Jay-Z made rare comments about his wife Beyoncé and their three children after being accused in a civil lawsuit of raping a 13-year-old girl along with Sean “Diddy” Combs in 2000.On Sunday, Dec. 8, the rapper, 55, spoke out about the allegations tied to a federal lawsuit that was originally filed in October, which listed Combs, also 55, as a defendant. It has now been amended to include Jay-Z.In one section of a denial statement shared on X (formerly Twitter), Jay-Z said the “heinous” claims will affect his family, which includes 12-year-old daughter Blue Ivy and twins Rumi and Sir, 7.”My only heartbreak is for my family,” he said. “My wife and I will have to sit our children down, one of whom is at the age where her friends will surely see the press and ask questions about the nature of these claims, and explain the cruelty and greed of people.”
Jay-Z, whose real name is Shawn Carter, added, “I mourn yet another loss of innocence.”In the amended civil lawsuit, a woman identified only as Jane Doe alleges that she was assaulted after she was driven to an MTV Video Music Awards afterparty in 2000.The woman claims she was raped by Combs and Jay-Z while a still-unnamed female celebrity watched during a party in a New York City residence following the annual music event.The unnamed Jane Doe is seeking unspecified damages, and her attorney, Tony Buzbee, previously announced that he was representing more than 100 people accusing Combs of misconduct.Combs, who was recently denied bail for a third time and is still being held in a federal prison in Brooklyn on sex trafficking and racketeering charges after his arrest in September, has his trial scheduled for May 2025.Sean Combs, and Jay-Z attend Sean Combs 50th Birthday Bash presented by Ciroc Vodka on December 14, 2019 iSean ‘Diddy’ Combs and Jay-Z in December 2019. Combs’ attorneys denied the allegations put forth by the Jane Doe in a statement to PEOPLE.“This amended complaint and the recent extortion lawsuit against Mr. Buzbee exposes his barrage of lawsuits against Mr. Combs for what they are: shameless publicity stunts, designed to extract payments from celebrities who fear having lies spread about them, just as lies have been spread about Mr. Combs,” the statement said.”As his legal team has said before, Mr. Combs has full confidence in the facts and the integrity of the judicial process,” the statement continued. “In court, the truth will prevail: that Mr. Combs never sexually assaulted or trafficked anyone — man or woman, adult or minor.”
Elsewhere in his lengthy response to the filing, Jay-Z said it was a “a blackmail attempt” and spoke out against Buzbee.”What he had calculated was the nature of these allegations and the public scrutiny would make me want to settle. No sir, it had the opposite effect! It made me want to expose you for the fraud you are in a VERY public fashion. So no, I will not give you ONE RED PENNY!!” the “Empire State of Mind” musician wrote in part of the lawyer.”These allegations are so heinous in nature that I implore you to file a criminal complaint, not a civil one!! Whomever would commit such a crime against a minor should be locked away, would you not agree? These alleged victims would deserve real justice if that were the case,” he continued.
“You have made a terrible error in judgement thinking that all ‘celebrities’ are the same. I’m not from your world. I’m a young man who made it out of the project of Brooklyn. We don’t play these types of games. We have very strict codes and honor. We protect children, you seem to exploit people for personal gain,” Jay-Z added.
against me that, if not for the seriousness surrounding harm to kids, would be laughable,” he concluded. “I look forward to showing you just how different I am.”Jane Doe’s attorney Buzbee told PEOPLE in a statement, “The pleading speaks for itself. This is a very serious matter that will be litigated in court.”If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to rainn.org.
