For a time, they were the most successful music production duo on the planet, but it seems that relations between Neptunes members Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo have cooled a little, to say the least.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Williams was asked about Hugo’s recent lawsuit, which focuses on ownership of the Neptunes name.
“I always wish him the absolute best,” replied Williams, diplomatically, but when pressed on his relationship with Hugo, he admitted that the pair are no longer on speaking terms.
“But I love him, and I always wish him the absolute best, and I’m very grateful for our time together,” he adds.
Despite their differences, Williams reveals that it is indeed Hugo who’s voicing his character in Piece by Piece, the forthcoming Lego biopic of Pharrell’s life. Other artists to appear include Jay-Z, Snoop, Kendrick Lamar, Missy Elliott, Timberlake, Gwen Stefani, Timbaland and Busta Rhymes.
One name that’s notably absent from that list is Kelis. The Neptunes worked closely with her on her first three albums, but the relationship has now soured to the point that, when Beyonce interpolated a part of Kelis’s 2003 hit Milkshake on Energy, in 2022 - a song that was produced by Williams - Kelis complained that she hadn’t been consulted and the offending vocal part ended up being removed.
Asked if he’s spoken to Kelis about this, Williams indicated that he hasn’t. “I wish her the absolute best. But I wrote this song,” he said.
Williams’ relationship with Beyonce, though, seems as strong as ever, and he implies that she has more music - part 3 of her Renaissance album trilogy, perhaps? - on the way. “Just get ready,” is his cryptic message.
Elsewhere in the interview, Williams again confirms the rumour that the songs the Neptunes wrote on Justin Timberlake’s debut album, Justified, were originally intended for Michael Jackson, and says that Frontin’, which ended up being his debut solo single, was originally written for Prince.
Williams also discusses the making of I’m a Slave 4 U - a title he says that he wouldn’t use today - with Britney Spears. This one was intended for Janet Jackson, but ended up being released as the lead single from Spears’ third album, Britney, in 2001. It was the start of a concerted effort by the young star to move away from her early ‘teen pop’ sound, as Pharrell remembers.
“She was eager and ready to transition. And I put a fire under that notion. I was like, ‘Oh, that’s how you feeling? OK, let’s put this fire under that. Let’s go.’”
The interview also touches on Williams’ work with Daft Punk, specifically the 2013 single Get Lucky, on which he has a writing credit.
“With Get Lucky, the Robots [Daft Punk] asked me to write a song. I’m thinking I’m writing a song for somebody else to sing,” recalls Williams. “And if I would’ve written it for me, it probably wouldn’t have been as big, because I would’ve written for my ego.”
