Jay-Z has spoken out about a lawsuit filed in 2024 that accused him, along with Sean “Diddy” Combs, of raping a 13-year-old girl at a 2000 event.
In a cover story for GQ published on Tuesday, March 24, the 56-year-old rapper described his experience of 2025 as “really hard” and “heartbreaking.” He expressed relief at addressing the matter directly, noting, “I was really heartbroken by everything that occurred. We’re in a space now where it’s almost like consequence is not thought about enough. Because everything is so instant, you know what I’m saying?”
The Grammy Award winner addressed the lawsuit allegations directly, firmly denying them once more.
“That whole [lawsuit thing], that s*** took a lot out of me. I was angry. I haven’t been that angry in a long time, uncontrollable anger,” he stated. “You don’t put that on someone — that’s a thing that you better be super sure.”
Jay-Z reflected on how, in the past, allegations would not surface without proof.
“You had to be super sure before you put those kind of things on a person. Especially a person like me,” he explained. “Even when we were doing the worst things, we had those kind of rules. There was a line: no women, no kids. You hear those sayings, but those are the things that I took from the street. We lived and died by that. So it’s strict for me, like it meant a lot to me.”
The “99 Problems” artist emphasized the personal impact of the allegations, stating, “I knew that we were going to walk through that because, first of all, it’s not true. And the truth, at the end of the day, still reigns supreme.”
In December 2024, a civil lawsuit was filed against Jay-Z and Diddy, accusing them of drugging and raping a 13-year-old girl at an MTV Video Music Awards afterparty in 2000. Jay-Z refuted the allegations at that time, describing them as “heinous” and questioning why the alleged victim did not pursue a criminal complaint instead of a civil one.
“Whomever would commit such a crime against a minor should be locked away, would you not agree? These alleged victims would deserve real justice if that were the case,” Jay-Z commented. “My only heartbreak is for my family. My wife and I will have to sit our children down, one of whom is at the age where her friends will surely see the press and ask questions about the nature of these claims, and explain the cruelty and greed of people. I mourn yet another loss of innocence.”
Jay-Z filed a new motion to dismiss the lawsuit accusing him of raping a 13-year-old girl more than 20 years ago, requesting to impose sanctions on the accuser’s lawyer. The 55-year-old rapper filed the new motion on Wednesday, January 8, after being granted permission to do so by United States District Judge Analisa Torres. In […]
Diddy also denied the allegations through his legal representation.
“As his legal team has said before, Mr. Combs has full confidence in the facts and the integrity of the judicial process,” his attorneys stated. “In court, the truth will prevail: that Mr. Combs never sexually assaulted or trafficked anyone — man or woman, adult or minor.”
In February 2025, the accuser withdrew her lawsuit, and it was dismissed “with prejudice,” preventing it from being refiled. Subsequently, Jay-Z initiated a defamation lawsuit against the accuser and her lawyers. One of her attorneys, Tony Buzbee, asserted that the defamation lawsuit had “no legal merit” and maintained that the accuser stood by her account.
Five months later, a judge dismissed the defamation lawsuit against Buzbee and the accuser.
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
