Sean “Diddy” Combs is being sued by ‘The Love Album: Off the Grid’ producer Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones Jr. for sexual assault and harassment, sex trafficking and various other forms of misconduct. Jennifer Lopez opened up about the celebrities who passed on being included in her film “This Is Me… Now: A Love Story.’ BTS’ J-Hope has released the tracklist for his upcoming album ‘Hope on The Street’ Vol. 1.’ Romeo Santos is joining Aventura for one final tour. And more!
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00:00 Jungkook says yes to J-Hope, Taylor Swift says no to J-Lo, and Romeo Santos joins Aventura.
00:07 A male producer accuses Diddy of sexual assault.
00:10 We sit down in studio with Fireboy, get an exclusive look at Kid Laroi's documentary,
00:15 and we go in-depth about women in music honoree Maren Morris.
00:19 It's Tuesday, February 27th, and welcome to Billboard News.
00:25 There's a lot going on today, and the first story is a bit of a shocker.
00:29 Diddy has been named in another shocking sexual assault case,
00:32 and this time a male producer is suing the mogul for multiple forms of sexual misconduct.
00:38 Producer Rodney "Lil' Rod" Jones Jr., who says he worked on Sean Diddy Combs' "The Love" album,
00:44 is accusing Combs of sexual assault and harassment, sex trafficking, and more in a sprawling lawsuit filed February 26th.
00:52 In the complaint, he accuses Combs of groping and touching his anus,
00:56 and trying to groom him into engaging in sexual acts with Diddy and other individuals.
01:01 He also claims that Combs forced him to solicit sex workers, some of whom were underage,
01:06 as well as to perform sex acts to the pleasure of Mr. Combs.
01:10 The lawsuit even details an alleged studio shooting from 2022.
01:14 In a statement sent to Billboard, Combs' attorney Sean Hawley said,
01:18 "Lil' Rod is nothing more than a liar who filed a $30 billion lawsuit shamelessly looking for an undeserved payday."
01:26 Jones' lawsuit is just the latest in a string of legal accusations pointed at Diddy.
01:31 In November, Combs' longtime girlfriend, R&B singer Cassie, sued him for rape and physical abuse,
01:37 though the case was promptly settled.
01:39 One of the perks of having famous friends is being able to ask them for favors.
01:43 It works sometimes, and sometimes it doesn't.
01:45 Here's three things you should know today.
01:48 Jennifer Lopez gets real in her new Amazon documentary, The Greatest Love Story Never Told,
01:53 about many things, including on who passed on being in her film, This Is Me Now, a love story.
01:59 The star-studded scene could have starred Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, Bad Bunny, and so many more,
02:05 but a scene in the doc showed Jen getting the bad news that all her asks were busy.
02:10 Another famous face asked to be in the movie was Anthony Ramos.
02:13 Jennifer wanted him to appear in the scene for her song "Rebound,"
02:17 but he declined because of his friendship with her ex, Marc Anthony.
02:21 This may sound dramatic, but that's Hollywood.
02:23 I mean, Jen knows a thing or two about being busy.
02:26 Someone getting all the yeses is my boy J-Hope.
02:29 I've dropped the track list for "Hope on the Street Vol. 1" along with some teasers.
02:34 Yes, that track will have his BTS brother Jungkook on it.
02:42 And he's not the only name you'll recognize on the album.
02:45 The Seraphim's Eugene, Benny Blanco, and now Rodgers are all featured artists.
02:50 I thought I was already excited, but then you add Kookie and one of my girls from the Seraphim,
02:55 and you're telling me I have to wait a whole month?
02:57 Speaking of reunions, Romeo Santos is set to join Aventura for one last tour.
03:02 According to a press release, Sorondo Ciclos will mark the last time Romeo Santos and Aventura will join forces on stage.
03:09 The 20-stop tour will begin May 1st and conclude June 21st.
03:13 Romeo said in part, "This year there is something I must accomplish and conclude.
03:17 I want you to join me on a journey where I will be definitively closing cycles."
03:21 While we hate to see someone say "final tour," at least the boys are back together.
03:26 Next up, we have an exclusive look at Amazon's "Kids Are Growing Up," a story about a kid named Leroy.
03:32 The documentary follows the ups and downs of the kid Leroy's life and is available on Prime Video this Thursday.
03:39 Maybe I'm just feeling lost.
03:42 I guess I'm just going through what maybe most people my age are going through.
03:47 But I guess the difference is, this is the time for people to figure out what they want to do in life.
03:54 I already know what I'm doing in life.
03:57 I have a job, a family, and a lot of people I support and stuff like that.
04:03 So I kind of like, don't really have time to be like a lost teenager.
04:10 I'm just lost with a job.
04:14 Not gonna lie, Fireboy and I had the greatest chat and you won't believe the things he shared.
04:21 The way she texted me, I was like, wait, wait, wait.
04:24 Did you say when she texted you?
04:25 Yeah, she sent me a DM on Instagram.
04:27 I think she told me she was a fan or something.
04:29 She loved the most unlikely song on the album, on my debut album.
04:34 She's so weird and funny. I just love her.
04:37 And yeah, that is one of the highlights of my career.
04:41 So definitely, having a song with Madonna is really something to be proud of because that's the queen of pop.
04:46 Extremely. And you have to tell me, what was one of the funnest stories from working with her?
04:50 Okay, so I'm not going to say everything.
04:52 But I went out on a date with Madonna and I would say it's probably the most memorable date I've been on.
04:57 Wow. I mean, you can't top going on a date with Madonna.
05:01 There was a show I attended. I went to perform and nobody even knew I was on stage.
05:06 There was no stage. Nobody even spared me a second glance.
05:10 Nobody was even, everybody was just dancing.
05:12 It was like the DJ was just mixing, transitioning songs into songs.
05:15 I felt invisible.
05:18 And I went back to the car that night with my friend, crying.
05:22 And I told myself, never again.
05:24 I would never ask for something until I feel like I deserve it.
05:29 So I went back to the studio, made sure that I had enough songs, made sure that I could.
05:34 I was proficient enough to enter any studio in the world and make any song.
05:38 And I rejected a couple of deals. I rejected, I won't mention names.
05:41 A couple of really big artists came to me. I was like, "I'd love to sign you."
05:45 I'm like, "No, I don't want this." But when Olamide came, I knew that this is the right decision.
05:50 And that process really helped me in making a couple of decisions that really helped me going forward.
05:56 For the full interview, head to Billboard.com.
05:59 Women in Music is next week! I can't believe it!
06:02 Let's learn more about one of our women being honored.
06:05 Maren Morris is always pushing the boundaries in music and in life.
06:09 That's why she's Billboard's Women in Music Visionary Honoree.
06:13 With 12 songs on the Hot 100, Maren shows no signs of slowing down.
06:17 This is Billboard Explains Maren Morris' crossover chart success.
06:22 Maren Morris is a cross-genre country artist with 12 songs on the Hot 100,
06:28 including pop dance song "The Middle" with Zedd and Gray, which peaked at No. 5 in 2018.
06:34 Her massive country hit "The Bones" appeared on the charts in 2019, peaking at No. 12.
06:41 That song spent 19 weeks at No. 1 on the Hot Country Songs chart,
06:45 making it the second-longest-running No. 1 hit on the charts by an unaccompanied solo woman in history.
06:51 That's after Gabby Barrett's "I Hope," which spent 27 weeks at the top.
06:56 Maren has also had 13 songs on country airplay, including four No. 1s.
07:06 "I Could Use a Love Song,"
07:10 "Thomas Rhett Duet, Craving You,"
07:16 "Girl,"
07:21 and "The Bones."
07:26 She's also had two No. 1 albums on top country albums, "Hero" in 2016 and "Girl" in 2019.
07:33 Her latest album "Humble Quest" reached No. 2 in 2022.
07:37 We can't wait to see what Maren Morris has up her sleeve next.
07:41 Another one in the basket. Come back tomorrow for more news updates.
07:46 This is Billboard News.
07:49 (upbeat music)
07:52 (upbeat music)