Only Murders in the Building actress Selena Gomez once had a bizarre encounter with disgraced rapper Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, years before the music mogul was arrested.
Combs, 54, was arrested at a New York City hotel on September 16 and subsequently held without bail on federal charges including sex trafficking, racketeering and transportation for prostitution. Despite the allegations, Combs has denied all charges and his lawyer has claimed that the music mogul is “an innocent man who has nothing to hide.”
While Combs is currently being held at the Brooklyn Metropolitan Detention Center, historic videos showing a young Justin Bieber and Combs have resurfaced on social media and left many fans of the Baby singer concerned, with thousands calling Combs’ comments towards a teenage Bieber “creepy.”
Gomez, who dated Bieber on and off from 2009 to 2018, recalled in 2016 how her then-boyfriend’s mentor once mistook her for a valet and had no idea who she was. In an interview with GQ, Gomez compared fame to being in a four-person champagne party, where someone is laughing without anyone telling a joke, and later stated candidly, “Or when P. Diddy gave me his valet ticket one time.”
“You know what I mean?” Gomez, 32, asked her interviewer Zach Baron, but the journalist confessed to his ignorance. “Because he thought I was the valet,” Gomez clarified. “What?” Baron explained, and the Spring Breakers actress Gomez simply replied, “Yeah!”
However, Gomez, who shared heartbreaking news about her fertility earlier this month, admitted that she wasn’t offended by the snub at the time and actually found it funny. “Look, I see it all. I don’t care, I actually laughed hysterically when it happened. But I get it,” she explained. “I know what this is all about.”
Selena Gomez and Justin Bieber enjoyed an on-again, off-again relationship for nearly a decade (Image: WireImage)
Teen singer Justin Bieber spent a lot of time with Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs as a teenager (Image: FilmMagic)
Combs was arrested on Monday, September 16 in New York City for sex trafficking and extortion. He has been denied bail on several occasions and is currently being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Brooklyn. Combs has pleaded not guilty to the charges and has denied any wrongdoing. His attorney Marc Agnifilo told reporters outside court on Tuesday, September 17: “Mr. Combs is a fighter, he’s going to fight to the end. He’s innocent. He came to New York to prove his innocence. He’s not afraid, he’s not scared of the charges.”
Bieber, who spent a lot of time with Combs as a minor, collaborated on Combs’ latest record in September 2023, before allegations were made against the rapper, but is now said to regret his involvement in The Love Album: Off The Grid. “Bieber is so distraught by the Diddy news and is unwilling to process or discuss it, so he has gone offline,” a source revealed last week.
“A lot of people who helped make him who he is were very close to Diddy and it has completely thrown him off balance,” they revealed to the Daily Mail. The Peaches singer, who recently welcomed a son into the world with wife Hailey Bieber, is believed to be so upset that he has decided not to speak out about any of the allegations.
The source went on to claim that Bieber is now reconsidering his involvement with Combs’ latest album, hinting that if Bieber had known, he would have stayed away. The pop star has also reportedly taken a “long break” from being in the group.
