Currently, there appears to be some tension between Daryl Hall and John Oates — members of Hall & Oates, best known for classics like “You Make My Dreams (Come True),” “Maneater,” and “Rich Girl.” New reports and court filings indicate that at the moment, Hall is suing Oates.
The news was initially reported by Axios Nashville reporter Nate Rau on November 17, who tweeted, “Members of the beloved pop rock duo Hall & Oates are locked in mysterious litigation. Daryl Hall filed a lawsuit yesterday against John Oates in Nashville Chancery Court. At least for now, all of the filings in the litigation are under seal.” He added, “Based on captions for the filings in the chancery clerk’s system, a business trust is at the center of the dispute.”
Philadelphia Magazine later expanded on the report and shared a link to the lawsuit listing on the Nashville chancery court website. The case type is listed as “Contract/Debt,” and on November 20, summonses were issued to John Oates, Aimee Oates, and Richard Flynn, the later two of whom are listed as co-defendants and “Co-Trustee of the John W. Oates TISA Trust.” A temporary restraining order was issued on November 17.
It’s not currently clear what the lawsuit is about, and neither Hall nor Oates have shared any sort of public statement about it.
In 2014, the two spoke about their relationship in an interview with The Guardian. Hall noted, “We get along just fine. We weren’t — and aren’t — very much alike: we have different interests. But the differences aren’t important, what’s important is what we share — and that’s music.” Oates said, “Daryl and I are more like brothers than actual friends. We’re very different as people, but we have this incredibly strong musical bond. He is creatively unsatisfied and that drives him forward. He’s very smart, and, in my opinion, has one of the greatest popular voices of all time.”
