Sean 'Diddy' Combs allegedly THREATENED former Vibe editor would be 'dead in the trunk of a car' over past cover dispute... amid rapper's legal woes and sexual assault lawsuits
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Sean 'Diddy' Combs allegedly threatened former editor-in-chief of Vibe magazine, Danyel Smith, due to an argument over the 1997 December/January double issue of the publication.
Smith, 59, recalled the alleged incident in a personal essay published in The New York Times Magazine on Friday.
The article comes amid the disgraced rapper's mounting legal woes and sexual assault lawsuits. Earlier this year in May, a video obtained by CNN showed Combs beating his ex, Cassie, inside a Los Angeles hotel.
The photo shoot for the covers took place in September, with inspiration being taken from the 1978 film cover Heaven Can Wait - starring Warren Beatty.
Just a few days later, Diddy, 54, requested to see the covers before publication - which was against the magazine's policy.
Sean 'Diddy' Combs, 54, allegedly threatened former editor-in-chief of Vibe magazine, Danyel Smith, due to an argument over the 1997 December/January double issue of the publication; seen in 2020 in Beverly Hills
Smith informed the music artist of the policy and claimed, 'we heard that he planned to come to our office and force us to show him what we'd chosen - and to make us choose something else if he didn't like what he saw.'
Danyel remembered that one year earlier in 1996, Diddy had been found guilty of 'threatening a New York Post photographer with a gun' and also allegedly 'beat' a woman at his Bad Boy offices.
The journalist penned in the recent essay that Combs 'had a reputation for shaking tables.'
'I'd reconciled the rumors with his relevance, and the math was ugly and simple: I had to have him on the cover.'
Smith wrote that a plan was made to keep her safe in case the rapper did show up to the Vibe magazine office located in New York City.
He did make an appearance that day, but Danyel was able to sneak out of the building and into a taxi to safely head home, taking the 'proofs' with her.
However, the following day, the rapper gave a call to the office, and asked to speak with Danyel. 'He was still on message: He wanted to see the covers. I was still on message: It's not what we do.'
She then alleged that he told her 'he would see me "dead in the trunk of a car." Not missing a beat, I told him he needed to take that threat back.'
Smith, 59, recalled the alleged incident in a personal essay published in The New York Times Magazine on Friday; seen in 2023 in Atlanta
The photo shoot for the covers took place in September, with inspiration being taken from the 1978 film cover Heaven Can Wait - starring Warren Beatty (seen above)
Smith alleged he replied with, '"Take what back?" Then, with a vile laugh, "[Expletive] you."'
Danyel claimed she repeated to the rapper that he needed to take back the threat. She alleged he responded with, "I know where you are right now. Right on Lexington."'
After the call, Danyel reached out to her lawyer. 'Within two hours, Combs faxed over an apology.'
However, following the alleged threat, she went to the Vibe magazine office in NYC one morning only to discover that a 'couple of servers' had been stolen and that it was rumored it had been 'an inside job.'
'That someone on Vibe's publishing side had let in movers from Bad Boy. It was almost time to send pages to the printer, and the whole issue was saved on those servers.'
Danyel added, 'All the editorial changes. All the pages, with the advertising adjacencies that had been paid for by clients. Gone.' However, the pages had also been saved on a separate disk by the magazine's art director.
The former Vibe editor-in-chief also shared the alleged incident in her own memoir, Shine Bright: A Very Personal History of Black Women in Pop, which was released in April 2022.
Nearly 10 years after the alleged incident, Danyel and Diddy reunited when he appeared on a Vibe cover in 2006.
Smith informed the music artist of the policy and claimed, 'we heard that he planned to come to our office and force us to show him what we'd chosen - and to make us choose something else if he didn't like what he saw'; seen in 2018 in NYC
She then alleged that he told her 'he would see me "dead in the trunk of a car." Not missing a beat, I told him he needed to take that threat back'; seen in 2023 in London
The former Vibe editor-in-chief also shared the alleged incident in her own memoir, Shine Bright: A Very Personal History of Black Women in Pop, which was released in April 2022
The New York Times Magazine article comes amid the music artist's mounting legal woes, sex trafficking probe and sexual assault lawsuits.
Earlier this month, another dark allegation emerged as a former porn star named Adria English sued Diddy for $50 billion over claims he trafficked her to have sex with party guests and threatened to blackmail her if she did not comply.
She claimed that she first met the rapper in 2004 when her boyfriend was auditioning for a Sean John modeling gig.
She alleges she worked parties hosted by Diddy in which she would drink alcohol laced with narcotics like ecstasy and would be asked to flirt with guests.
English said Diddy 'groomed' her into sex trafficking and told her to have sex with Jacob Arabov, also known as 'Jacob the Jeweler.'
The lawsuit, filed in New York on Wednesday, claims she had 'forced sexual intercourse' with him and was paid an extra $1,000 compared to the usual fee for working the parties.
Jacob and a woman called Tamiko Thomas - who is accused of facilitating the sex trafficking operation and Diddy's entertainment company Bad Boy - have been listed as defendants in the lawsuit.
She is suing the Bad Boy mogul and his alleged co-conspirators for $50 billion, according to the federal lawsuit obtained by DailyMail.com.
The former porn star took a photo with Jacob following the alleged assault before Diddy congratulated her on having sex with him, according to the lawsuit.
Earlier this month, another dark allegation emerged as a former porn star named Adria English sued Diddy for $50 billion over claims he trafficked her to have sex with party guests and threatened to blackmail her if she did not comply; seen in 2022 in L.A.
English said Diddy 'groomed' her into sex trafficking and told her to have sex with Jacob Arabov, also known as 'Jacob the Jeweler'
A few months earlier, a video obtained by CNN , showed Diddy violently beating his ex Cassie near an elevator inside the InterContinental Hotel in Century City
She claimed she was later 'passed off' to other guests at Diddy's parties who sexually assaulted her. English named Thomas in the lawsuit and compared her to Ghislaine Maxwell and Diddy to Jeffrey Epstein.
English also claimed the rapper promised to help advance her career by helping her join a girl group as a way into the music industry.
But English said he made forceful demands and threatened to blacklist her and her boyfriend from the entire industry if they did not do what he said.
English said the first Diddy party she attended in 2004 had no requirements for physical sexual contact and 'seemed to be a legitimate employment opportunity.'
English said the only way to escape was to return to California which she did in 2009. She has suffered emotional trauma, intimacy issues and painful memories as a result of the alleged sex trafficking, according to the lawsuit.
It was also revealed earlier this month that Combs is selling his L.A. home for $70 million - after it was raided by Homeland Security back in March amid a suspected sex trafficking probe.
Diddy - who recently returned to Instagram while boarding a private jet - is trying to sell the mansion off-market, per TMZ, after initially purchasing the home back in 2014 for $40 million.
A few months earlier, a video obtained by CNN, showed Diddy violently beating his ex Cassie near an elevator inside the InterContinental Hotel in Century City.
He could be seen shirtless with a towel wrapped around his waist as he grabbed her by the back of her head and proceeded to kick her when she was on the ground.
Combs later took to his Instagram page to issue an apology following the clip's release and said, 'I hit rock bottom, but I make no excuses. So difficult to reflect on the darkest times in your life, sometimes you got to do that. I was f***ed up.'
'I mean I hit rock bottom, but I make no excuses, my behavior in that video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility for my actions in that video, I'm disgusted.'
Combs later took to his Instagram page to issue an apology following the clip's release and said, 'I hit rock bottom, but I make no excuses. So difficult to reflect on the darkest times in your life, sometimes you got to do that. I was f***ed up'
'I mean I hit rock bottom, but I make no excuses, my behavior in that video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility for my actions in that video, I'm disgusted,' he added; Diddy and Cassie seen in 2018 in NYC
He continued, 'I was disgusted then when I did it, I am disgusted now. I went and I sought out professional help, I got into going to therapy, going to rehab.'
'Had to ask God for his mercy and grace. I'm so sorry. But I am committed to be a better man each and every day. I'm not asking for forgiveness, I'm truly sorry.'
A federal grand jury is set to weight testimony gathered from witnesses and evidence before making a decision whether to indict Combs or not, per TMZ.
And earlier this week on Thursday, Diddy's mother named Janice Combs was hospitalized in Florida due to chest pains, TMZ reported.
