Bruno Mars Asking Judge to End Publisher Contract

Singer Bruno Mars is bugging out, but it's not over his sensational Amy Winehouse tribute performance at the MTV Video Music Awards. No, the pop hitmaker has filed a lawsuit against his former music publisher, Bug Music, Inc. over a contract dispute.

According to TMZ, the singer wants out of his publishing agreement with Bug, which he claims ended on May 12, 2011. Mars says that since the publisher didn't offer to extend his contract he's free to go. But when he tried to part ways, Bug 'shifted gears' and is now claiming that he owes them songs even though they initially agreed that he fulfilled his part of the contract.

Bug maintains that Mars is wrong and he is still under contract, which gives them 50 percent of the copyrights to all songs Mars creates under the agreement.

So now Bruno is asking a judge to legally terminate the contract so he can move on and make hit songs somewhere else and maybe pocket more than just 50 percent of royalties. Can you say, ka-ching!

Attorneys for both Mars and Bug Music, Inc., had no comment on the matter.