Skip to main content

Before his arrest and the numerous lawsuits and allegations of sex trafficking and abuse filed against Sean “Diddy” Combs, he was a titan in the music industry. Diddy was a producer who founded one of the most successful record labels and signed some of the most legendary and influential artists in hip-hop.

For years, Combs was treated like royalty and because of that, thought he should be rubbing elbows with some real-life royals. Now, someone who previously interviewed the disgraced music mogul is revealing that he had an obsession with Britain’s royal family and which member he was desperate to meet.

Here’s more on that, plus which royal was named in one of Diddy’s lawsuits.

(Top): Sean 'Diddy' Combs performing in London, (Bottom): Members of the British Royal Family standing on the Buckingham Palace balcony
(Top): Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs performing in London | Samir Hussein/Getty Images, (Bottom): Members of the British Royal Family standing on the Buckingham Palace balcony | DANIEL LEAL/AFP via Getty Images

Combs’ obsession with the British royals and which one he was desperate to meet

The news about Diddy’s “obsession” with Britain’s famous family comes after his former publicist Rob Shuter recently said that the “I’m Coming Home” hitmaker “thinks of himself as a king” and claimed that he even had framed pictures of some royals in his New York City apartment.

A journalist for The Telegraph recalled a 2008 interview they had with Diddy when his fascination with the royal family came up and he expressed his disappointment about not getting to meet his favorite royal of all which was Queen Elizabeth II.

According to a report in The Mirror, Diddy told the interviewer: “The Queen of England. I don’t know why I’ve never met her”. He was “visibly baffled” by not having had an audience with Her Majesty, quipping, “She’s never invited me to the palace — not yet, anyway.”

(R) Queen Elizabeth II at the Palace of Westminster, (L) Sean Combs is seen arriving to 'Jimmy Kimmel Live' Show
(R): Queen Elizabeth II at the Palace of Westminster | Tim Graham Picture Library/Getty Images, (L): Sean Combs is seen arriving to ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live’ Show | JOCE/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images

The royal who was named in a lawsuit against Diddy

The royals Diddy actually met are Prince William and Prince Harry.

The hip-hop star met the brothers when he performed during the “Concert For Diana” at Wembley Stadium in 2007. And in his 2023 memoir, Spare, Harry wrote about personally selecting Diddy to perform for the event. Shuter explained that Diddy tried for years to get the princes to attend his infamous parties but they never did. However, one sibling was named in a lawsuit against the rapper.

(L-R) Prince William, Kanye West, Prince Harry, and Sean 'Diddy' Combs during the Concert for Diana afterparty at Wembley Stadium
(L-R): Prince William, Kanye West, Prince Harry, and Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs during the “Concert for Diana” after party at Wembley Stadium | © Pool Photograph/Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images

Prince Harry was named in a $30 million lawsuit against the music mogul filed by producer Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones in February for sexual misconduct, grooming, and sex trafficking. The documents claimed that Combs’ affiliation with royal family members like Prince Harry gave him more “legitimacy.” The documents do not accuse the Duke of Sussex of criminal behavior or any wrongdoing.

Diddy is currently being held without bail at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn.

How to get help: In the U.S., call the RAINN National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline at 1-800-656-4673 to connect with a trained staff member from a sexual assault service provider in your area.