Celebs Who Unloaded On Diddy After The Disturbing Cassie Video Leak

The following article includes allegations of domestic violence.

On May 17, 2024, Sean "Diddy" Combs was caught on surveillance footage obtained by CNN assaulting his then-girlfriend, Cassie Ventura, at the InterContinental Hotel in Los Angeles. The disturbing clip, dated March 5, 2016, showed Diddy in only a towel around his waist, running down a hallway before repeatedly attacking Ventura as she waited for an elevator. Following the video's release, Diddy attempted to publicly apologize; But, unsurprisingly, the horrific images in the footage elicited strong reactions from social media users and celebrities alike.

Rapper Bobby Shmurda took to Instagram, firing at Diddy's behavior. "Why would you put your hands on a female bro, especially when you're a multimillionaire?" Shmurda questioned in the clip. Similarly, comedian D.L. Hughley called Diddy out, while asking men to take up the task of protecting women. "The protection of womanhood requires that may have to you sacrifice something for yourself, and you might have to do the right thing, even though it might cost you money," Hughley said in a video shared to his Instagram.

Comedian Cedric The Entertainer reacted to the video, describing it as "disturbing," "deplorable," and "downright diabolical." "As a Father to Daughters and Young Men, he must take real time to atone his and all the souls he has affected," he wrote in the caption. However, Cedric, Hughley, and Shmurda weren't the only stars to unload on Diddy after the video leaked, as many more have spoken out against the rapper.

On May 17, 50 Cent took to X, formerly known as Twitter, sharing the surveillance footage alongside a sarcastic caption referencing Diddy's previous denial of the allegations. "Now I'm sure puffy didn't do it, he is innocent this proves nothing ! This is what his lawyers are gonna say, God help us all," the tweet read. The "In da Club" rapper shared a later reaction, this time, responding to Diddy's apology video. "This is not going to work, who is advising him right now? SMH bad move," he tweeted, referencing the music mogul's claims of regret.

But of course, 50 Cent's reaction to the video hardly came as a surprise, given his rumored longtime feud with Diddy. The alleged beef, dating back to 2006, took off after 50 Cent released "The Bomb," a diss track alluding to many claims, including Diddy's alleged knowledge of the circumstances surrounding the murder of Biggie Smalls in 1997. After "The Bomb," 50 Cent continued to make it clear that there was no love lost between him and the Bad Boy Records founder.

When Diddy's Los Angeles and Miami homes were raided by the FBI in March 2024, 50 Cent alluded to the music mogul's guilt, noting that it would have been difficult for authorities to get a warrant without evidence. "Now it's not Diddy do it, it's Diddy done [shrug emoji] they don't come like that unless they got a case," he wrote on X.

Former "Real Housewives of Atlanta" star Claudia Jordan held back no words in publicly speaking out against Diddy. "If this is how you treated someone you 'loved' I can only imagine the horrors your enemies/opposition suffered," Jordan captioned her Instagram post about the May 2024 surveillance footage. The TV personality also lashed out at critics who previously defended Diddy against Cassie's November 2023 lawsuit. "Women need 50-11 witnesses, medical records and surveillance footage to kinda get believed — but it's still our fault for 'putting ourselves in these situations,'" she added.

Jordan had previously accused Diddy of intentionally keeping Quincy Brown – Kim Porter's first child from her marriage to Al B. Sure! — away from his biological father, Sure, who Jordan said she was formerly friends with. "I believe [Sure] was pushed out by Diddy. I believe Diddy wooed Quincy ... He takes his kids drinking, hanging out, and partying. What young, good-looking kid is not going to want to go along with that?" she questioned during an April 2024 episode of "TEA G-I-F."

During the episode, Jordan also alluded to believing rumors about Diddy's involvement in Sure's two-month long coma in 2022. "He was training for those celebrity boxing matches and then falls into this coma and he almost died," the reality star explained. Back in 2022, Sure mysteriously slipped into a coma back after becoming nearly-fatally ill from multiple conditions, including renal failure.

Upon the release of the hotel surveillance footage, singer Aubrey O'Day took to X, lending her support to Cassie and all domestic abuse victims. "The picture is getting a lot more clear for you all I can imagine.. abuse survivors or anyone that triggers easily might not want to watch (images are disturbing). Prayers up for all his victims," she wrote alongside a clip of the footage.

In a separate tweet, O'Day called out Diddy's public apology, dubbing it as an insincere and self-serving move. "Diddy did not apologize to Cassie ... He apologized to the world for seeing what he did," the singer wrote alongside a picture of Diddy's initial statement denying Cassie's claims in her November 2023 lawsuit. Alongside several other celebrities, O'Day spoke up in support of Cassie after filing her lawsuit against Diddy. "Been trynna tell y'all for years. Prayers up for this queen," the singer wrote on her Instagram story at the time (via US Weekly).  

Since her departure from Danity Kane — a product of Diddy's "Making the Band" series — O'Day has had a contentious relationship with Diddy, often accusing the music mogul of mistreatment during their time working together. "Puff is a very difficult person to work with. Everything had to be perfect ...We were scared to death with what would happen with Puff each day. There was just no room for error." O'Day recounted in a 2019 interview with Variety. 

In a May episode of "The Breakfast Club," radio host Charlamagne tha God unloaded on Diddy, calling out the music mogul for his fake apology. "He's not sorry, he's sorry he got caught. He's sorry that the video leaked, okay? If that video hadn't come out, he'd still be lying right now," he posited. In the conversation, Charlamagne also questioned Diddy's integrity, considering his previous denial of Cassie's allegations. "Why volunteer to lie? Why go so hard to tell folks that you're innocent when you know that there's evidence out there like that that exists," the radio host challenged. During a subsequent appearance on "The View," the media personality described Diddy's actions as an effect of societal issues like patriarchy. 

Charlamagne previously expressed conflicted feeling about Diddy's legacy following the raids of his L.A. and Miami estates. "I don't like it just because it's sad. How many peoples' legacies have we watched burn to the ground? ... They contributed to the culture in real ways before we knew any of this s***," he shared during an episode of "The Brilliant Idiots."

The radio host previously worked with Diddy while the music mogul served as chairman of Revolt TV, the cable channel he launched in 2013. A year after its launch, Revolt TV signed a deal to air "The Breakfast Club." After over seven years of working together, "The Breakfast Club" and Revolt TV ended their partnership in 2021.

The panel on "The View," consisting of Ana Navarro, Whoopi Goldberg, Sunny Hostin, and Alyssa Farah Griffin shared their thoughts on the surveillance video showing Diddy assaulting Cassie as well as his subsequent apology video. After explaining that the rapper could no longer be charged by the Los Angeles Police Department due to the state's statute of limitations, Navarro urged the public to ostracize the rapper as a consequence for his actions. "Look, the LAPD may not be able to charge him, but we are able to shun him, and he should be treated like the leper, the social leper and criminal he is," she shared during the discussion.

While also addressing the apology video, Hostin pointed out Diddy's insincerity, noting that Diddy only apologized to save his public image. "I don't think that that video that we saw will change the public's opinion of him, because I didn't hear him say, 'I am sorry, Cassie.' I didn't hear that. I heard, 'I am sorry,' I heard a lot of, you know, 'I've sought help,'" Hostin explained.

Goldberg also echoed Hostin's sentiment, adding that Diddy only apologized because he was caught and not because he was truly sorry. "It's easier to be sorry after people found that you lied, because you said you didn't do it," Goldberg shared.

New York City mayor Eric Adams spoke out about the surveillance video, describing Diddy's actions a video as "chilling," revealing that his team was considering revoking Diddy's key to the city. "The committee and the team have never rescinded a key before, but we are now sitting down to see what the next steps forward are going to be," Adams shared while speaking to PIX11 News.

Two members of the New York City Council publicly condemned the footage to TMZ, encouraging Adams to "immediately" revoke the key. "As an abuser, Diddy lost his right to have such an honor and should be held accountable for his actions. Mayor Adams should set the example and take it away," one member of the council said.

Back in September 2023, Adams awarded Combs — who was born in Harlem — with the key as recognition for his contribution to the music industry. "Sean Combs is the embodiment of the New York City attitude ... Despite all of his successes, Sean has never forgotten where he came from," Adams shared at the event held in Times Square. According to the New York City official website, the key to the city is reserved for those "whose service to the public and the common good rises to the highest level of achievement." With the gravity of the allegations being lobbed at Diddy, Mayor Adams and the city of New York certainly has reason to question this bestowment.

Rapper-turned-politician Shyne Barrow publicly condemned Diddy in a post shared to his Instagram. "I vehemently denounce the repugnant behavior of Sean Diddy Combs captured on the video in which he is seen physically assaulting Mrs Cassie Ventura-Fine," Shyne declared. The Belizean politician described Diddy's actions as "diabolical," noting that he wanted "nothing to do" with Diddy and all other abusers. "My prayers are with Cassie and all the other victims who have come forward with horrendous allegations against Mr Combs," he added.

Before his crossover to politics, Shyne was involved in the entertainment industry, during which he was signed to Diddy's Bad Boy Records. Notably, in December 1999, Shyne and Diddy were arrested after being involved in a shooting at a Manhattan club. While Diddy was acquitted of all charges, Shyne ended up bagging a 10-year sentence on charges of assault and reckless endangerment. After serving his sentence, Shyne was deported back to his home country, Belize, where he kicked off his political career.

Despite being under Diddy's tutelage at the time of his incarceration, Shyne absolved the music mogul of any blames, while taking full responsibility for his crimes. "I didn't blame nobody else for my mistakes. It wasn't my co-defendant's fault that I shot somebody in the club, I take responsibility," he shared with SOHH (via Digital Spy) in 2009.

Upon viewing the reprehensible footage, media personality Stephen A. Smith declared that Diddy's career over. In his reaction to the video on his eponymous show, Smith noted that the rapper's legacy was crumbling in "the worst possible way." The famed sports commentator also likened Diddy's assault on Cassie to the surveillance video released in 2014 that showed NFL star Ray Rice assaulting his then-fiancée and now-wife Janay Palmer. "This video, allegedly, supposedly, presumably, seemingly, whatever word's appropriate, with P. Diddy, Sean 'P. Diddy' Combs, this is worse," Smith lamented.

In a subsequent episode of "The Stephen A. Smith Show," the host lashed out at Diddy's apology over the surveillance camera footage during an episode of his eponymous show. "I want to know first and foremost who the hell was the PR person or the adviser or somebody who was dumb enough to tell him to do that bulls*** video," Smith questioned.

Smith, a self-proclaimed believer of second chances explained that Diddy's actions were unforgivable given his initial denial of the allegations in Cassie's November 2023 lawsuit. "The fact that there is a quote from just this past December, which you emphatically, adamantly, categorically denying there was any truth to what was being said throws that second chance right out the window," the media personality explained. Smith admitted to previously being cordial with Diddy when they crossed paths, but he insisted that the rapper's apology was "inauthentic" and "embarrassing."

If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.