Culture Critic
Appearances
Bad Rap: The Case Against Diddy
Before and After
Cassie describing the music mogul as a vicious, cruel, and controlling man, saying she was trapped and held down by combs during what she's calling a cycle of abuse, spelling out incident after incident.
Bad Rap: The Case Against Diddy
Before and After
There was the Global Icon Award at the VMAs that really made me take a step back because he didn't perform with any artists. The only artist that was on stage with him was his son, Christian Combs. You would think at a moment like that when you're getting one of the most prestigious awards in award shows and nobody's on stage to perform with you, I'm like, this is kind of weird.
Bad Rap: The Case Against Diddy
Before and After
But again, I didn't know what was coming of it. He donates money to Howard University and Jackson State University's football team. I'm like, this is, like, what is going on here? Like, this just, something felt off. And then by November, 2023, the Cassie lawsuit comes out. I'm like, okay. Lawsuits like this don't just pop up out of thin air.
Bad Rap: The Case Against Diddy
Before and After
Like somebody on your, like you knew, your team knew that these lawsuits were coming and this was a way to try to jump in front of it.
Bad Rap: The Case Against Diddy
Before and After
What these name changes have always done for Diddy is just allow him to live in the news cycle. It allows him to dictate the course of the conversation. It's like, all right, so you have X, Y, and Z going on in your life, but why did you change your name again? What do you want us to call you?
Bad Rap: The Case Against Diddy
Before and After
He's claiming to be a full-time dad and he's got custody of his daughters and he's taking them to football games and activities and, you know, being a very active, engaged dad.
Bad Rap: The Case Against Diddy
Before and After
He wanted to exemplify that sort of progress and change in this love era. And I don't think people took it very seriously. People were willing to call him P. Diddy. They were willing to call him Diddy. Nobody was willing to call him love.
Bad Rap: The Case Against Diddy
Before and After
There were other bad boy artists who were successful, but nobody ever matched Biggie's success. And you could argue that nobody matched Diddy's success, that none of the artists that were signed to him ever eclipsed him in terms of fame, with the exception of perhaps Notorious B.I.G.,
Bad Rap: The Case Against Diddy
Before and After
You never saw them on TMZ or, you know, any so-called legitimate outlets talking about it. But every once in a while, there would be an interview with a former bodyguard or someone who said that he, you know, had a history of violence with Cassie and also with Kim Porter, the late mother of four of his children.