Sean Combs' extravagant White Party events symbolized the zenith of his cultural sway.
Nowadays, individuals are not keen on affiliating themselves with the current disgraced and imprisoned entrepreneur and music producer.
Combs is looking at a life sentence if found guilty in the Southern District of New York, accused of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking, and arranging prostitution. He has pleaded not guilty.
This situation has brought attention to Combs' former lifestyle.
Allegedly, this lifestyle included "Freak Offs," which according to the accusations, involved Combs drugging and forcing victims into engaging in extended sexual acts with male sex workers, starting around 2009.
The accusations have stirred discussions about the contrast between Combs' influential cultural status at his peak, such as the large White Parties he hosted from 1998 to 2009, and the alleged behavior he was accused of in the years that followed.
"Modern-day Rich Man"
Combs reportedly started hosting these annual parties in 1998 to establish his presence in the exclusive Hamptons community of New York. His aspiration was to merge his hip-hop lifestyle with the East Coast elite and "strip away everyone's image and put us all in the same color, and on the same level," Combs told Oprah Winfrey in a 2006 interview.
"I had the craziest mix: some of my boys from Harlem; Leonardo DiCaprio, fresh off 'Titanic,'" Combs said. "I had socialites there and relatives from down south. There were 200 people sitting out here, just having a backyard barbecue."
Not everyone in the enclave was on board with the idea.
"The people in the Hamptons thought the first party was the end of the world," Steven Gaines, author of “Philistines at the Hedgerow: Passion and Property in the Hamptons,” told The Hollywood Reporter in 2018. "They were afraid of a loud showbiz crowd and thought it was going to be an invasion, and it turned out not to be."
For his part, Combs saw himself as a modern-day Jay Gatsby, the fictional character of F. Scott Fitzgerald's 1925 novel “The Great Gatsby,” a millionaire who lived in Long Island and was portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio in the 2013 film adaptation.
"Have I read The Great Gatsby?" Combs told The Independent in 2001. "I am the Great Gatsby!"
"It doesn’t seem to bother Combs that Gatsby’s life ended in shattered dreams, his well-heeled friends exposed as fickle and insincere," the publication noted at the time.
"Iconic"
The soirees were popular from the start, attracting entertainment figures and industry titans.
The initial guest list reportedly maxed out at 1,000 people, all of whom were required to dress fully in white, according to THR.
"Having an entire party all dressed in white was a striking sight," domestic doyenne Martha Stewart, a guest at Combs' first party, told THR in 2018.
Socialite and businesswoman Paris Hilton described the initial event as "iconic and everyone was there."
CNN has reached out to representatives for Stewart and Hilton for comment.
The parties spread beyond Labor Day events to include Fourth of July celebrations and changed locations to include Los Angeles and Saint-Tropez.
Combs used some of the parties as fundraisers for various causes he supported, showcasing his social influence at the time.
"The party seemed to get bigger and bigger as corporate sponsors hopped on board and Combs used it to launch colognes, vodka, and even philanthropic efforts," GQ reported in 2016.
"The last official White Party on record, in 2009, took place in Los Angeles," the publication reported. "But at its core, Puff Daddy’s [Combs’] White Party was the ultimate backyard barbecue, capturing a slice of pop culture that’s hard to believe mingled together today."
Photos from over the years show cross-generational guests in attendance.
"We gonna keep on having fun"
As Combs faces legal allegations, some have been reevaluating past coverage of his parties for insight into his private life.
A clip from a 1999 interview with “Entertainment Tonight” where Combs talked about his White Parties resurfaced on social media this week.
"They don’t want me to throw the parties no more," Combs said. "But we ain’t going to stop. We gonna keep on having fun. Bringing people together from all walks of life."
He even makes a prediction.
"You gonna hear about my parties," Combs said. "They gonna be shutting them down, they gonna probably be arresting me, doing all kinds of crazy things just because we want to have a good time."
Despite the legal allegations against him, Combs' White Parties were known for bringing together individuals from various walks of life and showcasing his social influence in the entertainment industry. Conventionally dressed in white, these parties attracted celebrities and industry titans, becoming a popular event that even spanned to Los Angeles and Saint-Tropez. (From the text)
In response to the ongoing legal issues, an old interview clip from "Entertainment Tonight" featuring Combs resurfaced on social media, where he expressed his intention to continue the parties and predicted potential backlash for wanting to have a good time with diverse groups of people. (Extra sentence derived from the text)
