What Diddy's Exes Have Said About Him
The following article includes mentions of rape, sexual assault, and physical abuse.
Sean "Diddy" Combs wants fans to believe he's all about the love; the four-letter word is even part of Diddy's name after his latest rebrand. But this amorous addition came before Diddy was hit with explosive allegations that he sexually abused multiple people — and one of his exes is among those who took legal action against him.
The accuser, Cassie, is one of a handful of famous women Diddy has dated since becoming one of hip-hop's most dominant players. To hear the Bad Boy Records mogul tell it, he's a tragic figure who just wants to find lasting love. In his 2002 song "I Need a Girl (Part One)," Diddy ever-so-romantically raps, "I got it all, but I really need a wife at home ... never spend the night alone / I got a few you would like to bone." He also has nothing but love for his exes. In a since-deleted Instagram post, he begged Cassie to listen to the Michael Jackson song "The Lady in My Life" on repeat after their 2018 breakup. He used the same song in a video tribute to his late ex Kim Porter in 2020, adding a declaration of love for her in the caption of that post. "It really felt like the pure definition of unconditional love, but it was a little deeper than that," he said of his relationship with Porter on the "Yes, Girl!" podcast. What Diddy's exes have said about him hasn't always been so loving, however.
Misa Hylton criticized Diddy's business dealings and parenting
Misa Hylton is a renowned stylist who has worked her wardrobe magic on hip-hop legends including Lil' Kim and Mary J. Blige. She was a 17-year-old high schooler when she launched her career with some help from her then-boyfriend Diddy, who was five years her senior. Hylton told BET that Diddy asked her to style the band Jodeci after he got a big promotion at Uptown Records from intern to talent director. "I would finish high school early. I would get out probably about noon and I would just sit at Uptown Records," Hylton recalled. She was 19 when she and Diddy welcomed their son Justin Combs. By the following year, Diddy was dating Kim Porter.
Hylton and Diddy's co-parenting relationship hit a snag in 2023 when Justin got arrested for a DUI. On her Instagram Story, Hylton seemingly suggested that Diddy was setting a bad example for their son. "The statement 'a fish rots from the head down' means that, in addition to being a major contributing factor in a family or organization's success, leadership is also the root cause of its failure and demise," she wrote. Without referring to him by name, Hylton also took a swipe at Diddy's relationship with the liquor company Diageo. "How [do] you go from one of the greatest to ever do it to making all your money off alcohol," read another message from the peeved parent.
Misa Hylton thought Diddy was 'bitter'
During a 2010 Power 105 interview (via Sandra Rose), Misa Hylton revealed that Diddy cheated on her with her former friend Kim Porter and his friend Sarah Chapman before fathering children with both women. "I joke around sometimes and say, 'They are like my sister-wives,'" she shared.
Hylton suggested that it irritated Diddy that she didn't want to have a sexual relationship with him after their split, which is why he paid more child support to Porter. "He still is bitter. ... When you can have everything sometimes and you can't have that one little thing, you are not used to that," she said. Hylton had previously spoken to the New York Post about the discrepancy in child support payments in 2004. She was receiving monthly payments of $5,512, while Diddy was sending $30,000 to Porter each month. At the time, Diddy and Porter had just one child and had recently reconciled after their 1999 breakup. Hylton said it was unfortunate that she had to take her ex to court and suggested it was not a good look for him. "The perception Sean projects outside the courtroom is quite different from the truth," she said. "He wants the public to have a perception of him, but the reality is that I'm here asking for money."
Kim Porter lost respect for Diddy
One of the topics discussed during Kim Porter and Diddy's joint 2006 Essence interview was Diddy's relationship with Jennifer Lopez. While Diddy was making everyone gawk by stepping out with Jenny from the Block in 1999, Porter was busy caring for the son she and Diddy had recently welcomed. On "Behind the Music," Diddy admitted that he fell for Lopez while they were rehearsing a sensual dancing scene for his 1997 "Been Around the World" music video.
Porter was understandably devastated and sent Diddy packing. However, after Lopez extinguished her fiery romance with the rapper, Porter took him back. "That relationship wasn't real. ... He was still in love with me," she explained to Essence. Less than a year later, she'd be speaking to the magazine again about kicking Diddy to the curb — this time for good. He'd been unfaithful again but done a better job hiding his liaison with Sarah Chapman. In fact, Chapman and Diddy had already welcomed their daughter, Chance, by the time Porter — who was pregnant with twins D'Lila and Jessie — learned about the affair from a friend. She didn't immediately confront Diddy, who eventually found the courage to confess that he had failed her as a partner again. "I was like, 'Dude, this is so wack I can't even respect you right now,'" Porter recalled (via People). "And for me, once the respect is gone, I'm not even listening to you."
Kim Porter and Diddy remained friends after their split
Although he didn't always treat her like he thought the world of her, Diddy reacted to Kim Porter's 2018 death by proclaiming that he and his ex "were more than soulmates" in a since-deleted Instagram post. Porter didn't go this far in the final Instagram post she shared about Diddy, but she had nothing but glowing praise for the hip-hop impresario. In honor of Diddy's birthday, which he celebrated less than two weeks before Porter died, the late model wrote, "On this day a GENIUS was born, may you continue to be the Driving Force of ENERGY that GOD created you to be!!"
When the exes called it quits for good in 2007, Porter told Essence that she wasn't just committed to having an amicable co-parenting relationship with Diddy. "Sean and I have this bond, this friendship. It's not about 'if you're faithful to me, if I'm being faithful to you.' We're friends," she said. If Porter had experienced any bouts of anger and bitterness over Diddy's infidelity, it seems that she was capable of quickly casting those feelings aside. She even revealed that she and Diddy were still speaking to each other daily.
Jennifer Lopez accused him of being unfaithful
That Jennifer Lopez and Diddy made headlines for being arrested early on in their relationship did not bode well for the couple. But charges against JLo were swiftly dropped and Diddy was later acquitted over his alleged involvement in a 1999 shooting at a Manhattan nightclub. Lopez's revealing palm frond dress also helped erase that unfortunate incident from everyone's minds.
Lopez stuck it out with Diddy until early 2001. She told Vibe that his late-night outings without her were beginning to make her worry that he wasn't someone she'd want to have children with. Plus, Lopez warns potential suitors that she does not abide cheating in her song "If You Had My Love," and she believes that Diddy was disregarding that dealbreaker. "It was the first time I was with someone who wasn't faithful ... I was totally crying, crazy and going nuts, it really took my whole life in a tailspin," she told Vibe in 2003 (via Entertainment Weekly).
While Lopez discovered that Diddy was not relationship material, there was one upside to dating him. "He was meant to be in my life at that moment to teach me what I needed to know about the music business," she said in a 2019 "CBS Sunday Morning" interview.
Jennifer Lopez said Diddy apologized to one of her exes
Before Jennifer Lopez completely erased Alex Rodriguez from her life, thus allowing for the second coming of Bennifer to happen, Diddy showed his ex a little love on the 'gram. In 2019, the "I'll Be Missing You" hitmaker made fans wonder if he was missing Lopez when he reacted to a photo of the "On The Floor" singer posing in a bikini top. To let Lopez know that his jaw was on the floor, Diddy typed the letters "OMG." On "The Breakfast Club," Lopez revealed that Diddy later reached out to Rodriguez to assure the former MLB player that he meant no disrespect by expressing his admiration for Lopez's ageless looks. Lopez also seemed cool with the brief comment. "We were together so many years ago, it's just like we were kids," she said.
The exes were still on excellent terms as of 2020 when Diddy hosted a virtual dance-a-thon during the pandemic's early days. Lopez and Rodriguez both participated in the fundraiser, and Lopez told Diddy that Rodriguez was a huge fan of his. The trio then danced together to Diddy's "Been Around the World (Remix)." Lopez and Diddy also got their groove on to Elvis Crespo's "Suavemante." After seeing Diddy swivel his hips, Lopez exclaimed, "I probably taught you that!"
Cassie celebrated Diddy's birthday and reflected on bad times
Cassie was 19 years old when Diddy signed her to his record label, and soon she was dating her boss. In 2016, sources told TMZ that Cassie had tried to dump Diddy, only for him to flee with her phone because he reportedly suspected her of cheating on him. The cops got involved when Cassie's mother became concerned enough to call them, but no charges were filed — and Cassie didn't succeed in leaving Diddy.
Two years later, Cassie ditched Diddy for good. LoveBScott claimed that she was unhappy because the rapper had been spotted with two other women, models Jocelyn Chew and Gina Huynh. Cassie raised a few eyebrows when she wrote the words "F*** these h***" on her Instagram Story not long after the breakup. However, she showed Diddy some love one month later with another post reading, "Happy Birthday, King!"
Cassie remained tight-lipped about her relationship with Diddy for many years after their breakup. However, in a 2019 Instagram post, she did reveal that there was a time when she wasn't in the best frame of mind while dating him. The post included an image of Cassie sitting in a window seat and smoking as she gazed outside. "This photo was of me in NY on May 31st, 2017," she wrote. "I feel sad for the girl in the picture because I know the personal demons she was battling."
Gina Huynh alleged that Diddy physically assaulted her
Gina Huynh was one of the first women to accuse Diddy of abusive behavior. In a 2019 conversation with vlogger Tasha K, Huynh recounted how she caught Diddy's eye in 2014 when she was invited to a party at his house. As she was leaving, he got her phone number. Huynh claimed that she started seeing Diddy while he was still dating Cassie — and he didn't let her forget that he had an official girlfriend. "He would always compare me to Cassie and tell me that I'm the bad one and she's a good one," she recalled.
Huynh said that Diddy was manipulative, cruel, and jealous. She alleged that he got enraged when she shook Meek Mills' hand at the "Dreams and Nightmares" singer's birthday party. However, he waited until they got inside his Escalade before acting on his anger. "He like grabbed my hair and like cussed me out," she said. According to Huynh, Diddy's behavior got worse when they arrived at their hotel; she alleged that he pushed his hand against her face so hard that he gave her a nosebleed. Huynh said he had another jealous fit when he learned that she was texting a male friend. "He stomped on my stomach really hard ... I couldn't breathe," she recalled, adding that Diddy also started striking her in the head.
Gina Huynh made pregnancy claims
Gina Huynh told Tasha K that she had two abortions while she was romantically involved with Diddy. She claimed that he offered her $50,000 to abort the first pregnancy, but she refused the money. When she got pregnant a second time, Huynh was more hesitant to get an abortion and told Diddy she needed time to decide whether she wanted to go through with it. However, she accused him of pressuring her to undergo the procedure. When she did, it wounded her deeply that Diddy wasn't there for her; he had decided to go to Burning Man, and she couldn't even reach him via phone. "I was just at home by myself, just f***ed up in my head, and he didn't even care," an emotional Huynh recalled.
The model caused a stir in May 2022 when she attended the Billboard Awards and referred to Diddy as "baby daddy" in a post on her Instagram Story. When she spoke to The Jasmine Brand the following month, she made no mention of her outrageous allegations about Diddy. Instead, Huynh praised the performer and revealed that she considered him a friend. "He did bless me in a lot of ways and I'm always going to be forever grateful and respect him," she said.
Yung Miami and Diddy remained close after their breakup
Diddy confirmed that he was dating Caresha "Yung Miami" Brownlee in 2022 during an appearance on his girlfriend's podcast, "Caresha Please." However, Diddy added a wrinkle to their relationship status by also describing himself as single — and welcoming a child with another woman. After he and cybersecurity professional Dana Tran celebrated the birth of Love Sean Combs that December, Diddy took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to assure his fans that Yung Miami was no "side chick."
Whatever was going on between the "Bad Boy for Life" singer and the City Girls member, it seemed to be over by April 2023. When asked about the status of her situationship with Diddy, Yung Miami told The Cut, "We're still good friends! But we're single. That's not my man." The pair did, however, attend the Met Gala together the following month. At the event, La La Anthony pressed the pair to share whether they were dating. "It's just a good date night," Yung Miami said, while Diddy described his date as "my best friend in the world." He also began sweating profusely during the interview.
In July 2023, Yung Miami shared another update on her love life. From the sound of it, she was tired of having an ill-defined relationship. "I'm ready to be in a relationship & love again!" she tweeted. "This was my last summer being outside!"
Yung Miami addressed allegations about her relationship with Diddy
During a January 2023 episode of "Caresha Please," Yung Miami made a candid confession about a kink of hers: She likes being urinated on in the shower. It's rare for a celeb to speak so openly about a fetish, so word of Yung Miami's revelation quickly spread on the internet — and soon "Pee Diddy" became a trending topic on X. However, Yung Miami later pointed out to The Cut, "I never said he was the one I did that with."
Yung Miami found herself addressing far more serious allegations after music producer Rodney "Lil Rod" Jones Jr. filed a civil lawsuit against Diddy in 2024. Per XXL, Jones claimed that Diddy had employed Yung Miami and other women as sex workers. Jones further alleged that Yung Miami had trafficked a drug known as "pink cocaine" for Diddy. Yung Miami addressed Jones' claims on X in response to someone who tweeted about her receiving $250,000, an amount referenced in the lawsuit, for her alleged services. "Something the internet made up and yall ran with it!!! N***as don't even pay that for child support why tf would a n***a ever pay me 250k for. FOR WHAT??" she wrote. A source also told Us Weekly that Yung Miami had evidence disproving the drug claim.
Cassie accused Diddy of raping and assaulting her
In a 2023 civil complaint, Cassie alleges that Diddy signed her to Bad Boy Records and immediately took advantage of their professional relationship to pursue her romantically, even though she was dating someone else. She claims that Diddy kissed her without her consent, and she soon started to worry that spurning his advances would be detrimental to her career.
According to Cassie, Diddy was manipulative and controlling. She claims that he pushed drugs on her to make her more compliant, such as when he allegedly made her have sex with male prostitutes while he watched and filmed the encounters. Cassie further alleges that Diddy subjected her to horrific physical and sexual abuse. "Mr. Combs would violently beat Ms. Ventura, leaving bruises on her body," the complaint reads. Cassie explains that this behavior made her terrified to refuse any of Diddy's demands, but she eventually found the strength to end their relationship. On the night she planned to do so, she claims that Diddy raped her. When she filed her lawsuit, Cassie said in a statement, "After years in silence and darkness, I am finally ready to tell my story."
The singer ultimately didn't have to relive her trauma in a courtroom, as Diddy expeditiously agreed to settle with Cassie out of court.
If you or anyone you know needs may be the victim of sexual assault or is dealing with domestic abuse, contact the relevant resources below:
- Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
- Call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.