Diddy is an ageless wonder.
His list of accomplishments, impact and tenure can be stacked up against any of the greats — not to mention he managed to build an empire in the process.
With almost three decades in the industry and going (see his credits to Nipsey Hussle’s Victory Lap), the term legend could not be more fitting.
As Diddy races Jay-Z to a billion, he has been even more in the forefront of the public’s attention as of late. He’s the face of Ciroc, a judge on the latest national singing competition, The Four: Battle for Stardom, he changed his name to (Brotherly) Love, and he’s been pretty active on his social platforms promoting Black excellence.
It made sense that GQ decided to do a spread and sit-down with the hip-hop mogul.
If you know anything about Diddy you know he has a lot to say and means every word when he say’s it. And on cue, he delivered quite the gems in this spread.
Here are the five jewels from the interview.
Diddy’s name is Love, seriously
After first claiming he was kidding when he initially announcing the name change, it appears Diddy actually going through it. It’s not Puff Daddy, P. Diddy, Diddy or any other variation. It’s Love. He tells GQ,
“I like re-inventing. That’s probably why I have so many name changes. It’s why I follow David Bowie and Madonna.”
Culture keeps Diddy going
Diddy is creeping up on 50. He’s won Grammys, has money, the dream girl, the fly kids. So what keeps him going? When posed the question he responded: “My culture.” He continued,
“I want to be an authentic, unapologetic warrior for Black culture and the culture of the street and how it moves. My thing is most importantly to change the narrative of the Black race. I can’t relate to anything that isn’t about that.”
And what a time to be immersed in the culture. One could argue that now, more than ever, the demand for Black culture is at an all-time high. Even with ongoing systematic hurdles, the African-American experience is inescapable.
Seeing this power, Diddy sees potential in the ability of tapping into it for the betterment of it’s creators: us.
Diddy is building an app with Jay-Z
In the GQ interview Diddy also reveled that he and Jay Z were working on an app that would help Blacks locate Black-owned businesses near them, making it easier to spend money within the community. He said,
“This is not about taking away from any other community. We’ll still go to Chinatown. We’ll still buy Gucci! But the application will make it possible for us to have an economic community. It’s about blacks gaining economic power.”
Love and Jay-Z have been in talks of advancing the culture forward, and what better way than helping connect.
Diddy’s son wants to run Bad Boy
The write-up ventures a bit to Diddy’s sons, as the interview and photoshoot took place at their home. In talking in brief to Diddy’s oldest son, Justin, it came to light that he one day saw himself running the Bad Boy empire. He said,
“I want to be the second coming of him. Just being around my dad and seeing what he looks for in talent, that’s very exciting.”
The fact that Diddy is already grooming his son and planning on passing it down from in-house is dope.
I’m sure it’s going to be some time from now, but when it’s time, Justin will be ready to take Bad Boy to the next level.
Diddy went to Sedona, Arizona to beat depression
Love still hasn’t properly dealt with the passing of Biggie, the deceased rapper and Brooklyn legend who highly was regarded as the best rapper of all-time and one of his closest friends.
When asked if he’s seen a therapist about it, he answers that he hasn’t. According to the the rapper/producer, he tried to get into it but hurt too bad. “That’s a time that’s still suppressed,” he admits.
He didn’t state whether it was in relation to the healing that hasn’t taken place, he Diddy admitted that he fell into depression two years ago and that he felt “far away from God.” So he went to Sedona, Arizona where the vortexes are.
It is there where Brotherly Love reconnected with his magic. He was hearing new songs in his head. “I’m not 100 percent knowing how to come up with the sounds yet,” he said, but he felt almost ready to compete on the radio again.