What’s at stake for Jay-Z amid alleged rape scandal with Diddy
As Jay-Z faces allegations that he and Sean “Diddy” Combs raped a 13-year-old girl, we take a look at what he’s accused of, what’s at stake, and how it will affect his marriage to Beyonce.
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When Sean “Diddy” Combs was arrested in September on sex trafficking charges and later hit with a wave of lawsuits from women and men alleging sexual assault, the disgraced billionaire’s cohort of wealthy, famous friends stayed largely silent.
None more so than Combs’ close friend of 30 years, the rapper and fellow billionaire entrepreneur Jay-Z (real name, Shawn Carter).
The two stars have long been inextricably linked since rising from tough New York beginnings through hip-hop’s ranks in the 1990s and, ultimately, to the top of the entertainment industry.
Combs founded Bad Boy Records and Carter helped start Roc-A-Fella Records, releasing his debut album in 1996, before later founding the entertainment company, Roc Nation.
They appeared on each other’s music and went on to become successful — and rich — entrepreneurs whose business ventures went far beyond music, earning them both billionaire status. Jay-Z was a guest of honour at Combs’ star-studded 50th birthday bash in Beverly Hills in 2019 and he and his wife Beyonce were regulars at Combs’ now notorious White Parties. They were on top of the world.
But as the allegations mounted against Combs – who has vigorously denied all charges – whispers around other high-profile names alleged to have been involved alongside the mogul haven’t ceased.
That whisper reached a crescendo last weekend after a lawsuit accused Jay-Z, alongside Combs, of raping a teenage girl after an awards show more than two decades earlier.
The lawsuit has accused the rapper of sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl (referred to as Jane Doe in the suit) at an after-party following the MTV Video Music Awards in 2000. Jay-Z, who has strenuously denied the charges, would have been 30 at the time of the alleged incident.
The woman’s lawyer, Tony Buzbee, said that, “Jane Doe’ has asked for a jury trial and is seeking compensatory damages for “all physical injuries, emotional distress, psychological harm, anxiety, humiliation, physical and emotional pain and suffering, family and social disruption, and other harm.”
In a fiery statement, Jay-Z, who called the allegations “idiotic”, hit back, labelling the claim a “blackmail attempt”.
“My lawyer received a blackmail attempt, called a demand letter, from a ‘lawyer’ named Tony Buzbee. What he had calculated was the nature of these allegations and the public scrutiny would make me want to settle,” Jay-Z’s statement read.
“No sir, it had the opposite effect! It made me want to expose you for the fraud you are in a VERY public fashion. So no, I will not give you ONE RED PENNY!!”
Jay-Z branded the allegations as “so heinous” that he asked why the woman’s lawyer, Tony Buzbee had filed a civil case, rather than a criminal complaint.
The Grammy-winner added that his “heart and support goes out to true victims in the world, who have to watch how their life story is dressed in costume for profitability by this ambulance chaser in a cheap suit”.
But Mr Buzbee hit back at the star, saying his client “won’t be silenced” and accusations that he tried to blackmail Jay-Z were “bogus” and that he intends to address all of the allegations in court.
“Let me be clear: We will not be bullied or intimidated by these shenanigans,” Mr Buzbee said. “And our clients won’t be silenced.”
In the wake of the allegations, Jay-Z and Beyonce, along with daughter, Blue Ivy, put on a united front at the Los Angeles premiere of Disney’s new musical drama Mufasa: The Lion King, in which mother and daughter voiced two of the film’s characters.
Carter referenced his family when denying the allegations (as well as 12-year-old Blue Ivy, the couple shares seven-year-old twins Sir and Rumi).
“My only heartbreak is for my family,” he said. “My wife and I will have to sit our children down, one of whom is at the age where her friends will surely see the press and ask questions about the nature of these claims and explain the cruelty and greed of people. I mourn yet another loss of innocence.”
But will the fallout damage Jay-Z’s megawatt marriage to the pop superstar?
The couple, who met in 1999 when she was 18 and he was 31 (although Beyonce has claimed they didn’t start dating until she was 19) married in 2008, becoming the entertainment industry’s most powerful couple.
Beyonce, who was recently named the greatest pop star of the 21st century by Billboard (edging out another generational pop icon, Taylor Swift), has built a career on mystery.
She has developed an unknowable mystique through rarely giving interviews and she has a rock solid aversion to controversy.
(Indeed, the most flak Beyonce has ever copped has been through making public her political leanings; she stumped for both Hillary Clinton and Kamala Harris in their failed presidential bids.)
But the relationship between a former drug dealer from the streets of Brooklyn and a “good girl” from the suburbs of Houston has always raised eyebrows among fans.
And their have been very public glitches. Beyonce’s 2016 masterpiece, Lemonade, was an emotional and honest journey around her husband’s infidelity and, ultimately, the couple’s reconciliation.
If the recent allegations caused the two to split, there’s much at stake including a staggering combined net worth of A$5.1 billion to haggle over.
Forbes estimates the rapper is worth A$3.9 billion while Beyonce’s own wealth is estimated to be around A$1.2 billion.
As for assets, the couple own a fortune in property from Los Angeles to New York to the Hamptons, and even a Caribbean island.
Last year, they bought a Malibu estate, which cost a staggering A$315 million (the most expensive home ever bought in California). They also own a A$138 million home in Bel Air, a A$40 million mansion in the celebrity-filled Hamptons, and a A$6 million private island in the Bahamas. The couple’s art collection – which includes pieces by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol and Damien Hirst – is said to be worth A$110 million.
Then there are the business investments, including music sales, beverage start-ups, the streaming service Tidal, the blockchain platform Alchemy, the wellness company Therabody, and the alternative meat company Impossible Foods.
Jay-Z has vowed to fight the allegations. “You have made a terrible error in judgment, thinking that all ‘celebrities’ are the same,” he said in his statement.
“I’m not from your world. I’m a young man who made it out of the project of Brooklyn. We don’t play these types of games. We have very strict codes and honour. We protect children, you seem to exploit people for personal gain. Only your network of conspiracy theorists, fake physics, will believe the idiotic claims you have levied against me. If not for this seriousness surrounding harm to kids, would be laughable. I look forward to showing you just how different I am.”
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Originally published as What’s at stake for Jay-Z amid alleged rape scandal with Diddy
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