Sean “Diddy” Combs and Diageo have reportedly “resolved all disputes” and will head in separate business directions moving forward.
“Sean Combs and Diageo 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 Combs has withdrawn all of his allegations about Diageo and will voluntarily dismiss his lawsuits against Diageo with prejudice,” a statement provided to Jem Aswad and Brian Steinberg of Variety reads.
“Diageo and Mr. Combs have no ongoing business relationship, either with respect to Cîroc vodka or DeLeón tequila, which Diageo now solely owns.”
The dispute stems back to May 2023 when Combs sued Diageo, which distributes Ciroc, DeLeón, Johnnie Walker and Captain Morgan. The music producer turned business mogul accused the distributor of not providing the same level of marketing support for Ciroc and DeLeón as it did for other assets in its portfolio. He also accused Diageo of marketing Ciroc and DeLeón to “urban” audiences, rather than to the general market.
“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,” Combs’s attorney John C. Hueston stated.
“iageo 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.”
In response, Diageo produced a counter-filing accusing Combs of failing to meet the obligations he previously agreed to and asked for the suit to be dismissed.
“Diageo believes strongly in the CIRÔC and DeLeón brands and remains committed to their success, which is why we tried for years to salvage the broken relationship with Mr. Combs. We funded the purchase of DeLeón for the joint venture and proceeded to invest more than $100 million to grow the brand,” a statement from Diageo reads.
“Despite having made nearly a billion dollars over the course of our 15-year relationship, Mr. Combs contributed a total of $1,000 and refused to honor his commitments.”
