A former employee of Sean "Diddy" Combs has cast doubt on recent rumblings that President-elect Donald Trump could consider pardoning the beleaguered music mogul once he gets into office.
Bad Boy Records founder Combs was arrested and charged on September 16, in a three-count indictment, with racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking, and transportation to engage in prostitution. He has pleaded not guilty and denied any wrongdoing, and has been denied bail on multiple occasions.
Combs' spokespeople have repeatedly pointed Newsweek to the following statement: "We live in a world where anyone can file a lawsuit for any reason and without any proof. Fortunately, a fair and impartial judicial process exists to find the truth and Mr. Combs is confident he will prevail against these and other baseless claims in court."
In the several weeks since Combs has been placed in custody ahead of his May 2025 trial date, Trump has won the presidential election, giving him a second term in the White House. As the U.S. anticipates Trump's return to power from January, speculation has already mounted over whether the Republican will pardon Combs.
Gene Deal, who served as a bodyguard for Combs in the 1990s when the star was known as Puff Daddy, has expressed doubts that Trump will take any such action on behalf of the hip-hop musician, given his past criticisms of the onetime real estate mogul.
During a recent appearance on hip-hop interview channel The Art of Dialogue, Deal said that Combs "wasn't even good with Trump like that [anymore]. He was going against Donald Trump."
Deal, who has written books about his time working for Combs, added that Trump "is [as] petty as 50 Cent," referring to the rapper and businessman who has been highly critical of Combs in the months since allegations against him were made public.
With Combs' past comments on Trump in mind, Deal opined that the incoming president will likely say, "Why should I help this mother****** when he talks s*** about me?"
"Everybody was dealing with Donald Trump at one time that was in the music record business and all that stuff like that," Deal said, adding that those same people eventually "flipped" on Trump as he rose politically.
"Donald Trump probably wouldn't p*** on Puff if he was on fire," he went on. "At one point, they was going at him. So why would he help? ... I don't believe he's gonna help him. Not at all."
Newsweek has contacted representatives of Trump and Combs via email for comment.
Trump, Combs Over the Years
As with a host of other celebrities, Trump and Combs were photographed together at various events over the years. The New York Post's Page Six reported in May that Trump was among the celebrities featured in an invitation to Combs' 29th birthday party in 1998. In the video invitation, Trump referred to Combs as "the legendary Puff Daddy."
While Trump has made little public comment about their relationship, he did share glowing words on an episode of The Celebrity Apprentice back in 2012. Speaking with then-contestant Aubrey O'Day, Trump said: "I love Diddy. You know he's a good friend of mine. He's a good guy. Is he a good guy?"
O'Day, who was part of girl group Danity Kane, who were initially signed to Combs' Bad Boy Records, declined to answer Trump's question. In the years since, she has been publicly critical of Combs. O'Day also claimed that she had an affair with Donald Trump Jr. after they met on the show.
Combs has been comparatively more candid in his public statements about the elder Trump.
In an October 2015 interview with The Washington Post, Combs discussed his friendship with Trump, then a longshot candidate in the 2016 Republican presidential primary.
"Donald Trump is a friend of mine, and he works very hard," Combs said.
During an interview with The Daily Beast in June 2017, Combs shared his thoughts on Trump, who at the time was months into his first term.
"I think that to be honest, we don't really give a f*** about Trump, because [black people are] in the same f*****-up position. So that's not what we're on. The tomfoolery that's going on in D.C., that's just regular everyday business to black folks. That's not surprising," he said.
By 2020, as Trump ran for a second term, Combs had become more critical of the then-president, going so far as to support his opponent, Joe Biden.
"White men like Trump need to be banished. That way of thinking is real dangerous," he said in an interview with radio host Charlamagne tha God, per CNN.
"When you look at it, we don't have no choice. Say what you want about Biden, I can't say I love the pick either. But we've got to get him in office, and then we've got to hold him accountable," Combs added.
Before leaving office in 2021, Donald Trump he commuted rapper Kodak Black's sentence and pardoned hip-hop star Lil Wayne over their separate firearms offenses. Both stars have publicly expressed support for Donald Trump.
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