Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs' career at the intersection of music, politics and business
(This story was updated to add new information.)
Sean Combs, the rapper commonly known as “Diddy,” has been well-known in music, business, and political circles since the late 1990s with both Democratic and Republican candidates.
But according to federal prosecutors, one of hip-hop's biggest names used his fame to coerce women into demeaning sexual acts for more than 16 years resulting in three criminal charges of sex trafficking and racketeering on Monday. Diddy has pled not guilty to all charges.
Combs' network of high-profile politicians includes a who's who in national and local politics, including presidential candidates, members of Congress and mayors.
Starting with former President Donald Trump, who, like Diddy, was born and raised in New York, was first publicly linked to the rapper in 1998 when the real estate mogul was one of the high-profile celebrity attendees at the singer's 29th birthday party.
Trump was also featured in a video invitation to the party, and referred to Combs as “the legendary Puff Daddy,” according to Newsweek.
Over the years, Combs has primarily supported Democratic causes, including Rock the Vote and launching the voter-education drive Vote or Die campaign in 2004.
Fellow Democrats, including Vice President Kamala Harris, former President Barack Obama, and New York City Mayor Eric Adams, have also crossed paths with the music mogul.
Harris had posted her thanks to Combs on X, formerly Twitter, during her first run for the White House after he hosted a town hall on racial inequality and COVID-19 in April 2020. The event also featured appearances by Rev. Al Sharpton and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York.
More: Diddy edited into photo of Kamala Harris and Montel Williams | Fact check
As for Trump, while filming The Celebrity Apprentice 5 in 2012, the reality television host told contestant Aubrey O’Day, who worked for the hip-hop impresario, that Combs was his friend.
“I love Diddy. You know he’s a good friend of mine, he’s a good guy,” Trump said. He then asked O’Day: “Is he a good guy?”
She looked off-camera before replying, “I don’t want to answer that question,” and later revealed on a podcast that she was fired because she “wasn’t willing to do what was expected of [her] — not talent-wise, but in other areas.”
Combs, 54, was arrested Monday night after being indicted by a grand jury in New York City. He faces charges of sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion; racketeering; and transportation to engage in prostitution, according to a 14-page indictment unsealed Tuesday morning.
A federal judge denied bail for Combs on Wednesday, granting a prosecution request for the rapper to remain behind bars before trial in one of NYC’s most notorious jails: the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn.
The MDC is the only federal jail in NYC and is known for its crumbling infrastructure and unchecked violence due to a severe staffing shortage, according to The New York Times. The notorious correctional facility also once housed high-profile inmates, including R. Kelly, Ghislaine Maxwell, and Sam Bankman-Fried.
Combs discussed his friendship with Trump in 2015 as the Republican was still seen as an improbable candidate in the 2016 presidential race. “Donald Trump is a friend of mine, and he works very hard,” he told The Washington Post.
But by 2020, Combs had soured on Trump. “White men like Trump need to be banished. That way of thinking is real dangerous,” he told Charlamagne tha God in an interview.
“When you look at it, we don’t have no choice. Say what you want about Biden, I can’t say I love the pick either. But we’ve got to get him in office, and then we’ve got to hold him accountable,” Combs concluded.
The rapper faces a sentence of up to life in prison and a minimum of 15 years if convicted.
Reuters contributed to the reporting of this story.
Melissa Cruz is an elections reporting fellow who focuses on voter access issues for the Paste BN Network. You can reach her at mcruz@gannett.com or on X, formerly Twitter, at @MelissaWrites22.