Former protégé Aubrey O'Day has spoken out about her contentious history with Diddy, alluding to past allegedly abusive behavior. In the wake of Diddy's recent sex trafficking allegations, O'Day claims his arrest is a "win for all women."
Years before Sean "Diddy" Combs' arrest on multiple sex trafficking charges, his former protégé Aubrey O'Day had spoken out about her contentious history with the rapper on multiple occasions – often alluding to his past allegedly abusive behavior.
"[Diddy] plays one of the dirtiest games there is around," O'Day, who rose to fame while appearing on the third season of Diddy's MTV show "Making the Band" in 2005, previously told Cosmopolitan of her former boss.
Diddy Sex Trafficking Charges: Aubrey O'Day's History and Reaction
More recently, in the wake of Diddy now facing new sexual abuse allegations from 120 accusers, including minors, the Danity Kane alum spoke up on X (formerly Twitter), claiming his "behavior could've been stopped," but said his arrest is a "win for all women.""His behavior could have been stopped long before things like this broke our hearts to read," she wrote on Oct. 1. "His abuse didn’t have to reach me & many others including women, men, & minors who will forever traumatize an entire industry."
Aubrey O'Day first met Diddy while starring on MTV's "Making the Band" in 2005. O'Day has not been implicated in Diddy's criminal case. (Getty Images)
Diddy Sex Trafficking Charges: Aubrey O'Day's History and Reaction
"He is a soulless human inside of a systemic problem within the entertainment industry that has been [run] by soulless people before he even hit the scene," she continued. "So many people have tried to warn you, but his charisma fooled you. A lot of people are responsible for keeping him in a place of power & visibility, and if that part resonates [with] you, may you feel the same grieving that all of his victims won’t ever be able to fully repair."
O'Day first crossed paths with Diddy while competing on season three of MTV’s "Making The Band" nearly two decades ago. Three years later, the rapper fired O'Day from Danity Kane during the season four finale.
Diddy Sex Trafficking Charges: Aubrey O'Day's History and Reaction
During an episode of the "Call Her Daddy" podcast in 2022, O'Day claimed she was let go because she "wasn’t willing to do what was expected of [her] – not talent-wise, but in other areas."
O'Day claimed she was fired from Danity Kane because she "wasn’t willing to do what was expected of [her] – not talent-wise, but in other areas." (Getty Images)
Diddy Sex Trafficking Charges: Aubrey O'Day's History and Reaction
"You know, I have such a love-hate with it all because I don’t think I would have been able to be so successful in so many other areas had, I not been trained under Diddy," she told host Alex Cooper, per Rolling Stone. "He was the hardest person that you can work for, and it was torture. And not the work part of it, but the other stuff – mind games. There was a lot of betrayal, there was a lot of lies."
One year later, after Cassie Ventura filed a lawsuit against Diddy in which she claimed she endured "over a decade" of Diddy's "violent behavior and disturbed demands," O'Day shared her support for the singer, noting that she had been warning people "for years."
Diddy Sex Trafficking Charges: Aubrey O'Day's History and Reaction
"Been trynna tell y’all for years," she wrote on an Instagram story, per Rolling Stone. "Prayers up for this queen @cassie," In a repost of a story on the lawsuit, she captioned, "Only day ya’ll are gonna put some respect on my name when I tell you things."
Earlier this year, O'Day told People magazine that she didn't "feel vindicated at all" by the multiple allegations held against Diddy.
Diddy Sex Trafficking Charges: Aubrey O'Day's History and Reaction
"There's no vindication when you're a victim of someone.... Anyone being exposed, or any truths being told, don't change the reality of what you experienced," she said."It's a forever thing that you have to wake up every day and choose to evolve past. It doesn't go away," she added. "It's like childhood trauma. We don't like to think it just disappears in our thirties, but really we start realizing how bad it really is in our thirties."
On Friday, O'Day addressed a fan's question when asked why she and the rest of the Danity Kane crew allowed Diddy to treat them so poorly throughout the years.
Diddy Sex Trafficking Charges: Aubrey O'Day's History and Reaction
"We weren’t given choices my love," she responded on X. "We were not ‘free minded adults’ either (also that’s too loaded a statement to break down for you at 1am)."
"And I can only speak for danity kane, but none of us showed up for fame, we all kinda agreed that part of our job was annoying and trivial. We wanted to sing, to share our passion with the world. The one thing you said that is correct is, no one should have to be victimized on the road to achieving their dreams."
Diddy was arrested and charged with racketeering conspiracy; sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion; and transportation to engage in prostitution. He faces a minimum of 15 years behind bars and a maximum sentence of life in prison if found guilty.
