If Sean “Diddy” Combs was caught off guard by a bombshell lawsuit alleging he sexually harassed and assaulted music producer Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones, the hip-hip mogul probably doesn’t follow his accuser on social media.
Jones filed the $30 million suit on Monday in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, according to the New York Times.
On Feb. 7, the gospel and jazz producer posted a video on Instagram saying Combs was trying to “steal” his publishing and he was raising money to hire a lawyer.
“I took a year off straight to work on this album. That album is The Love Album: Off the Grid by Diddy. It’s Grammy-nominated right now as we speak. I should be celebrating, but I’m not,” Jones said.
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Jones said at times he worked 16 to 24 hours a day on the album, and wasn’t fairly compensated.
“Diddy would require certain works to be done and tell us, ‘Don’t go to sleep until it’s done.’ The truth is, we’d be up for days trying to accomplish that,” Jones said.
He accused Combs’ camp of trying to rip him off.
“The contract that they gave me was just disgusting. The producer fee [was] pennies. And on top of that, these guys are trying to steal my publishing. I can’t go for that, so I’m fighting back,” Jones said.
The music producer mentioned claims from other artists who’ve accused the Bad Boy Records founder of unfair business practices. However, in a 2022 interview with “The Breakfast Club,” Combs denied accusations he stole from his artists, as reported by Complex.
Jones said he would not suffer the same fate as the other artists.
“I won’t be that guy 20, 30 years from now looking back saying ‘I wish I’d done this.’ I’m going to do this now,” he stated. “Taking Puff to court is not easy. I don’t have the money that it’s going to take to fight him in court.”
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He asked his followers to donate to a GoFundMe campaign and included a message reading: “Help Me Sue Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs.” As of Monday night, the campaign had raised $1,471 of its $50,000 goal.
Jones filed a lawsuit on Feb. 26, alleging much more than unpaid producer fees.
The 73-page complaint has a trigger warning on the front page noting that it contains “graphic images of the aftermath of a shooting, redacted images of sexual intercourse, redacted images of minors, sex workers and prostitutes, details of sex trafficking, and the illegal distribution of guns, and drugs.”
In his lawsuit, Jones alleged Combs harassed, assaulted, drugged and threatened him.
During the time he worked with Combs, Jones alleged there was “constant unsolicited and unauthorized groping and touching of his anus.”
Jones said he complained to Combs’ chief of staff, but was told the alleged assaults were “horseplay.”
He said he was forced to find sex workers and perform sex acts with them for Combs’ viewing pleasure, mirroring allegations Combs’ ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura made in her November lawsuit.
Jones says he acted as a photographer and recorded “hours” of video and audio of Combs and his inner circle “engaging in serious illegal activity.”
The suit also names Combs’ adult son Justin; his chief of staff Kristina Khorram; Universal Music Group CEO Sir Lucian Grainge; and former Motown Records CEO Ethiopia Habtemariam as additional defendants. Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. and City Girls rapper Yung Miami are also mentioned in the complaint, but are not defendants.
Jones is seeking $30 million in damages.
Combs’ attorney Shawn Holley released a statement on Monday evening calling the claims in Jones’ lawsuit “outlandish.”
“We have overwhelming, indisputable proof that his claims are complete lies. Our attempts to share this proof with Mr. Jones’ attorney, Tyrone Blackburn, have been ignored, as Mr. Blackburn refuses to return our calls,” Holley said. “We will address these outlandish allegations in court and take all appropriate action against those who make them.”
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