Sean “Diddy” Combs once claimed to be a billionaire. But is that true? This is what is known about his net worth.
He is one of the most influential figures in American music history. But after his impressive rise, the deep fall now follows. Sean “Diddy” Combs is under investigation and is currently in prison. How have the serious allegations affected his career and fortune? And how rich is the music star really?
The now 54-year-old made his first steps into the music industry in 1990 when he worked as an intern for the record label Uptown Records. Two years later he founded his own label, Bad Boy Records. He discovered talents like Usher and Mary J. Blige, but also produced his own music. According to a report by Business Insider, his record label brought in about $130 million annually at its peak. According to Highsnobiety magazine, he earns $100 million in royalties from his own music.
But it wasn’t just music that made him a wealthy man. Sean Combs reached out beyond the music industry and founded his own clothing brand, Sean John, in 1998. In 2016, when the majority stake was sold to Global Brands Group, it was said that the brand had retail sales of $450 million and Sean Combs earned a total of $70 million from the company.
In 2007, a profitable cooperation with the beverage manufacturer Diageo followed. They worked together for 15 years, during which time Sean Combs earned a total of almost $1 billion. This emerged from court documents. Last year, Sean Combs filed a lawsuit accusing his business partner of racial discrimination. In the end, he received another $200 million from the company. In return, he had to withdraw his lawsuit and get out of the business.
In the early 2010s, Sean Combs turned to acting. He starred in the comedy film “Men’s Trip” and appeared in series such as “Entourage”, “Hawaii Five-0” and “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia”. However, there are no reports showing how much Diddy earned from each of these deals.
“I always dreamed of being successful in music, obsessed with fashion and becoming the single greatest Black entrepreneur who ever lived,” Combs once said. He has come close to his goal. In 2019, Forbes estimated his personal wealth at $740 million. Both Sean Combs and his team later claimed that he was now a billionaire. Last year, his net worth was actually estimated at $1 billion. In the hip-hop industry, he was the second richest man behind Jay-Z.
Sean Combs used his wealth for further investments and the purchase of luxury goods. He owned two houses that he used privately: one in Miami and one in Los Angeles. Both properties are said to be worth over $40 million each. However, he put his Los Angeles mansion up for sale a few months ago after it was searched as part of the investigation. He is also said to own other properties worth several million US dollars.
He also purchased a private jet, owned $1 million in jewelry and bought 20 cars, including a Rolls-Royce Phantom, a Maybach 57, a Ferrari 360 Modena Spider and a Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder, according to GQ magazine. He also acquired an impressive art collection with works by Andy Warhol, Keith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat. In 2018, he bought the painting “Past Times” by Kerry James Marshall for a whopping $21.1 million, as the New York Times reported.