A timeline of the rise and fall of Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs

For more than two decades Sean Diddy Combs was one of hip-hop s bulk opportunistic entrepreneurs spinning his hitmaking talents into a broad business empire that included a record label a fashion brand a TV grid deals with liquor companies and a key role in a reality TV show But U S prosecutors say that behind the scenes Combs was coercing and abusing women with help from a structure of associates who helped silence casualties through blackmail and violence Combs has pleaded not guilty and denied the claims Jury selection for his trial starts Monday Here is a timeline of major events in his rise and fall FILE Rap artist and music producer Sean Puffy Combs center leaves a court hearing at New York s Manhattan Criminal Court on April after Combs was charged with beating rap record executive Steven Stoute the previous day AP Photo Robert Mecea File FILE Cassie Ventura left and Sean Diddy Combs appear at the premiere of Can t Stop Won t Stop A Bad Boy Story on June in Beverly Hills Calif Photo by Chris Pizzello Invision AP File FILE Cassie Ventura left and Sean Combs appear at The Metropolitan Museum of Art s Costume Institute benefit gala on May in New York Photo by Evan Agostini Invision AP File FILE Nominated for four Grammy Awards Sean Puffy Combs appears at Arista Records pre-Grammy party in New York on Feb in New York AP Photo Stuart Ramson FILE Federal enforcement officers stand outside the Metropolitan Detention Center where Sean Diddy Combs is incarcerated on Oct in the Brooklyn Borough of New York AP Photo Yuki Iwamura File FILE A law enforcement agent carries a bag of evidence to a van as federal agents stand at the entrance to a property belonging to rapper Sean Diddy Combs on March on Star Island in Miami Beach Fla AP Photo Rebecca Blackwell File FILE Law enforcement personnel walk on a street near after federal law enforcement executed a raid at a property belonging to Sean Diddy Combs on March in Los Angeles AP Photo Eric Thayer File FILE Rapper Sean Puffy Combs arrives at the Manhattan District Attorney s office in New York on Jan where Combs and his girlfriend Jennifer Lopez were to appear before a grand jury inspecting the Times Square nightclub shooting that left three people injured in late Dec AP Photo Kathy Willens File FILE Rapper-producer Sean Puffy Combs answers questions at a news conference on Dec in New York a day after he was arrested and charged with weapons possession after police allegedly determined a stolen pistol in his car as he and actress-singer Jennifer Lopez left a nightclub where three people were shot and wounded AP Photo Suzanne Plunkett File Show Caption of FILE Rap artist and music producer Sean Puffy Combs center leaves a court hearing at New York s Manhattan Criminal Court on April after Combs was charged with beating rap record executive Steven Stoute the previous day AP Photo Robert Mecea File Expand Combs then a aspirant at Howard University gets his start in the music business with an internship at Uptown Records in New York Dec Nine people die at a celebrity basketball encounter promoted by Combs and the rapper Heavy D when thousands of fans try to get into a gym at the City College of New York A mayoral account lays part of the blame for the catastrophe on poor planning by Combs Combs is one of the executive producers on What s the the debut album by Mary J Blige After being fired by Uptown Combs establishes his own label Bad Boy which hastily cuts a lucrative deal with Arista Records Bad Boy releases Notorious B I G s album Ready to Die Two months later Tupac Shakur survives a shooting in New York and accuses Combs and Biggie of having prior knowledge of the attack which they deny Shakur was later killed in a shooting in Las Vegas Combs is convicted of criminal mischief after he allegedly threatened a photographer with a gun Biggie is killed in Los Angeles Combs then known as Puff Daddy releases I ll be Missing You in honor of his slain star Combs wins two Grammys one for best rap album for his debut No Way Out and another for best rap performance by a duo or group for I ll Be Missing You with Faith Evans Also that year Combs Sean John fashion line is founded April Combs and his bodyguards are charged with attacking Interscope Records music executive Steve Stoute in his New York office in a dispute over a music video Combs is sentenced to an anger management module Dec Combs is arrested on gun possession charges after he and his girlfriend at the time Jennifer Lopez fled a shooting that wounded three people at a New York City nightclub Particular bystanders tell police Combs was among the people shooting in the club He is later charged with offering his driver to claim ownership of the mm handgun unveiled in his car March Combs is acquitted of all charges related to the nightclub shooting One of his rap proteges Jamal Shyne Barrows is convicted in the shooting and serves nearly nine years in prison Two weeks after the trial Combs announces he wants to be known as P Diddy Combs becomes the producer and star of Making the Band a talent-search TV show Feb Combs performs at the Super Bowl halftime show along with Janet Jackson Justin Timberlake and others A week later Combs Nelly and Murphy Lee win a Grammy for best rap performance by a duo or group for Shake Ya Tailfeather April Combs makes his Broadway acting debut in A Raisin in the Sun Combs announces he is changing his stage name to Diddy getting rid of the P Related Articles Trump threatens a tariff on foreign-made films saying the movie industry in the US is dying Celeb biographer spotlights Warhol s Muses Dear Abby Wife chooses gambling over marriage Kimberly Akimbo playwright goes from Southie to stardom Dear Abby Mom dumps her problems on teen March Combs settles a lawsuit brought by a man who suggests Combs punched him after a post-Oscar party outside a Hollywood hotel the previous year In May Combs is honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame Combs is arrested after a confrontation at UCLA in Los Angeles where one of his sons played football Assault charges are later dropped Combs launches the Capital Preparatory School charter school in Harlem Also that year he announces he is donating million to Howard University Combs is named the top earner on Forbes list of the highest-paid celebrities which says he brought in million in a single year Kim Porter Combs former girlfriend and mother of three of his children dies from pneumonia at age Combs receives a lifetime honor at the BET Awards September Combs releases The Love Album Off the Grid his first solo studio project since s chart-topping Press Play Nov R B singer Cassie sues Combs alleging he subjected her to years of abuse including beatings and rape A day later the lawsuit is settled under undisclosed terms Combs through his attorney denies the accusations Nov Two more women accuse Combs of sexual abuse in lawsuits Combs attorneys call the accusations false Dozens of additional lawsuits follow by women and men who accuse Combs of rape sexual assault and other attacks Plaintiffs include singer Dawn Richard a Making the Band contestant who alleged years of psychological and physical abuse Combs denies all the claims March Federal agents search Combs homes in Los Angeles and Miami Beach Florida May CNN airs video that shows Combs attacking and beating Cassie in a hotel hallway in Los Angeles in Two days later Combs posts videos on social media apologizing for the assault Sept Combs is arrested at his Manhattan hotel A sex trafficking and racketeering indictment unsealed the next day accuses him of using his business empire to coerce women into participating in sexual performances Combs denies the assertions His attorney calls it an unjust prosecution of an imperfect person May Jury selection is scheduled to begin for Combs trial