Jay-Z has been accused of raping a 13-year-old girl in 2000 after the MTV Video Music Awards, allegedly along with Sean “Diddy” Combs. The award-winning rapper and producer called the accusations “idiotic” and “heinous in nature.”
Jay-Z says a rape allegation made against him is part of an extortion attempt.
A woman who previously sued Sean “Diddy” Combs alleging she was raped at an awards show after-party in 2000 when she was 13, amended the lawsuit on Sunday to include a new allegation that Jay-Z was also at the party and participated in the sexual assault.
The 24-time Grammy award winning rapper, producer and music mogul called the allegations “idiotic” and “heinous in nature” in a statement.
He also revealed that he had anonymously sued the woman’s lawyer, Tony Buzbee, last month, alleging he was trying to blackmail the rapper by threatening to make the rape allegation public if he didn’t agree to a legal settlement. He said Buzbee sent a letter to his lawyer appearing to seek a settlement, but that the letter had the “opposite effect” on him.
“It made me want to expose you for the fraud you are in a VERY public fashion,” Jay-Z’s statement read. “So no, I will not give you ONE RED PENNY!!”
The litigation is part of a wave of sexual assault lawsuits levied against Combs as the hip-hop mogul remains in custody in New York awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges.
Buzbee, a personal injury lawyer in Houston, says he is representing more than 120 accusers in cases against Combs. He said the notion that he was trying to blackmail Jay-Z is “stupid and laughable,” and that his letter simply sought confidential mediation in the litigation.
“What he fails to say in his recent statement is that my firm sent his lawyer a basic demand letter on behalf of an alleged victim and that victim never demanded a penny from him,” he said in an emailed statement. “Since I sent the letter on her behalf, Mr. Carter has not only sued me, but he has tried to bully and harass me and this plaintiff. His conduct has had the opposite impact. She is emboldened. I’m very proud of her resolve.”
Jay-Z’s attorney, Alex Spiro, filed court paperwork asking a judge to require his accuser, who is only identified as Jane Doe (a US legal term to say that she is anonymous), to reveal her identity if she wants to continue the lawsuit. Spiro said the woman hasn’t provided any evidence to justify her anonymity and that her “vague assertions of potential harm fall far short of the stringent requirements” under the law.
Spiro asked for an urgent hearing on the matter.
“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,” Spiro wrote. “He has never been accused of, let alone engaged in, any sexual misconduct.”
Jay-Z, in his statement, challenged Buzbee to seek criminal charges and said his “heart and support goes out to true victims in the world.”
He also lamented that he and wife Beyoncé will likely have to address the claims with their three children and “explain the cruelty and greed of people.”
“I mourn yet another loss of innocence,” Jay-Z wrote.
Combs’ lawyers, in a statement, also dismissed Buzbee’s lawsuits as “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.”
Combs was denied bail a third time last month. He has pleaded not guilty to charges he coerced and abused women for years. His criminal trial is currently slated to begin on 5 May 2025.
