Update: Diddy’s Attorney Speaks Out After Media Mogul Is Blamed For Failed Partnership w/ Liquor Company Diageo: ‘It’s A Cynical & Transparent Attempt To Distract From Multiple Allegations Of Discrimination’

Diddy

Update: Diddy’s Attorney Speaks Out After Media Mogul Is Blamed For Failed Partnership w/ Liquor Company Diageo: ‘It’s A Cynical & Transparent Attempt To Distract From Multiple Allegations Of Discrimination’

Update: (Jun. 28, 2023): Diddy is standing by his serious claims that Diageo racially profiled and neglected his tequila brand.

His attorney addressed the ongoing legal dispute with the alcohol company in a statement shared with us and said,

“Diageo attempting to end its deals with Mr. Combs is like firing a whistleblower who calls out racism. It’s a cynical and transparent attempt to distract from multiple allegations of discrimination. Over the years, he has repeatedly raised concerns as senior executives uttered racially insensitive comments and made biased decisions based on that point of view.”

As previously reported, In May Diddy filed a lawsuit against Diageo over claims that the company has neglected him and his tequila brand DeLeon due to racial discrimination. However, the UK-based alcohol company soon fired back and said that Diddy’s accusations are false and his “bad-faith actions” breached his contracts. Diageo also ended its partnership with Diddy.

Diddy’s lawyer added,

“Diageo even acknowledged the problem by agreeing in his contract to treat DeLeon the same way it treated their other tequila brands. He brought the lawsuit to force them to live up to that contract, and instead they respond by trying to get rid of him. This lawsuit and Mr. Combs are not going away.”

Tarik Brooks, the president of Combs Global, weighed in as well and said,

“It’s absurd for Diageo to suggest that a Black person should be quiet and accept racism or discrimination because they earned a lot of money. Sean Combs is a spirit’s pioneer who has accomplished historic success with Ciroc. He will always fight to be treated fairly.”

Original story: (Jun. 27, 2023): Looks like one of Diddy’s partnerships is coming to an end.

After suing his former liquor partners Diageo PLC for alleged discrimination, the alcohol giant is reportedly cutting ties with the musician, and had a lot to say about their failed partnership.

As we reported back in May, Sean ‘Diddy‘ Combs made shocking allegations against Diageo, claiming the company racially profiled and neglected his tequila brands. The hip hop legend has distributed several of his popular alcohol lines in partnership with Diageo, including Ciroc and the newer released DeLeón tequila. Diddy accused the company of stunting his brands’ growth by underfunding them and labeling them “urban,” versus for the general market.

In response, Diageo reportedly called the accusations bogus and is seeking for a court judge to dismiss the suit, declaring they will be cutting ties with the billionaire moving forward. Their statement reportedly read:

“We are saddened that Mr. Combs has chosen to recast a business dispute as anything other than that and chosen to damage a productive and valued partnership. Mr. Combs’ bad-faith actions have clearly breached his contracts and left us no choice but to move to dismiss his baseless complaint and end our business relationship.”

Additionally, Diageo claimed that Diddy himself is actually responsible for their deteriorated partnership, continuing:

“Mr. Combs has repeatedly undermined our partnerships and threatened to publicly defame Diageo if we did not meet his unreasonable financial demands…We tried for years to salvage the broken relationship with Mr. Combs. We funded the purchase of DeLeón for the joint venture and proceeded to invest more than $100 million to grow the brand. Despite having made nearly a billion dollars over the course of our 15-year relationship,”

P. Diddy

And adding:

Mr. Combs contributed a total of $1,000 and refused to honor his commitments.”

Further in the statement, the liquor giant further elaborated on their claims. Allegedly, their initial partnership with Diddy was an equal joint investment. However, Diaego says the Grammy award winner contributed a mere $1,000 to their $100 million investment. The statement additionally read:

“From its inception, the Combs Parties failed to fulfill their duty to fund the JV as an equal, fifty-percent owner with Diageo, investing a mere $1,000, while Diageo has invested over $100 million in funds…he Combs Parties’ failure to fund the JV created a contentious relationship, severely damaged the DeLeón brand at a critical juncture, and stalled its promise and potential for growth for several years.”

Reportedly, the company says Diddy’s suit is simply an attempt to force courts to shake them down for money using baseless racism claims. A matter has not been decided on the case at this time.

[VIA]

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