Shyne Barrow — former Bad Boy signee and Leader of the Opposition in the Belize House of Representatives — is speaking out about his relationship with Sean “Diddy” Combs, amidst the mogul’s recent arrest and federal indictment. And the artist-turned-politician rapper isn’t mincing any words.
If that name sounds familiar, then you may recall that he famously went to jail back in 1999 in connection to a shooting at a New York nightclub he was at with Diddy and the mogul’s then-girlfriend Jennifer Lopez. Three people were injured as a result and though Diddy, his bodyguard and JLo all walked away with no charges, Shyne was convicted on charges of assault, reckless endangerment, and criminal possession of an illegal weapon, and spent nine years in prison. However, during his trial he maintained that he did not shoot anyone, and a witness statement that came out earlier this year seemingly confirmed his version of events. Over the years, many online have also speculated that he was innocent, and took the fall for Diddy.
Now in a new interview with Belizean press on Thursday, he’s speaking his peace in the aftermath of the Bad Boy mogul’s recent legal troubles. He’s making one thing very, very clear: Combs is no friend of his.
Shyne spoke to clarify the nature of the relationship he has with his former label boss:
He contributed, he pretty much sent me to prison. So, that is the context by which you must always describe that relationship. Yes, I forgived, I moved on. But let us not pretend as if I was in Miami for Thanksgiving and Christmas...I went again to do a charity for impoverished youth in London. So let us not lose sight of what the cold, hard facts are. This is not someone who I vacationed with, and who—he and I enjoyed this great, intimate relationship of brotherhood. This is someone who destroyed my life and whoI forgave and who I moved on. And for the better interest of Belize, because he was in a position at that time to give scholarships and to maybe invest i would not deny attempting to bring the investment to Belize and to bring the contributions to education to Belize.
He went on to admonish the press to not “distort” their relationship and reiterated again that Diddy ruined his life. But in a show of some form of grace, Shyne admitted that being a witness to Diddy’s current takedown doesn’t bring him any sort of happiness.
“This is someone that destroyed my life, but do I take any joy or any satisfaction with what he is going through? Absolutely not,” he said. He later added, “no one needs to fail for me to succeed.”
As the interview began to circulate online, many took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to commend Shyne for his response.
“Shyne took the fall for Diddy & served NINE years in prison for something he DIDN’T DO…. Shyne today when asked about Diddy : ‘No one needs to suffer for me to succeed’ Talk about the power of FORGIVENESS! Whew !” wrote one user.
“Shyne dealt with his anger by himself. What he does with Diddy once he chose to forgive him is his personal choice, but that doesn’t absolve Diddy of his actions. That just means Shyne can simply not be angry anymore and be alright,” another said.
“SHYNE did a 10 year bid for diddy, got deported, & became a representative & leader of a major political party in his home country & soon to be the prime minister. Meanwhile diddy whole empire is crumbling down. I can’t fathom what he’s thinking in office witnessing this now,” one other user wrote.
“Almost 25 years later Shyne is probably is in line to become the next head of state in Belize. Diddy probably won’t get out of jail with a pulse. Karma will spin the block,” wrote another.
Shyne is the subject of “The Honorable: Shyne,” an upcoming documentary produced by Andscape and ColorCreative.