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Jay-Z Demands Anonymous Rape Accuser Name Herself

LAWYERING UP

Lawyers for the legendary rapper argued that his accuser should be required to name herself—or the case should be dismissed.

Jay-Z
Timothy Nwachukwu/Getty Images

Lawyers for Jay-Z, the rapper born Shawn Carter, argued that the anonymous victim who accused the hip-hop legend of raping her when she was 13 alongside disgraced music mogul Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs should be required to identify herself for the lawsuit to move forward.

The shocking sexual assault allegations against Carter, 55, were revealed after his name was added to a civil lawsuit filed by an alleged victim of Combs, the founder of Bad Boy Records who is facing numerous federal charges of sex trafficking and racketeering.

The suit was filed by Tony Buzbee, a Texas attorney representing a number of people who say they were sexually assaulted and/or drugged by Diddy since his rise to fame in the 1990s. In this particular case, a woman accused both Carter and Combs of drugging and raping her at an afterparty following the 2000 Video Music Awards. The victim stated she was 13 at the time.

But in a new filing on Monday, attorneys for Carter asked a judge to reject the plaintiff’s request to continue the lawsuit under a pseudonym, or dismiss the case entirely.

Sean “Diddy” Combs and Jennifer Lopez at the 2000 MTV VMAs.
Sean “Diddy” Combs and Jennifer Lopez at the 2000 MTV VMAs. KMazur/Kevin Mazur Archive 1/WireImage

In a separate letter sent to the judge the same day, an attorney for the rapper accused Buzbee of orchestrating a “months-long press campaign aimed at inflaming public opinion.”

In a statement sent to the Daily Beast, representatives for Carter said this step was necessary so the rapper could “properly defend himself against this false claim through the legal process in a transparent manner.”

The filing on Monday also confirmed that Carter was the anonymous A-list celebrity that sued Buzbee earlier in November.

Monday’s filing stated that the Texas-based attorney “has a history of targeting celebrities by making false allegations of misconduct, and Mr. Carter sought to expose Attorney Buzbee’s latest extortion scheme in [a] California lawsuit on November 18, 2024, after receiving a demand letter from Attorney Buzbee.”

Buzbee did not immediately return a request for comment from the Daily Beast, but previously slammed the lawsuit against him as “laughable.” The attorney told NBC News “anyone that suggests that a demand letter, especially the one that I sent, is extortion or blackmail, is foolish.”

Buzbee previously said that Carter was trying to “bully and harass me and this plaintiff,” but praised the alleged victim for withstanding the criticism levied by the rapper. “She is emboldened. I’m very proud of her resolve.”

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