Diddy Releases A Statement After Diageo Moves To Sever Ties Amid Lawsuit

Sean "Diddy" Combs has responded to the unexpected move by Diageo to terminate their longstanding partnership.

On Tuesday, June 27, Diageo, the liquor company who has been in business with Diddy's liquor brands for well over 15 years, decided to sever its ties with the Bad Boy founder after he filed a lawsuit in which he accused the London-based company of racism. According to its recent filing in court, Diageo's legal team reportedly responded to the lawsuit by sending Diddy's attorneys a notice of intent to arbitrate alleged breaches of the DeLeón agreement and a notice of termination for their Cîroc relationship.

“Diageo attempting to end its deals with Mr. Combs is like firing a whistleblower who calls out racism," Diddy’s attorney John C. Hueston said in a statement to iHeartRadio. "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. 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.”

According to court documents, Diageo claimed that Diddy's "bad-faith actions" qualified as a breach of contract. Lawyers for the spirits giant claim the rapper and entrepreneur wasn't a team player when it came to providing appropriate funding to assist DeLeón's growth. They said he only contributed $1,000 to the cause while Diageo “provided 100% of the funding" for their joint venture. After emphasizing Diddy's billionaire status, Diageo stated their total investment in DeLeón amounted over $100 million.

“We have exhausted every reasonable remedy and see no other path forward," Diageo said in a statement.