Inside Diddy’s ‘toxic’ work environment as former employees describe ‘erratic and threatening’ behavior while hip-hop star faces seven sexual assault lawsuits

Several former employees of Diddy‘s fashion brand Sean John and his now-defunct advertising agency have described a toxic work environment the hip-hop mogul is alleged to have cultivated.

An unnamed employee compared working for Diddy, whose real name is Sean Combs, to Game of Thronesthe violent fantasy HBO series, in an interview with The everyday beast.

Another said that during a meeting when she disagreed with him, the rapper told her, “When you talk to me, imagine you’re talking to him. Karl Lagerfeld. If I see something, I assume it’s from Karl Lagerfeld.’

‘At the time I had no reaction to that, and he reaches out and grabs my face. He puts a hand on each side of my cheeks and says, ‘Stick out your tongue,’ and then he squeezes my face harder and yells at me to stick my tongue out as he presses his hands on my face,” continued she.

These latest allegations come weeks after a horrific video was released showing Diddy physically assaulting his then-girlfriend Cassie Ventura in a hotel hallway in 2016, while the Bad Boy founder faced multiple sexual assault lawsuits.

Diddy, aka Sean Combs, attended his birthday party in London in November 2023

Diddy is seen dragging Cassie back to their hotel room after picking up her bags

Diddy told the female employee who had to show him her tongue that he “just wanted to see” if it was bleeding because she had bitten it.

‘From that moment on I immediately started looking for a job. I just didn’t feel like being there to undergo such treatment. You really have to idolize him and see him as an icon. I didn’t. I was just there to do my job,” she continued.

That employee said she wasn’t surprised when she saw Diddy and Cassie’s video.

‘I’m sorry it took so long. I hope he gets what he deserves.”

Another employee of the rap mogul said he was fired for making eye contact with Diddy. The singer showed up late for a meeting and the employee was disappointed.

“There was erratic behavior, there was certainly what I would consider mental abuse, [with] how he spoke to us as employees,” he said.

That employee said he was expected to work between 7 a.m. and 11 p.m. because of the “culture of fear” that existed in the offices.

‘[There was] a lot of profanity, a bit aggressive, in your face, physical in your face, kind of thing.”

When asked about his time with Sean John, he “always says it was the worst experience I ever had in my life,” he continued.

The former employees interviewed worked for Diddy’s fashion label Sean John as well as his advertising agency

The release of the Cassie video comes as Combs and his legal team began pushing back against the allegations that had been coming in a steady stream since November. The couple is shown here in 2016.

While another staffer said that because the offices were “inundated with work,” a specific project fell apart and Diddy refused to take responsibility for its failure.

“It was like walking down the street and out of nowhere someone threw a brick at your head.”

“If out of the blue he was dissatisfied with something you might not have done, but he thought you were, you caught a rock.”

During one altercation, security guards had to intervene when Diddy allegedly verbally assaulted the employee. “He was six inches from my face, yelling at him and telling me I messed up.”

Despite his experiences with Diddy, that employee said he was still surprised by the infamous Cassie video.

‘I didn’t see his anger getting that high, I really didn’t, I wouldn’t have stayed if I’d known what was going on. I’ll tell you.’

The release of the Cassie video comes as Combs and his legal team began pushing back against the allegations that had been coming in a steady stream since November.

They recently filed motions to dismiss parts of a lawsuit alleging he sexually assaulted a woman in 1991, and to dismiss the entire lawsuit alleging he and two other men sexually assaulted a 17-year-old girl in 2003 had raped.

The court records called both sets of allegations false.

On March 25, Homeland Security Investigations served search warrants at Combs’ homes in Los Angeles and Miami in a sex trafficking investigation.

His lawyer called it “a gross use of force at a military level.” The investigation continues. Combs are not charged.

Combs, a three-time Grammy winner and founder of Bad Boy Records, is among the most influential hip-hop producers and managers of the past thirty years.

He parlayed his hip-hop success into a broader business empire that includes private-label spirits, fashion and a TV network. Since the allegations surfaced, he has had to step down from some of his business positions.

He and Ventura started dating in 2007 and had an on-and-off relationship for over a decade.

She became known for the hit single Me & U, which reached number 1 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop charts in 2006. The song was the first single from her self-titled and only studio album.

As an actor, she has appeared in several television shows and films, including Fox’s Empire, Step Up 2: The Streets, and Spenser Confidential.