Willy Sanjuan/Invision/AP
While the high-profile life of hip-hop mogul Sean Combs (aka Diddy) has taken a downward turn, his music is enjoying a surge on Spotify.
About a week after he was arrested in New York City and charged with sex trafficking, racketeering, and transportation to engage in prostitution, Combs remains in a Brooklyn detention center while awaiting trial. But on Spotify, people have been seeking out his music — as his streaming stats on the platform jumped up dramatically following his arrest. The Associated Press wrote on Monday:
Under his many professional monikers – including Diddy, Puff Daddy and P Diddy – the industry data and analytics company Luminate said the mogul’s music saw an average 18.3% increase in on-demand streams during the week of his 17 September arrest compared to the previous week.
The AP spoke to George Howard, distinguished professor of music business management at Berklee College of Music, about the rise in Diddy’s popularity following the criminal charges:
“Music just becomes another piece of information as people try to comprehend the atrocities,” Howard told The Associated Press. “It’s like, ‘What would someone whose brain works like that, allegedly, what would their music sound like?'”
He added: “The natural curiosity that these types of charges evoke makes sense. It’s like driving by a car crash. People want to look.”
Combs was put on suicide watch at the Brooklyn Detention Center after he was denied bail twice.
