Lydia Moynihan

Celebrities

unique particulars

By Lydia Moynihan

Sean “Diddy” Combs aggressively marketed himself to the ultra-rich as he turned his edgy rap glamor right into a billion-dollar fortune.

Billionaires instructed The Post he would chilly e mail with enterprise proposals, whereas different Wall Streeters acclaimed him as a “genius” and one CEO of the New York Stock Exchange referred to as him an “inspiration” on a par with the Founding Fathers.

But after federal investigators raided his Los Angeles and Miami properties as half of what regulation enforcement sources have instructed The Post is a sex-trafficking investigation led by the Southern District of New York, his profession as an entrepreneur and investor is in jeopardy. Diddy has denied wrongdoing and referred to as the probe “a witch hunt.”

Diddy was first declared a billionaire by hip-hop wealth skilled Zack O’Malley Greenburg in 2022, however had coveted the standing for years, telling Forbes in 1999, “I wanted to be very, very rich.”

Along the way in which he acquired a Rolodex plagued by bold-faced names: he partnered with billionaire investor Ron Burkle; was “mentored” by hedge fund guru Ray Dalio; had his vogue line bought in Macy’s and Dillards; went into enterprise with alcohol big Diageo; opened the New York Stock Exchange with Estée Lauder inheritor William Lauder; struck offers with Zac Posen and Liz Claiborne; 50% owned his personal TV channel Revolt; launched a water vary with Mark Wahlberg; and teamed up with Salesforce’s Marc Benioff to launch a black enterprise market.

In 2003, he despatched the then proprietor of the Dallas Maverick Mark Cuban an e mail asking to design the uniforms for the NBA staff, Cuban instructed The Post. They had by no means met so the chilly e mail was a daring transfer.

For Diddy, it was a slam dunk to affiliate his new clothes model, Sean John, with a professional sports activities staff.

While Diddy took credit score for the design, it was really Diddy’s prime designer who created it and Diddy signed off, Cuban mentioned.

“We were an up and coming team at a time when pro sports teams didn’t do anything with entertainment industry people,” Cuban mentioned.

“We never even met… we never did any follow up or anything beyond that,” Cuban mentioned.

For Diddy — who had gone to Howard University to check enterprise — a single cope with an NBA staff gave him credibility that he leveraged for much more dealmaking.

But it was a two-way road: Diddy additionally used his personal cache — the promise of entry right into a world of celeb — to draw funding for his initiatives.

The similar yr as his Mavericks deal, Diddy bought Burkle, a serial investor value an estimated $2.9 billion in keeping with Forbes, to inject $100 million into his vogue vary Sean John.

It was to change into Diddy’s longest-standing Wall Street relationship. After it was executed, they partied with Michael Jackson — whereas Sean John turned a fixture in Macy’s and Dillards shops.

The subsequent yr the rapper teamed up with Estée Lauder to create a number of fragrances, together with one which was named “Unforgivable.”

The transfer gave him immediate social cache. It let him rub shoulders, lucratively, with a New York social dynasty and in flip gave their decades-old model a recent, up to date glamor related not simply with rap music, however his celebrity-packed White Parties within the Hamptons.

The firm was thrilled with the partnership and chief working officer William Lauder mentioned Diddy was a “man who has built a phenomenal reputation as a tastemaker in music, in fashion and in business.”

The Lauder and Macy’s offers have been celebrated with Diddy ringing the New York Stock Exchange’s opening bell in 2003, an indication of his energy and affect.

Analysts mentioned Diddy was one of the primary celebrities to primarily license his identify to manufacturers — and corporations have been in a position to attract on that to achieve a extra various group of prospects.

In 2007, he was approached by the alcohol big Diageo to change into a model spokesperson for its Cîroc vodka.

But he countered by proposing he change into model supervisor and chief advertising and marketing officer in return for a 50% revenue share — and even had the enterprise playing cards made up for his new function earlier than the deal was executed.

The vodka model agreed. He missed no alternative to put it up for sale — with the deal paying him almost $1 billion over the following 15 years and turning Cîroc right into a vastly profitable model.

The savvy negotiations led many in Hollywood to respect Diddy’s acumen. “He was a master entrepreneur,” one music enterprise insider — who mentioned the rapper was broadly revered in Hollywood as a businessman — instructed The Post.

“He was a super intelligent hardworking guy and a genius at brands… he turned Cîroc into a billion dollar business.”

When he rang the NYSE bell in 2016 as a consultant for Cîroc, then NYSE president Tom Farley mentioned Diddy was “an inspiration” to him and just like the Founding Fathers since they have been each hustlers.

The feedback have been written up by Diddy’s personal information web site Revolt, which frequently reported favorably on its co-founder.

But the Diageo relationship led to rancor in 2023 with Diddy accusing the multinational of racism; the case was settled in January with Diageo now sole proprietor of Cîroc and DeLeón tequila.

In 2015, Diddy once more teamed up with Burkle and likewise with boyband heartthrob turned film star Mark Wahlberg, to purchase now defunct water firm AquaHydrate.

Once once more, Diddy promoted it energetically, showing on each coasts with Wahlberg.

At least on paper, Burkle had the longest relationship with Diddy of any of his enterprise companions. He has not commented on the allegations in opposition to Diddy.

Earlier this yr Burkle, a one time shut buddy of former president Bill Clinton, was linked to a different alleged intercourse trafficker when he was listed in an unsealed court docket submitting naming folks related to Epstein. There is not any suggestion Burkle engaged in wrongdoing.

Diddy additionally cast a relationship with Dalio, who in addition to founding Bridgewater, the world’s largest hedge fund, has a private web value of $15.4 billion, in keeping with Forbes, and has change into a sought-after guru for his precept of “radical transparency.”

In 2017, at a Forbes gathering for the “100 Greatest Living Business Minds,” Diddy approached Bridgewater founder Ray Dalio and began peppering him with enterprise questions.

Diddy was a frequent attender at enterprise occasions. His celeb rider included his personal drink manufacturers and “a young Thai coconut.”

Dalio tweeted in 2019 that Diddy “asked me to mentor him” and posted a slickly-produced video of a “recent mentor session of ours.”

″[H]e’s an actual hero,” Dalio mentioned. “And he wants to be a role model and help others.”

“The greatest joy I’m having now is helping other people to be successful, particularly helping people who can help a lot of people. Sean Combs, also known as @Diddy, is one such person,” Dalio posted, boosting Diddy to 1.3m followers searching for monetary knowledge.

In 2021 Diddy teamed up with tech mogul Marc Benioff, CEO of Salesforce, who Forbes estimates to be value $10.5 billion, to launch “SHOP CIRCULATE,” a market for black-owned companies.

That similar yr he launched an identical on-line market, Empower Global.

“Building Black wealth starts with investing in Black-owned businesses and giving entrepreneurs access to the consumers needed to build sustainable companies that can thrive,” Combs mentioned.

He instructed Billboard journal final yr that he needs to collaborate with Byron Allen, the TV mogul, and billionaire Hollywood director Tyler Perry to create a “black-owned media conglomerate,” though neither struck any offers with him.

After Diddy was accused by his ex Cassie of rape, intercourse trafficking, and home violence final November, and settled the go well with with out admitting her claims, manufacturers started distancing themselves.

Macy’s, which nonetheless carried his vogue line, mentioned they’d cease promoting his merchandise. And 18 firms promoting merchandise on Empower are reported to have left the platform in latest months.