So what happened that night back in 2013? As the story goes, at a MTV VMAs after-party, Diddy found himself back in ‘90s mode when he happened upon Kendrick Lamar, who had just dropped his thunderous “Control” verse—the one where he shouted out every one of his rap peers (J. Cole included) before declaring his intentions to “murder” them, and also crowned himself the King of New York, even though he’s from LA. Puffy took umbrage with this flex and reportedly tried to pour a drink on Kendrick’s head (that part has been
hotly disputed, though) at which point a nearby Cole intervened, and a scuffle ensued between their crews. Cole’s right-hand-man Ibrahim Hamad disputed some of the wilder allegations
then and
continues to now (who knows, maybe that 2020 tweet is what inspired Cole to finally address it), but as Cole’s lyrics make clear
something happened, just nothing too serious.
The J. Cole-Diddy Scuffle, Explained