MDC is five miles from the public housing projects in BedfordStuyvesant, where Combs' biggest Bad Boy Records star, Biggie Smalls, grew up, but over 20 miles from the middle-class suburb of Yonkers where Combs himself was raised after his father was killed when he was a toddler. Smalls was murdered in Los Angeles in 1997, but Combs, who was privately educated, went on to amass a fortune and global fame by marrying street attitude to luxury consumer capitalism.
But that all crashed and burned last week. On Wednesday a New York judge rejected a $50m (£38m) bail package for Combs - in part because of witness intimidation allegations - in advance of his trial on three criminal counts, including racketeering conspiracy; sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion; and transportation to engage in prostitution.
It is a staggering fall from grace, even in a world of US celebrity now littered with them. At his peak, Combs could be seen driving down Broadway in New York in a open-top Bentley. It was the era of opulent bling, and he was its king.
"Puffy connected a lot of dots, connected people to a different kind of glamour and aspiration, and brought hip-hop into a different place in the world," Vibe magazine's former editor Alan Light told the Guardian this year.
"He saw the connections to the fashion world, to the entertainment world. He wanted to see how large it could be." Combs launched a perfume; a clothing line, Sean John; a brand of vodka, Cîroc, and owned a $65m superyacht, Maraya, and a black private jet. He threw famous White parties in the Hamptons and St Tropez; he was profiled in Vogue as recently as 2017, promoting a line of "demure" jewellery.
この記事は The Guardian の September 21, 2024 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です ? サインイン
この記事は The Guardian の September 21, 2024 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン
First mass 24-hour event to help people put down their phones
Haunted by a pile of unread books? Or taunted by outdoor kit lurking in the cupboard? If you are one of the British adults who spends on average five hours a day looking at screens rather than participating in pastimes, perhaps it's time to join the offline revolution.
No longer the king of bling The staggering fall of rap star Sean 'Diddy' Combs
Brooklyn's grim Metropolitan Detention Center is, for the foreseeable future, home to Puff Daddy, AKA Sean Combs, one of the best-known voices in American entertainment and whose business empire once seemed to know no bounds.
Brandenburg stakes Last-minute push by German far right in key regional election
B jörn Höcke shielded his eyes from the lights as he peered from the stage into the crowds gathered on a square in front of a gothic church in central Cottbus.
'It's guerrilla war' The fire teams facing arson chaos in Amazon
The occupants of the military tents at this remote jungle camp in Brazil's wild west T survey the hellscape surrounding them.
"The horror of it' Trial of husband and 50 men accused of wife's rape shakes France
On the narrow streets of stone houses with pastel-blue shutters, residents of Mazan were appalled that this picturesque village in Provence was being referred to in the media as \"the village of the rapists\".
West End revival Will a traffic ban lure shoppers back to Oxford Street?
From the rooftop of John Lewis's flagship store, the London mayor, Sadiq Khan, laid out the changes planned for Oxford Street below: \"We want a public realm that is world class, green, healthy and safe but also increases footfall in the shops.\"
Live and let fly James Bond chopper firm awaits decision on £1bn deal
The Merlin helicopter sitting on a factory floor in Yeovil is a sight familiar to James Bond aficionados from the climactic shootout of the 2012 film Skyfall.
Mental illness is Britons' biggest health concern, survey finds
Mental health has overtaken cancer and obesity as the health issue that is the biggest cause of concern for most Britons, a global survey reveals.
Noise, crime, crowds Rise in tourism stokes tensions in bustling Lake District town
Even on a weekday afternoon at the very tail end of summer, Bowness-onWindermere is bustling with life. Outside the town's pubs and bars, drinkers sip lager and sparkling wine in the warm September sun.
EU's new proposals on youth mobility will put Starmer 'reset' to test
Fresh proposals to allow young people to move between Britain and the EU will be presented to the British government within weeks, in what is seen as a significant early test of Labour's \"reset\" in relations with Brussels.
