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There are certain celebs who just aren’t doing an adequate job of reading the room in regard to the increasing controversy and turmoil surrounding deeply embattled music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs.
Last week, in response to news of Diddy’s numerous rape and sex trafficking allegations, Tyrese felt it was absolutely necessary to express his support and compassion for Diddy and remind the public what the Bad Boy CEO “means to me and all of us and what he has done for the community of music and culture.”
Now, Nick Cannon appears to be picking up the Diddy apologist baton and running with it.
From USA Today:
On Monday, Cannon, 43, resurfaced a February episode of his “Counsel Culture” show in which he discussed the music mogul with Iyanla Vanzant. The recording was prior to Homeland Security Investigations raiding two of Combs’ homes in connection to alleged sex trafficking.
“I find difficulty when I’m asked about people that I know about. It was either ‘The Breakfast Club’ or Angela Yee or something, and they asked me about Puff. I answered it as honestly as I knew how to answer it,” he said. “I kind of said, ‘I’m praying for Cassie. … This is someone who was hurt, who was victimized.'”
Cannon added, “I know these people. They’re not just public figures to me, so I have to almost do this dance about when it comes up, because just as much as I know Diddy, I know Cassie.”
It just doesn’t seem to occur to Cannon, Tyrese and other celebs who are friends with celebs accused of sexual violence that they have the option of saying nothing.
If Cannon truly believes that singer Cassie Ventura, who accused Diddy of rape, was “hurt” and “victimized,” why feel compelled to say anything at all about the man she accused of doing the hurting and victimizing? Again, why not just keep all of your thoughts in the drafts rather than go out of your way to express support for someone who very well may turn out to be a violent rapist?
More from USA Today:
Cannon added that even though he felt sympathy toward Cassie, it made him question: “So what about Puff?”
“I don’t know how to feel about that. When I was going through my stuff, someone that called, checked on me, stood by me, stood up for me, and I was like, what do I owe?” he continued, presumably referring to his antisemitic comments in 2020.
Yeah, bro, having a podcast conversation that was widely perceived as antisemitic, while bad, is not comparable to being accused of sex trafficking and sexual assault by multiple women and at least one male producer.
Anyway, Vanzant tried to point out to the Wild N’ Out creator that he doesn’t actually need to save as Diddy’s unofficial publicist just to maintain a friendship with him, to which Cannon defiantly responded, “But as a friend, as a brother, I want to defend.”
“But that’s not your job,” Vanzant said.
“That’s not my job,” Cannon repeated. “So your advice to me is sometimes you just say, I reserve comment.” (YES, negro, that’s exactly what you’d do!)
“So that goes back to what this is all about—healing in the public eye,” Cannon continued. “As our brotherhood, he shouldn’t be in the public.”
What is Cannon even talking about here? Diddy is arguably among the most famous and recognizable music moguls in the world. It is beyond delusional to expect a scandal this large involving allegations this serious not to be aired out before the “public.” And what does Diddy’s “healing,” whether in or outside the public eye, have to do with Cannon and his very public inability to simply keep his thoughts to himself on this particular matter?
In the immortal words of the great Jill Scott: “…Or maybe we can just be silent.”
