Jay-Z has been accused of rape in a civil lawsuit along with Sean “Diddy” Combs.
Per NBC News, the rapper (real name Shawn Carter) was accused of allegedly raping a 13-year-old girl in 2000 with Combs, 55. The accuser, who has remained anonymous and was only identified as “Jane Doe,” claimed the assault occurred at an after party for the MTV Music Video Awards.
The lawsuit was originally filed in October in the Southern District of New York and, at the time, only listed Combs as a defendant. However, it was refiled on Sunday, December 8, to include Jay-Z. However, it was refiled by Texas-based attorney Tony Buzvee on Sunday, December 8, to include Jay-Z, 55.
“My lawyer received a blackmail attempt, called a demand letter, from a ‘lawyer’ named Tony Buzbee. What he had calculated was the nature of these allegations and the public scrutiny would make me want to settle,” Jay-Z said in a statement to Us Weekly denying the allegations. “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!!”
“These allegations are so heinous in nature that 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?” Jay-Z said in a statement to Us Weekly denying the allegations. “These alleged victims would deserve real justice if that were the case.” (Jay-Z’s statement was also shared via Roc Nation’s official Instagram account.)
“My lawyer received a blackmail attempt, called a demand letter, from a ‘lawyer’ named Tony Buzbee. What he had calculated was the nature of these allegations and the public scrutiny would make me want to settle,” Jay-Z’s statement continued. “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!!”
Buzbee has filed lawsuits on behalf of several of Diddy’s alleged victims; he has previously claimed to be representing at least 120 of the disgraced mogul’s alleged victims.
Us also reached out to Diddy’s attorneys for comment.
“This amended complaint and the recent extortion lawsuit against Mr. Buzbee exposes his barrage of lawsuits against Mr. Combs for what they are: shameless publicity stunts, designed to extract payments from celebrities who fear having lies spread about them, just as lies have been spread about Mr. Combs,” Diddy’s attorneys said in a statement to Us. “As his legal team has said before, Mr. Combs has full confidence in the facts and the integrity of the judicial process. In court, the truth will prevail: that Mr. Combs never sexually assaulted or trafficked anyone — man or woman, adult or minor.”
In October, Buzbee told TMZ he had sent out demand letters for even more celebrities who would be sued alongside Diddy.
“I think I’ll let the lawsuits speak for themselves,” the lawyer said in the October 7 interview. “Everyone’s focused on what other celebrities were involved, who’s going to be named, who’s going to be outed — I don’t expect that to happen this week. I’m hoping to file some lawsuits this week.”
Jay-Z’s response to this current lawsuit comes after last month when an unnamed male celebrity filed a lawsuit against the attorney and his firm for “shamelessly attempting to extort exorbitant sums from him or else publicly file wildly false horrific allegations against him,” according to court documents obtained by CNN.
The plaintiff filed the complaint against Buzbee under the name “John Doe” in the Los Angeles Supreme Court on November 18.
Doe claimed in the filing that Buzbee and his firm had “threatened to unleash entirely fabricated and salacious allegations of sexual assault” that include “multiple instances of rape of a minor, both male and female” if their client “refuses to comply with their demands.”
Diddy was arrested in September for racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion and transportation to engage in prostitution. Alleged victims have started filing lawsuits against him since his arrest, ccusing him of past sexual assault, drugging, and threats of violence. As he awaits criminal trial in May 2025, Diddy has maintained his innocence and denied all civil allegations against him.