An ex-Bad Boy artist claims Diddy tried to ensure her silence by returning her publishing rights.
“I received the publishing deal,” Aubrey O’Day told TMZ recently. “I know what it says—I know how much money it was giving me. I’ll tell you: $330.30 for a full release of all claims against Diddy and many other players.”
When asked what she thought his motivation was, she said, “I think [he] would probably be making moves to keep as many people quiet as possible.”
The interview clip is part of TMZ's documentary The Downfall of Diddy.
“When I went to look at the publishing deal, it said anything but I’m being made whole financially again," O'Day adds. "In fact, it asked me to not be able to have access to my story and my experience anymore. It asked me specifically to stay silent and never speak poorly about a human. So then I realized something really bad is coming.”
O'Day, who was one of the stars of Making the Band, said she turned down Diddy’s offer.
Diddy sources later issued a statement to TMZ regarding her comments.
"Aubrey O'Day got her big break because Diddy and Bad Boy cast her in their show with her group, Danity Kane," the statement reads. Last year, when he reassigned his portion of the publishing to Bad Boy artists, an unprecedented move within the industry and which he did not have to do, not all artists signed an NDA, contrary to what she claims."
The Danity Kane singer was signed to Bad Boy Records in the 2000s. She previously claimed that Diddy sent her an NDA for the group's publishing rights back in September, and detailed what some of the agreement said.
"I have to release him for any claims or wrongdoings or actions prior to the date of the release," the 39-year-old said, reading the details of the agreement from her phone on the Only Stans podcast. "I have to sign an NDA that I will never disparage Puff, Bad Boy, Janice Combs, Justin Combs Music, EMI, or Sony ever in public."
In September, Diddy announced that he was reassigning publishing rights back to the artists and songwriters who were once signed to Bad Boy.
According to Billboard, Mase, The LOX, Faith Evans, 112, the estate of the Notorious B.I.G., and more signed agreements. While it was unclear how much the assets were worth, it was said to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars.
“Combs sees it as part of a broader goal of promoting economic empowerment for Black artists and culture,” a source said at the time.
The Downfall of Diddy, which details the fallout from Diddy’s raids, the ensuing federal investigation, and more, is available to stream on Tubi.
