Sean Combs arrives at the Pre-Grammy Gala And Salute To Industry Icons at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2020, in Beverly Hills, Calif.
Mark Von Holden/Mark Von Holden/Invision/AP
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Sean Combs arrives at the Pre-Grammy Gala And Salute To Industry Icons at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2020, in Beverly Hills, Calif.
Mark Von Holden/Mark Von Holden/Invision/AP
When Sean “Diddy” Combs sang about being a bad boy in his 2001 hit, the lyrics were a mission statement and a boast. But today, the lyrics might sound more like a warning, as dozens of allegations of sexual abuse, sex trafficking, racketeering and rape are piling up against the music mogul.
Combs, long one of the most powerful forces in popular music, has now become associated with names like Harvey Weinstein and Bill Cosby, successful men accused of using their power to abuse others. Thaila Graves, one of Combs’s accusers, spoke about that abuse this week.
“It goes beyond just physical harm caused by and during the assault,” she said. “It’s a pain that reaches into your very core of who you are, and leaving emotional scars that may never fully heal.”
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The charges.
Today, Combs sits in a jail cell facing federal charges of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy. He has pleaded not guilty.
And this past Wednesday, he was accused of rape in another lawsuit. NPR’s Sidney Madden has been following the case.
Madden says there are now more than 10 civil suits filed against Combs alleging violence and sexual abuse.
“And when he was arrested last week on the federal charges, the big linchpin in the U.S. Attorney’s office case was that Combs had been running his record label all these years as a sex trafficking criminal enterprise,” Madden said.
“And they asserted how employees would collude, conceal and sometimes participate in sexual abuse with Combs.”
Impacts on the industry.
Combs is the biggest name in the music industry to date to potentially face legal repercussions for alleged abuse.
To dig deeper into what Combs’s fall from grace could mean for the industry, Consider This host Ailsa Chang spoke with Naima Cochran, a music journalist and former music label executive.
So, how does she feel about the allegations against Combs?
“It’s shocking that we’re in this moment. But I believe the allegations. It is shocking to see such a drastic fall from grace, even given knowing his personality type, even with rumors, even knowing that there was an escalation of behavior over the years,” Cochran said.
“It’s still just very shocking to see somebody who was so pivotal to the culture and who did so much for culture, for entertainment, for music, blemish their legacy like this and just be capable of such absolutely reprehensible behavior.”
Beyond Sean Combs, the music industry didn’t seem to be part of the #MeToo movement that touched Hollywood politics and the media beginning in late 2017. Cochran says there are several factors that play into that.
“One thing is that some of the whistleblowers in Hollywood have been very credible, people like high level actors and actresses who have talked about their experiences, as opposed to others and then maybe executives and staff followed,” she said.
“It would potentially be similar to Cassie, who was an artist and a celebrity, as opposed to Drew Dixon, who levied allegations against Russell Simmons and who was an executive. I think the voice matters, and when someone with a name and a platform and a following is the person to call something out, then people pay closer attention.”
This episode was produced by Marc Rivers with audio engineering by Neil Tevault. It was edited by Courtney Dorning. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.
