by
Shareif
Ziyadat/Getty
Images)
Rappers
have
a
long
history
of
making
outlandish
claims
about
how
much
staying
power
their
careers
will
have.
One
of
the
boldest
happened
on
Biggie’s
1997
hit
“Mo’
Money
Mo’
Problems.”
On
it,
Sean
Combs
nonchalantly
delivered
a
huge
flex:
10
years
from
now,
we’ll
still
be
on
top.
As
it
turned
out,
all
of
that
bravado
was
ultimately
an
understatement:
Bad
Boy
and
Sean
Combs
are
still
household
names
almost
30
years
later.
And
while
that
longstanding
degree
of
fame
and
notoriety
is
great
for
moguls
playing
the
long
game,
it’s
a
horrible
proposition
for
prosecutors
trying
to
form
an
impartial
jury
for
Combs’s
trial.
Reuters
has
coverage:
On
Monday,
with
his
criminal
trial
on
sex
trafficking
charges
just
weeks
away,
Combs’
lawyers
will
start
their
search
for
jurors
who
have
not
yet
made
up
their
minds
about
the
artist
and
entrepreneur
once
known
as
“Puff
Daddy.”Hundreds
of
New
York
residents
who
have
been
summoned
for
jury
duty
will
arrive
at
the
federal
courthouse
in
Lower
Manhattan
this
week
to
fill
out
questionnaires
asking
them
what
they
already
know
about
the
case.
It
is
the
first
step
toward
seating
a
panel
of
12
jurors
and
six
alternates
that
will
determine
Combs’
fate
after
a
trial
expected
to
last
eight
to
10
weeks.
It
would
have
been
hard
enough
to
hear
this
case
in
Wyoming,
but
New
York?
While
they’ve
definitely
lost
some
steam
over
the
years,
Bad
Boy
still
stands
as
one
of
the
most
influential
record
labels
in
hip-hop.
Combs
also
has
a
lot
of
infamy
wrapped
up
in
that
fame
—
many
people
have
long
been
suspicious
of
his
alleged
involvement
in
both
Biggie
and
2Pac’s
murders,
not
to
mention
a
whole
slew
of
strong-arming
attached
to
his
name,
like
allegedly
firebombing
Kid
Cudi’s
car.
And
if
those
associations
with
violence
weren’t
enough,
King
Troll
50
Cent
has
done
his
fair
share
of
dragging
what
was
left
of
Combs’s
name
through
the
mud
whenever
possible:
The
only
way
Brian
Steel
and
company
are
going
to
get
a
neutral
jury
is
if
they
strike
any
juror
who’s
listened
to
rap
music
or
been
on
YouTube
for
the
last
10
years
from
the
pool.
Good
luck
with
that.
How
Will
The
Jury
Be
Chosen
For
Sean
‘Diddy’
Combs’
Sex
Trafficking
Trial?
[Reuters]
Chris
Williams
became
a
social
media
manager
and
assistant
editor
for
Above
the
Law
in
June
2021.
Prior
to
joining
the
staff,
he
moonlighted
as
a
minor
Memelord™
in
the
Facebook
group Law
School
Memes
for
Edgy
T14s.
He
endured
Missouri
long
enough
to
graduate
from
Washington
University
in
St.
Louis
School
of
Law.
He
is
a
former
boatbuilder
who
is
learning
to
swim, is
interested
in
critical
race
theory,
philosophy,
and
humor,
and
has
a
love
for
cycling
that
occasionally
annoys
his
peers.
You
can
reach
him
by
email
at [email protected] and
by
tweet
at @WritesForRent.