Music mogul Jay-Z (real name Shawn Carter) has been accused of raping a 13-year-old girl alongside P Diddy (real name Sean Combs). Carter has labelled the allegation as a “blackmail attempt” and denied all wrongdoing.
Combs, who is currently awaiting trial amidst battling a number of allegations relating to sexual assault and trafficking, also denies raping a teenager, along with all other accusations levelled at him. He is due to stand trial 5 May 2025 and has 30 pending cases against him.
A new lawsuit from an anonymous claimant alleges that the rape took place in a private residence following the MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) in New York in 2000. It also claims that an unnamed female celebrity was in the room at the time of the attack.
Known only as ‘Jane Doe’, the claimant says she was dropped off at the VMAs by a friend and approached a limo belonging to Combs. She says Combs’ driver told her she was a good “fit for what Diddy was looking for” and was then driven to a white house for an afterparty. Here, Doe says she was told to sign a document, something she now believes was possibly a Non-Disclosure Agreement (known as an NDA).
The lawsuit was originally filed solely against Combs in October but has now been refiled to include Carter’s name also.
Posting on social media via the Roc Nation account, Carter wrote: “My lawyer received a blackmail attempt, called a demand letter, from a ‘lawyer’ […] What he had calculated was the nature of these allegations and the public scrutiny would make me want to settle. No sir, it had the opposite effect!”
He added, “My only heartbreak is for my family. My wife and I will have to sit our children down, one of whom is at an age where her friends will surely see the press and ask questions about the nature of these claims, and explain the cruelty and greed of people […] You have made a terrible error in judgement thinking that all ‘celebrities’ are the same […] I look forward to showing you how different I am.”
Carter married singer Beyoncé Knowles in 2008 – she has not posted anything online since the allegation was made public. The couple are believed to have first met at some point between 1999 and 2000, and now share three children: Blue Ivy, Sir and Rumi
Combs was previously in a decade-long relationship with singer Cassie Ventura, who last year accused him of abuse, trafficking and rape – claims which were settled a day later out of court with no admission of guilt from Combs. Later, CCTV footage from hotel, which appeared to show Combs attacking Ventura in a corridor, was released. Combs admitted wrongdoing in this instance but continued to deny all other allegations.
Cosmopolitan UK has reached out to Combs and Carter’s representatives for comment.
 Jennifer Savin is Cosmopolitan UK’s multiple award-winning Features Editor, who was crowned Digital Journalist of the Year for her work tackling the issues most important to young women. She regularly covers breaking news, cultural trends, health, the royals and more, using her esteemed connections to access the best experts along the way. She’s grilled everyone from high-profile politicians to A-list celebrities, and has sensitively interviewed hundreds of people about their real life stories. In addition to this, Jennifer is widely known for her own undercover investigations and campaign work, which includes successfully petitioning the government for change around topics like abortion rights and image-based sexual abuse. Jennifer is also a published author, documentary consultant (helping to create BBC’s Deepfake Porn: Could You Be Next?) and a patron for Y.E.S. (a youth services charity). Alongside Cosmopolitan, Jennifer has written for The Times, Women’s Health, ELLE and numerous other publications, appeared on podcasts, and spoken on (and hosted) panels for the Women of the World Festival, the University of Manchester and more. In her spare time, Jennifer is a big fan of lipstick, leopard print and over-ordering at dinner. Follow Jennifer on Instagram, X or LinkedIn.