Former Bad Boy Records artist Shyne recently went into some jaw-dropping detail regarding his dealings with Diddy. Born Moses Michael Levi Barrow, the rapper spoke on his stint while incarcerated and his life subsequent to his release with the music mogul.
It all started back in December of 1999, when Shyne was involved in a nightclub shooting at Club New York in Manhattan. Along with Diddy and then-girlfriend Jennifer Lopez in tow, Shyne had an incredibly wild night that would alter the course of his life. While Diddy and Lopez walked away free, Shyne was convicted of assault and reckless endangerment and went away to prison for 10 whole years.
Shyne felt a deep sense of betrayal while he was in jail. He recalls with bitterness one visit at Rikers Island from Diddy. “He came to see me once, and I tried to spit in his face,” Shyne revealed. “I didn’t even know he was coming to see me. They just brought me down in the lawyer’s office.” Far from comforting, that visit only deepened the abandonment Shyne felt.
This is in 2009, right after Shyne was released; he expected major, major support from Diddy in accordance with the situation. However, he was highly disappointed. “He probably gave me like 50 racks [$50,000], and I’m like, ‘You can’t be serious. That’s ten years? Fifty racks?'”
Shyne wasn’t happy with the amount since, according to him, it was too little against what he had sacrificed. He suggested a high level of contrast between his $50,000 and the $500,000 shopping spree that Diddy went on with Cassie after his release.
In 2012, Shyne even went all the way to Paris to meet Diddy, hoping for some reconciliation and more significant in-depth gesture of support.
“I was still in a place of, he owes me my life. He’s a billionaire. If it wasn’t for me, he wouldn’t have been a billionaire,” Shyne said. He believed that, at the time, his silence and loyalty during the trial greatly affected Diddy’s career. “If I would have cooperated with the district attorney, he’d have went to jail, and heaven only knows what would have happened to his career.”
Both revelations have thrown the fans and the members of the public into a frenzy of reactions; some side with Shyne, who feels betrayed as he deserved more from Combs for his loyalty, while others feel that the situation is deeper, with both Shyne and Diddy having their take on what transpired.
But Shyne has made a new path for himself. He’s now a politician in Belize, serving as Leader of the Opposition, and is currently promoting his new documentary, “The Honorable Shyne.” The film touches on his life story, touching on prison time and, of course, his tumultuous relationship with Diddy.
Shyne’s transformation from promising rapper into a political figure really says a lot about his strength. He continued to share how he understood more of the sacrifices he made and the challenges during and after prison.
Ultimately, Shyne’s revelations about `Diddy `really give shape to the multi-dimensional nature of their relationship and how one nightclub shooting on one fateful night in 1999 changed the course of their lives. The extent to which disappointment characterizes the past, Shyne is determined to forge ahead, having his experiences inspire others as he rewrites his story.
