After more than a decade, the partnership between alcoholic beverage company Diageo and Sean “Diddy” Combs is no more.
Source: Penske Media / Getty
After months of making headlines, Diddy and Diageo announced in a joint statement Tuesday that they have completely cut ties and that they settled a lawsuit in which Diddy accused the company of being racist and neglecting his vodka and tequila brands.
CNBC reports that in a statement, the London-based company and the Bad Boy music mogul said they “have now agreed to resolve all disputes between them.”
“Mr. Combs has withdrawn all of his allegations about Diageo and will voluntarily dismiss his lawsuits against Diageo with prejudice,” the statement continued, adding that Diageo and Diddy have “no ongoing business relationship, either with respect to Cîroc vodka or DeLeón tequila, which Diageo now solely owns.”
The partnership between Diageo and Diddy began in 2007 through the latter’s company Combs Wines and Spirits, which linked up with Diageo to promote his popular vodka brand Cîroc. In 2013, they partnered up again with the purchase of tequila brand DeLeón. But last year, the partnership hit a hell of a snag when Diddy filed a lawsuit accusing Diageo of racial discrimination and claiming the company neglected Cîroc and DeLeón and marketed them as “urban” brands.
Diddy will no longer be affiliated with either.
Of course, Diddy has been no stranger to legal battles as of late having recently (and rapidly) settled a lawsuit alleging rape and abuse by singer Cassie. That lawsuit was followed up by other filings by women who also claimed to have been abused by Combs. In fact, last November, Diageo filed a letter seeking to prevent Diddy from appearing in any DeLeon tequila ads after Cassie’s allegations went public.
According to CNBC, Diageo is “one of the largest spirits companies in the world with a nearly $80 billion market value” and owns more than 200 alcohol brands outside of the two that tied the company to Diddy.
Details of the settlement have not been made public.
