CNN Interview With Rapper About Diddy Goes Off The Rails: ‘Yo, Who Booked Me for This?’

CNN Interview About Diddy With Rapper Cam'ron. (Credit: CNN)

Rapper Cam’ron showed up on CNN Monday night and showed out — and not in a good way.

The Harlem native, born Cameron Giles, appeared on the cable news network to discuss embattled music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs.

Host Abby Phillip began by asking Cam’ron his thoughts on the surveillance video CNN exclusively aired on May 17, showing Diddy physically assaulting his then-girlfriend Casandra “Cassie” Ventura inside a Los Angeles hotel in 2016.

“Everything in the video was egregious,” Cam’ron, 48, said. “When I seen the video, I was kind of upset with it, being that I know him. He’s not necessarily a friend, but I was upset when I seen it.”

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Phillip asked Cam’ron if he “recognized” the anger Diddy displayed in the video.

“I don’t know him like that,” he said.

Later, she asked the rapper about Diddy’s reputation in the music industry. It was a valid question considering Cam’ron co-hosts a podcast with former Bad Boy Records artist Mase, who previously accused Diddy — also known as Puff Daddy — of “robbing” him of his music royalties.

“Is there something known in the industry about how Diddy treated his artists?” Phillip asked.

Cam’ron grimaced. He then raised a glass, took a shot, said something about getting “horsepower,” and mentioned he was “gonna go get some cheeks” — have sex later.

“I don’t really know Puff like Mase knows Puff… I can’t really tell you how Puff moves or anything like that,” Cam’ron responded.

The rapper plugged his podcast and urged CNN viewers to “check it out.”

Phillip persisted and asked another question about Combs.

“What about the industry in general? So many people have pointed out that Diddy couldn’t get away with this stuff if there weren’t a lot of people protecting him. Do you think that’s the case?” she asked.

At that moment, the interview went completely off the rails.

“Who’s the talent agent for this joint? You think I be sitting around watching what Diddy do and all this? I didn’t know this was gone be a Diddy joint that y’all invited me to,” he said, before looking off camera and asking, “Yo, who booked me for this joint? Y’all wilding [out].”

Phillip immediately pulled the plug on the interview and thanked the rapper for his time.

Diddy issued an apology on May 19 amid public outcry over the surveillance footage, which showed him pushing, kicking and dragging Cassie down a hallway in the hotel.

“I was fu–ed up. I hit rock bottom, but I make no excuses. My behavior on that video is inexcusable,” he said in the apology video he posted on Instagram. “I was disgusted then when I did it, I’m disgusted now. I went and I sought out professional help. I got into going to therapy, going to rehab. I had to ask God for his mercy and grace. I’m so sorry. But I’m committed to be a better man each and every day. I’m not asking for forgiveness. I’m truly sorry.”

An attorney representing Cassie slammed the statement and said it was too little, too late.

“Combs’ most recent statement is more about himself than the many people he has hurt,” Meredith Firetog, a partner at New York law firm Wigdor LLP, said in a statement to Urban Hollywood 411.

“When Cassie and multiple other women came forward, he denied everything and suggested that his victims were looking for a payday. That he was only compelled to ‘apologize’ once his repeated denials were proven false shows his pathetic desperation, and no one will be swayed by his disingenuous words,” Firetog added.

Ventura detailed the hotel incident in her 35-page civil lawsuit, filed in November.

The sexual abuse complaint alleged Combs paid thousands of dollars to keep the surveillance video hidden. “Mr. Combs paid the InterContinental Century City $50,000 for the hallway security footage from that evening,” the lawsuit said.

Diddy settled Ventura’s lawsuit one day after it was filed. An attorney for the mogul said at the time that the settlement was not an “admission of wrongdoing.”

The mogul has since been sued by three other women and male music producer Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones, all alleging sexual abuse.


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About Anita Bennett

Anita Bennett is the editor and founder of Urban Hollywood 411. She can be reached on Twitter @tvanita.