terms of U.S. politics, he took an even more neutral approach. “I am much more of a federal employee. I believe in merited civil service,” he said when asked about his feelings about the upcoming election. He then compared himself to federal employees that aren’t selected by the respective party in power. “This is what they do, come rain or shine, whether it’s a Democrat or a Republican in office, you show up to work every day, you serve your country.” He also admitted to being “annoyed” by celebrity political endorsements. “I don’t do politics. In fact, I get annoyed sometimes when I see celebrities trying to tell you [who to vote for],” he said. “There are celebrities that I respect that have an opinion, but not all of them. I’m one of them people [who says], “What the heck? Shut up. Nobody asked you.’”
Piece by Piece is set to hit theaters on Oct. 11.