Suge Knight's Hip-Hop Feud with Diddy Revived in Cassie's Trial Testimony

Marion "Suge" Knight , the former music magnate and hip-hop executive who had a public feud with Sean "Diddy" Combs In the 1990s, it has returned to prominence with Combs' focus. federal sex-crimes trial .

The co-founder of Death Row Records, whose California-based label clashed with Combs' Bad Boy Records during the East Coast-West Coast hip-hop rivalry, came up during testimony at Combs’ trial. criminal case in a Manhattan courthouse on May 13.

Combs is charged with sex trafficking, racketeering, and facilitating prostitution through transportation after being arrested in September 2024.

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Combs' ex-girlfriend, Casandra "Cassie" Ventura Fine , alluded to the music executives' long-standing rivalry as she testified from the witness stand, discussing firearms reportedly kept at Combs' residences, along with other alleged misconduct by the rapper.

Ventura Fine stated that Combs departed from his residence during what they called a "wild exit" in Los Angeles after receiving information from a security detail that Knight was at a restaurant closeby. These "wild exits" refer to events involving explicit sexual acts, which federal authorities allege were organized by Combs as part of an purported illegal operation.

When Combs left, Ventura Fine stated she exclaimed to him, “Please don’t do anything reckless,” all while screaming and crying out of fear.

The knight has similarly encountered his own challenges. a fair share of legal troubles Over the years, he has had several periods in prison and jail. The ex-record company boss, who got arrested in 2015 for allegedly being involved in a hit-and-run accident that resulted in the death of businessman Terry Carter, apparently settled for $1.5 million in the wrongful death lawsuit on April 29, as reported. Rolling Stone .

The knight has been imprisoned for 28 years after pleading no contest to voluntary manslaughter.

Cassie clarifies involvement in alleged Suge Knight confrontation

Ventura Fine shed more light on the alleged confrontation between Combs and Knight.

On May 15, during the cross-examination, lawyers for Combs contested Ventura Fine’s version of events, referencing an incident from June 2024 where she recounted to prosecutors having been transported in a vehicle while sobbing as Combs and his bodyguard, “D-Roc,” allegedly made their way to Mel's Diner to face off against Knight.

When questioned regarding the inconsistency in her memory of the supposed incident, Ventura Fine stated, "There might have been a misinterpretation since that never occurred."

What caused the conflict between Suge Knight and Diddy?

As the leaders of two of hip-hop's leading record companies during the 1990s, Knight and Combs found themselves entangled in controversy. genre's well-known East Coast-West Coast rivalry , which was highlighted by the feud between rap artists Tupac "2Pac" Shakur and Christopher "The Notorious B.I.G." Wallace .

Born in New York, Shakur came to represent the West Coast after signing with the Los Angeles-based label Death Row Records. He frequently exchanged verbal barbs with fellow rappers Wallace and Combs, both of whom were from the East Coast and affiliated with the New York City-based Bad Boy Records.

Knight appeared to call out Combs while attending the Source Awards in August 1995, making critical remarks about a music producer who makes frequent appearances in his artists' songs and music videos, which Combs was known to do .

"Anyone out there who wanna be a recording artist and wanna stay a star and don't have to worry about the executive producer trying to be all in the videos, all on the records, dancing, come to Death Row," Knight reportedly said at the time.

Shakur and Wallace were both killed in drive-by shootings six months apart in September 1996 and March 1997, respectively. Knight drove the Black BMW that Shakur was traveling in at the time of the shooting. Knight was grazed by a bullet fragment or shrapnel from the car, while Shakur was shot four times, at least twice in the chest.

Two years before Tupac's passing, the artist was injured in a shooting when he was ambushed during a robbery in the entrance hall of a Midtown Manhattan hotel in November 1994. He sustained multiple gunshot wounds and had $40,000 stolen from him.

Tupac publicly charged Wallace and Combs with being aware of the shooting beforehand, but they strongly refuted these claims.

(The narrative has been updated to include additional details.)

Contributing: USA TODAY staff

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Suge Knight's hip-hop beef with Diddy resurfaces in Cassie Ventura's trial testimony