Guilty pleasures
By NewsPress Now
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ lawyer: Raids were ‘excessive’ use of military force
LOS ANGELES | Sean “Diddy” Combs’ lawyer said Tuesday that the searches of the rapper’s Los Angeles and Miami properties by federal authorities in a sex trafficking investigation were “a gross use of military-level force” and that Combs is “innocent and will continue to fight” to clear his name.
It’s the first public statement from the music mogul’s team since Monday’s raids of his homes by Homeland Security Investigations agents.
“Yesterday, there was a gross overuse of military-level force as search warrants were executed at Mr. Combs’ residences,” said the statement from attorney Aaron Dyer. “There is no excuse for the excessive show of force and hostility exhibited by authorities or the way his children and employees were treated.”
The searches were part of an ongoing sex trafficking investigation by federal authorities in New York, two law enforcement officials told The Associated Press. The officials were not authorized to publicly discuss details of the investigation and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity.
Combs was not detained and spoke to authorities, and neither he nor any family members were arrested, nor has their travel been restricted, according to Dyer’s statement.
Dyer said the “unprecedented ambush” has led to a “premature rush to judgment of Mr. Combs and is nothing more than a witch hunt based on meritless accusations made in civil lawsuits.”
“There has been no finding of criminal or civil liability with any of these allegations,” Dyer said. “Mr. Combs is innocent and will continue to fight every single day to clear his name.”
Combs’ sons, Justin and Christian “King” Combs, were handcuffed during the raid at their father’s residence in Los Angeles. King, 25, is a music artist whose song “Can’t Stop Won’t Stop” with Kodak Black topped Billboard’s Mainstream R&B Hip-Hop charts in 2022.
Law enforcement conducted the raid Monday at Combs’ multimillion-dollar mansion in the affluent Holmby Hills neighborhood in Los Angeles and his Miami waterfront home. Along with a heavy presence of officers, command trucks were parked outside both properties.
The criminal investigation is a major escalation in the scrutiny of Combs, who has been the defendant in several sexual abuse lawsuits in recent months.
In a lawsuit Combs settled the day after it was filed in November, his former protege and girlfriend, the R&B singer Cassie, sued him alleging years of sexual abuse, including rape. The lawsuit said he forced her to have sex with male prostitutes while he filmed them.
In February, a music producer filed a lawsuit alleging Combs coerced him to solicit prostitutes and pressured him to have sex with them.
Another of Combs’ accusers was a woman who said the rap producer raped her two decades ago when she was 17.
Combs and his attorneys have denied all of the lawsuits’ allegations.
The AP does not typically name people who say they have been sexually abused unless they come forward publicly as Cassie did.
Combs is among the most influential hip-hop producers and executives of the past three decades. Formerly known as Puff Daddy, he built one of hip-hop’s biggest empires, blazing a trail with several entities attached to his famous name. He is the founder of Bad Boy Records and a three-time Grammy winner who has worked with a slew of top-tier artists including Notorious B.I.G., Mary J. Blige, Usher, Lil Kim, Faith Evans and 112.
Combs’ network of non-music business ventures, including lucrative private-label spirits, sportswear fashion and a TV network, has been falling apart since the abuse lawsuits began surfacing.
His vodka and tequila deal with Diageo, a major producer of distilled spirits, formally disintegrated in January when the two parties settled mutual lawsuits, leaving the brands in Diageo’s hands.
His fashion line, Sean John, has disappeared from Macy’s, one of the line’s primary partners; Sean John items remain for sale at Walmart’s online store, although many items are heavily marked down or available only in off-sizes.
And last November, Combs resigned as chairman of Revolt TV, which focuses on music and social justice issues for African Americans.
Ariana DeBose to host Tony Awards for the third straight time
NEW YORK | It’s a new location but the same host for the Tony Awards: Ariana DeBose will make it three in a row as MC of theater’s most watched event, which this year moves uptown to Lincoln Center.
The Academy Award winner and Tony Award nominee, who hosted both the 2023 and 2022 ceremonies, will be back this year for the show on June 16, and will produce and choreograph the opening number.
“I couldn’t pass up the chance to host the Tonys one more time, at Lincoln Center. I’m excited to collaborate with the team to create an incredible celebration of this season’s achievements on Broadway for our community and for everyone at home,” said DeBose in a statement.
DeBose was widely cheered for the way she hosted last year amid the Hollywood writers’ strike, leading a show that had no script and opening the telecast by dancing and leaping her way through the lobby of the United Palace Theatre. She earned an Emmy nomination for her work.
DeBose is a theater veteran, with roles in “Summer: The Donna Summer Musical,” “Hamilton,” “A Bronx Tale,” “Pippin,” “Motown the Musical,” “Bring It On: The Musical” and “Company.” She won an Oscar for her role in Steven Spielberg’s remake of “West Side Story” and was in “Schmigadoon!” on Apple TV+.
This year’s location — the David H. Koch Theater — is the home of New York City Ballet and in the same sprawling building complex as Lincoln Square Theater, which houses the Broadway venue Beaumont Theater.
Like last year, the three-hour main telecast will air on CBS and stream on Paramount+ from 8 p.m.-11 p.m. EDT/5 p.m.-8 p.m. PDT with a pre-show on Pluto TV, with some Tony Awards handed out there.
The Tony eligibility cut-off date for the 2023-2024 season is April 25, and nominations for the 2024 Tony Awards will be announced April 30. The awards are presented by The Broadway League and the American Theatre Wing.
Last year, the intimate, funny-sad musical “Kimberly Akimbo” took the best new musical crown, and Tom Stoppard’s “Leopoldstadt,” which explores Jewish identity with an intergenerational story, won best play. Sean Hayes won lead actor in a play for “Good Night, Oscar,” and Victoria Clark won for “Kimberly Akimbo.”
The British Museum is suing a former curator it says stole 1,800 items
LONDON | The British Museum went to court Tuesday against a former curator alleged to have stolen hundreds of artifacts from its collections and offered them for sale online.
The museum is suing Peter Higgs, who was fired in July 2023 after more than 1,800 items were discovered to be missing. Lawyers for the museum say Higgs “abused his position of trust” to steal ancient gems, gold jewelry and other pieces from storerooms over the course of a decade.
High Court judge Heather Williams ordered Higgs to list or return any items in his possession within four weeks. She also ordered the disclosure of his eBay and PayPal records.
The museum says it has recovered 356 of the missing items so far, and hopes to get more back.
“The items that have been stolen from the museum are of cultural and historical significance,” museum lawyer Daniel Burgess said in written legal arguments.
Burgess said the defendant tried to “cover his tracks” by using fake names, creating false documents, manipulating the museum’s records and selling artifacts at less than their value.
Higgs, who worked in the museum’s Greece and Rome department for more than two decades, denies the allegations and intends to dispute the museum’s legal claim.
He did not attend Tuesday’s hearing due to poor health, lawyers said.
A separate police investigation into the case is ongoing, and Higgs has not been charged with a crime.
Museum director Hartwig Fischer resigned after the loss of the items was revealed in August, apologizing for failing to take seriously enough a warning from an art historian that artifacts from its collection were being sold on eBay.
Chairman of trustees George Osborne has acknowledged that the reputation of the 265-year-old institution has been damaged by the episode.
The 18th-century museum in central London’s Bloomsbury district is one of Britain’s biggest tourist attractions, visited by 6 million people a year. They come to see a collection that ranges from Egyptian mummies and ancient Greek statues to Viking hoards, scrolls bearing 12th-century Chinese poetry and masks created by the Indigenous peoples of Canada.
Beyoncé shares ‘Cowboy Carter’ track list ahead of album
Buckle up, cowpoke: On Wednesday, Beyoncé shared the track list for her forthcoming album, “Act ll: Cowboy Carter.”
“Cowboy Carter” arrives Friday, but fans got a sneak peek on the superstar’s Instagram account, when she shared an image that appears to include the titles of her songs: from the previously released “Texas Hold ‘Em” and “16 Carriages,” now including “American Requiem,” “Blackbird,” “Protector,” “My Rose,” “Bodyguard,” “Daughter,” “Spaghetti,” “Alligator Tears,” “Smoke Hour ll,” “Just For Fun,” “ll Most Wanted,” “Levi’s Jeans,” “Flamenco,” “Ya Ya,” “Oh Louisiana,” “Desert Eagle,” “Riverdance,” “ll Hands ll Heaven,” “Tyrant,” “Sweet Honey Buckin,” and “Amen.”
One song appears to be called “The Linda Martell Show,” a reference to the groundbreaking country performer who became the first Black woman to play the Grand Ole Opry.
There’s also mention of “Dolly P” — likely a reference to Dolly Parton — and a track titled “Jolene,” a reference to one of Parton’s best-known songs.
Earlier this month, in an interview with Knox News celebrating the seasonal opening of her amusement park Dollywood, Parton said she thinks Beyoncé has recorded a cover of her 1973 hit.
“Well, I think she has,” she said. “I think she’s recorded ‘Jolene’ and I think it’s probably gonna be on her country album, which I’m very excited about that.”
The track list also mentions “Smoke Hour Willie Nelson,” but it is not immediately clear if Nelson is involved with the project.
—From AP reports
