When Renee Foster was hired to be the director of communications at Andre Harrell’s Uptown Records, Sean ‘Puff Daddy’ Combs had been working there as an intern since 1990.
“He was very respectful,” Ms. Foster told The Epoch Times about Mr. Combs. “His mother would show up on our job, and we would sit up straight.”
Today, Mr. Combs is a media mogul facing multiple allegations of sexual impropriety, and Ms. Foster is the director of communications at the Hip Hop Museum in the Bronx.
“Whatever the [plaintiffs] are referring to happened after my era with him,” Ms. Foster said in an interview. “He was already an established executive at Bad Boy [Entertainment] when many of these things that are alleged came out. So, I’m not dragging him. I wasn’t there.”
Ms. Foster was among a crowd of people who attended the unveiling of the book “Women Behind the Mic: Curators of Pop Culture,” which was created, compiled, and edited by LaJoyce Brookshire and Michelle Joyce.
The event took place at the Microsoft Research Labs at 300 Lafayette Street in Manhattan on Monday afternoon.
On Feb. 26, a lawsuit was filed against Mr. Combs by attorney Tyrone Blackburn on behalf of the plaintiff, Rodney Jones, in the Southern District federal court of New York.
His complaint alleges racketeering as well as sexual assault and sex trafficking.
Although Ms. Brookshire’s new book includes 22 stories, known as mic checks, of women executives who worked behind the scenes of the music industry, she said it does not touch on what Mr. Combs is dealing with now.
The plaintiff, Mr. Jones, is also a former co-worker of Mr. Combs. He was reportedly a producer on nine songs that were developed in 2022 and 2023 that were released on Mr. Combs’ latest album “The Love Album: Off the Grid.”
Mr. Combs’ attorney, Shawn Holley, denies Mr. Jones’ allegations.
“Mr. Jones is nothing more than a con man, shamelessly looking for an easy and wholly undeserved payday,” Mr. Holley told The Epoch Times in an email. “We have indisputable, incontrovertible proof that his claims are complete fabrications.”
Mr. Jones seeks a jury trial and $30 million.
His attorney, Mr. Blackburn, did not respond to requests for comment.
“Mr. Blackburn has refused to return our calls,” Mr. Holley added. “We look forward to addressing these ridiculous claims in court and intend to take all appropriate action against all who are attempting to peddle them.”
Mr. Jones’ lawsuit against Mr. Combs isn’t the first to be filed.
In Nov. 2023, R&B singer Cassie Ventura sued Mr. Combs, alleging sexual violence, human trafficking, and gender-motivated violence.
Ms. Ventura’s case was settled for an undisclosed sum a day after the lawsuit was filed.
Mr. Combs posted a statement on X denying the allegations.
The Hip Hop Museum, located in the Bronx, is scheduled to open in 2025.
Regardless of the allegations, Ms. Foster believes references to Mr. Combs should be included in the museum’s relics.
“I’m not a curator or an archivist,” she said. “The work that Sean Combs has done absolutely has a place there, but as far as the history goes, in terms of what the curators will submit, that I don’t know.”
Thembisa Mshaka, a 32-year music industry veteran turned voiceover artist, told The Epoch Times that it’s important to believe abuse survivors.
Her essay about singer Lauryn Hill is in the “Women Behind the Mic” book.
“I know about the Cassie settlement and I think it’s unfortunate that the system is so broken and does not believe survivors to the point where someone like her takes the civil route,” Ms. Mshaka said in an interview at the March 11 event.
