Oh Boy, this is ugly. Jay-Z has responded to being accused of sexually assaulting a child along with disgraced musician and rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs. The accusations came in a lawsuit on Sunday and since then all hell broke loose. You’ve been warned: Buckle up.
The lawsuit was originally filed in October with Combs as the defendant, according to an NBC News report, and was refilled on Sunday to include Shawn Carter (Jay-Z). The accuser remains anonymous and is identified as Jane Doe in the lawsuit, and claims that when she was 13-years-old, she was raped in 2000 by both Combs and Carter at a house party after the MTV Video Music Awards in New York City.
In the suit obtained by NBC News, the accuser claims that after one drink at the party, she felt “woozy, lightheaded and felt [like] she needed to lie down,” right before Combs and Carter allegedly entered the room. The suit claims Carter “held her down and raped her while Combs and an unnamed female celebrity watched,” and also alleges Combs “raped her as Carter and the woman looked on.”
The lawsuit is filed under New York’s Victims of Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Act, and the accuser is reportedly seeking unspecified damages.
Mere minutes after the news of the lawsuit hit the internet, Jay-Z fired back with a statement of his own shared via Roc Nation social media accounts. In the post, Jay denies the allegations in the lawsuit while also tearing into the accuser’s attorney, Tony Buzbee, accusing him of blackmail.
“My lawyer received a blackmail attempt, called a demand letter, from a ‘lawyer’ named Tony Buzbee,” the statement begins. “What he had calculated was the nature of these allegations and the public scrutiny would make me want to settle.” He then calls Buzbee a “fraud,” saying, “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.”
In the statement, the music mogul goes on to call the allegations “so heinous in nature,” adding, “I implore you to file a criminal complaint, not a civil one. Whomever would commit such a crime against a minor should be locked away, would you not agree? These alleged victims would deserve real justice if that were the case.”
He added that his “only heartbreak” is for his family, his wife Beyoncé and children Blue Ivy, Rumi and Sir Carter. “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.”
The news has rocked the internet, with many taking to social media to express their feelings regarding the accusations, Jay-Z, Diddy, Buzbee and more.
For some online, Jay-Z’s once-close proximity to Diddy was proof enough for them in the court of public opinion. One user pointed out on X, formerly known as Twitter, “now jay z has been besties with diddy for about 30 years….kinda illogical to assume his hands are completely clean from diddy’s filth.”
Others have some serious thoughts about the accuser’s lawyer Tony Buzbee, with his involvement being proof enough for some that this lawsuit may not be ironclad. “Everybody from Houston knows that Tony Buzbee is a scam attorney. As soon as I found out he was behind the lawsuit, I knew it was a lie,” a user wrote on X.
Some have emphasized the children of the defendants in all of this. “Whenever sh-t like this comes out, I feel so bad for the kids,” one user wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Especially if they old enough to understand and see folks talking about these traumatic allegations. R. K*lly’s kids, Blue Ivy, etc. They didn’t ask to be brought into the world let alone into some bullsh-t.”
Others were quick to point out that Blue Ivy is gearing up for the release of “Mufasa,” Disney’s upcoming “The Lion King” film in which she voices a lead role.