Jay-Z is Now Fighting Back Against Tony Buzbee

Jay-Z throughout his career has worked with some of the biggest stars in the world. From his wife, Beyoncé Knowles, to vibes with Pharrell, he has plenty of hits (and plenty of Grammys to match). However, one of his most controversial collaborators and friends is Sean “Diddy” Combs. They have not only put out music together, but Combs, back in 2023, said that HOV is the “only person besides his mother who can address him by his first name, Sean.”

They even launched their record labels around the same time, with Combs’ Bad Boy Records hitting the scene in 1993 and Carter’s Roc-A-Fella Records showing out the year after. Now, the duo are being linked in the public eye again—but for the wrong reasons. 

Jay-Z is involved in Diddy lawsuit

The lawsuit stems from an alleged assault that occurred at an afterparty the night of the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards. It was previously filed in October, but it was refiled on December 8 to include Jay-Z (AKA Shawn Carter as well). 

The “Jane Doe” was trying to get into the show or afterparty and came across a driver who said that they worked for Combs and that “they fit what Diddy was looking for.”

The lawsuit goes on to state that “he invited her to a party after the show and told her to return to his car later in the evening after he transported Carter and Combs, the suit says.  Later, the driver picked her up, the suit says, and after 20 minutes they arrived at a white house with a U-shaped driveway, the suit says. She had to sign a document she believed was a nondisclosure agreement on arrival — and did not receive a copy — to enter the party, which the suit says was filled with celebrities and people doing marijuana and cocaine.” 

She was then allegedly assaulted by Carter and then Combs, with other celebrities watching. This is the first suit filed by Tony Buzbee against Diddy, which includes another high-profile defendant. 

Diddy’s legal team has called the lawsuits filed by Buzbee against him “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.”

The rapper releases a “Public Service Announcement”

On December 9, Jay-Z released an official statement responding to the lawsuit online. 

“…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? These alleged victims would deserve real justice if that were the case.T his lawyer, who I have done a bit of research on, seems to have a pattern of these type of theatrics! I have no idea how you have come to be such a deplorable human Mr. Buzbee, but I promise you I have seen your kind many times over. I’m more than prepared to deal with your type,” Carter said. 

Buzbee has had his recent run-ins with the law, facing lawsuits for his work in a personal injury case and being sued by a celebrity “John Doe” for extortion. Now, we might know who that “John Doe” really is. 

The receipts are starting to add up

Buzbee alluded to the lawsuit from Jay-Z back in November, sharing with the public that the person suing him is “a friend of Combs ‘based on the fact that the two often attended similar events frequented by celebrities.’ The alleged extortion demand stated the man raped several minors, both male and female, who were purportedly drugged at parties hosted by Combs.”

John Doe’s attorneys in November said that the allegations against their client were “nothing more than a weapon in a calculated plot to destroy (his) high-profile reputation for profit, despite the complete absence of any factual basis for such claims” while Buzbee said the lawsuit was “frivolous” and an “aggressive attempt to intimidate or silence me and ultimately my clients.” 

In the same December 9 statement, Jay-Z not only called out Buzbee’s recent moves against him but his overall character.

“You have made a terrible error in judgment thinking that all ‘celebrities’ are the same…I’m a young man who made it out of the project of Brooklyn. We don’t play these types of games. We have very strict codes and honor. We protect children. You seem to exploit people for personal gain,” he said. 

Nevertheless, Buzbee went on social media himself on December 9 to respond to the rapper’s allegations of blackmail and extortion from the attorney and his team. 

“…No one has made any threats. Jay Z’s assertions are bogus and laughable. Instead, our firm sent a standard demand letter seeking mediation on behalf of a woman who alleges Jay-Z sexually assaulted her as a minor …We intend to address all of these issues with the court in due course. Let me be clear: We will not be bullied or intimidated by these shenanigans. And our clients won’t be silenced,” he said on X. 

Others on social media are now going on platforms and putting on their detective glasses to find how Jay-Z looked sus in the past. 

Social media exposes Jay-Z’s past (and questionable) moves

Singer-songwriter Jaguar Wright first called out Jay-Z for his alleged misdoings months ago. On The Piers Morgan Show, she said that “for four years I’ve been screaming not just Diddy, but Diddy and Jay-Z are monsters” and that the rapper, along with his wife, global superstar Beyoncé, had hundreds of victims. He later issued an apology to the couple on the show after their lawyers contacted him. 

Wright still isn’t the only one to call BS on HOV. Katt Williams, during his viral interview with Shannon Sharpe in January, threw shade at the couple.

To add gallons of gasoline to the fire, a thread from X user MissFacto is going viral for its deep dive into Jay-Z’s relationships with other women in the industry and its well-known controversial figures. It includes receipts of his alleged possessive behavior with his now-wife, an attempted timeline of when they both really started dating, and his relationships with Aaliyah and Foxy Brown (who he was allegedly connected with when they were just minors). 

Eyebrows are also being raised at Jay-Z’s working relationship with R. Kelly. The duo released two albums and even went on tour together despite Kelly’s marriage to an underage Aaliyah (he was 27 when she was just 15) and a 2002 tape of him with minors.

Dame Dash, who also dated Aaliyah at one point, said he didn’t work with the duo on the 2002 project Best of Both Worlds because “It’s morally wrong to do a project with someone that we know raped my girl or raped anybody for that matter…So I do know that conversation was had, and I was really surprised that he moved forward with that relationship … I do know when that project did come out I didn’t want any part of that project. I didn’t want any of the money to go to Roc-A-Fella or me when it came to Roc-A-Fella.”

What is HOV going to do now?

With the accusations and backlash from those online continuing to grow, Jay-Z has now filed on December 9 to have the case thrown out or have the “Jane Doe’s” identity revealed. 

“Mr. Carter deserves to know the identity of the person who is effectively accusing him – in sensationalized, publicity-hunting fashion – of criminal conduct, demanding massive financial compensation, and tarnishing a reputation earned over decades … This Court has recognized the nearly identical claims brought by other Plaintiffs represented by Attorney Buzbee do not meet the criteria to proceed anonymously. Here, the balance of the equities afford all the more reason why this Plaintiff should be proceeding under her true name, if she wishes to proceed at all,” the rapper’s attorney, Alex Spiro (who also represented Alec Baldwin in the 2021 Rust shooting), said in a memo. 

There hasn’t been a date set yet to hear Carter’s request for a hearing on the motion to have the identity revealed or the case dismissed — and people are continuing to share their thoughts about the recent updates online and his recent appearance with the fam at the premiere of Disney’s Mufasa: The Lion King.