Over the years, I’ve seen people call my man Diddy a media whore, dancing buffoon and even a straight out a*shole. But, I have a lot of respect for this dude. See, regardless of what you’ve heard…Puff cares about the people. So, if you’re looking for an article disrespecting Diddy, you’re at the wrong place. But, if you want the unadulterated truth about this great man, please read on.
Now, for the record, I used to be one of those cats that threw dirt on the dude with the lightest feet in Hip-Hop. But, I was young then. I didn’t understand the game or the complexities associated with being a mogul. Plus, I couldn’t really dance, and I was a little jealous. But, I can tell you that Puff should definitely receive an award for his humanitarian efforts this year.
I bet you’re wondering, what has P-Diddy done that’s so special? How dare you try to bestow such a prestigious award on the man that hosted the City College party that left many maimed, crippled and dead…the man that sold Shyne down the river…the man that flew back to New York before Biggie’s body was even lukewarm. But see, you have to let go of the hate in order to understand the heart condition of this great man.
I know three people that will support my nomination: Jayson Phillips, Shawn Jacobs and David Styles. Professionally known as Jadakiss, Sheek Louch and Styles P. Ask them and I bet they’ll endorse Puff. Cause they know, at a time when Puff could have said, “Take that, Take that,” he didn’t. Read on…
As the story goes, The Warlocks were young street cats with a fair amount of rap swagger but little to no business sense. They wanted to get on, and who can blame them. They were stuck in the doldrums of Yonkers, which wasn’t exactly poppin’ at the time. Ruff Ryders wasn’t a motorcycle crew yet. And DMX was doing more robbing than rhyming.
The Queen of Hip-Hop and R&B introduces them to up and coming megastar Puff Daddy, he changes their name to The Lox, offers them the worst contract known to mankind, they cheese it up from ear to ear and seal the deal by signing all three of their John Hancocks on the dotted line. It’s as simple as that.
We fast forward a little bit to after they get on. They release a single called, “If you think I’m Jiggy (or sumthin’ like that),” an album (don’t remember the name) that gets less than rave reviews and the next thing you know they’re at Hot 97’s Summer Jam with “Free The Lox” t-shirts on…sh*ttin’ on Puff. Correct me if I’m wrong.
After careful consideration, Puff meets with the Ruff Ryders crew, they negotiate the Lox release from Bad Boy and Jayson Phillips, Shawn Jacobs and David Styles cheese it up from ear to ear and sign the second worst contract known to mankind. Once again, correct me if I’m wrong.
Now we fast forward quite a bit further. This is after mediocre group and solo albums, guest appearances, sabbaticals, tours and whatever else you can think of. And guess what? The Lox are still broke. And guess what else…they still blame P-Diddy for their situation. Hmm…little kids, don’t listen when you’re favorite rapper tells you that you don’t need to go to school to be successful.
Now come on man, no disrespect, but who’s to blame. They sell books on contracts and publishing. Plus there’s a hell of a lot of entertainment lawyers out there. But what do the Lox do, they go on Hot 97 again and disrespect Puff. “Let us eat Puff…Give us our publishing back…you ain’t a man!!!” Get a life. But, you can’t teach a dog new tricks, and apparently you can’t teach rappers from Yonkers how to read a contract either.
But, through all of this Diddy didn’t disrespect them. He told them to handle their business like men. And you know what else he did…he gave them their publishing back. He didn’t even entertain offers from their archenemy 50 Cent, who was very interested in buying Puff’s ownership of the group.
So, when you judge this great man, take into consideration what he did for one of your favorite rap groups this year. Cause if it was me, I would have taken that opportunity to get some get back. I would have gotten so deep in those n*ggas a*ses, they would of thought they were on an outtake reel from Brokeback Mountain.
All of the interviews when they dissed me would have came to mind…the mix tapes when they dissed me…the radio interviews and every other time they came out of their face would have fueled my emotions.
But, P-Diddy is a better man than me…a better man than most of us. He’s my nominee for Humanitarian of the Year. Support me on this one.
Written by: Igna Ramos
Igna Ramos is an 88HIPHOP community member from Bayshore, New York. He is an aspiring D-Jay and an automobile salesman. His views and allegations do not necessarily represent 88HIPHOP or its staff.