FILE - Music mogul and entrepreneur Sean"Diddy" Combs arrives at the Billboard Music Awards in Las Vegas on May 15, 2022. Spirits giant Diageo says its cutting ties with Combs following his move to sue the company over allegations of racism in the handling of his liquor brands, according to a Tuesday, June 27, 2023 court filing.
Combs says Diageo's treatment of DeLeon worsened after it bought two competing tequila brands: Don Julio in 2014 and Casamigos in 2017. Combs, who is Black, says Diageo positioned his tequila as an inferior “urban” brand and limited its distribution.. In late June, it asked the court to compel arbitration or dismiss the suit. It is also in the process of terminating a partnership between Combs and Ciroc vodka, a brand he had promoted since 2007.
Combs claims Diageo’s decisions were often tinged with racism. He said he was adamant that DeLeon not offer flavored versions until customers had more time to learn about the brand. But Diageo went ahead and developed a watermelon flavor, even though Combs had previously warned the company to be careful about the racist history of watermelon in a brand aimed at Black consumers.
In his lawsuit, Combs said he only signed on to promote Ciroc Summer Watermelon after educating the company about watermelon and getting assurances from Diageo that it would be sensitive to any negative connotations. Combs also differentiated Ciroc — which has more than a dozen flavors — from DeLeon, which would have introduced watermelon as its first flavor.
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