Diddy Trial

Diddy is looking to beef up his legal defense team ... with an attorney famous for defending Young Thug in court.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Georgia attorney Brian Steel wants to be admitted to practice law in the Southern District of New York so he can help defend Diddy at trial.

Brian's known for repping Young Thug in the rapper's YSL RICO case.

Diddy's legal proceedings have created a new beef within his old Bad Boy camp ... Stevie J and New Orleans rapper Chopper of Da Band fame are now in a war of words -- and it's all over rapper Eve!!!

TMZ Hip Hop caught up with Stevie J and Miala Doche, the rock artist he's currently developing, and asked him about the lingering rumor that he's selling his musical catalog.

Stevie's produced some serious money-makers in his discography -- Notorious B.I.G.'s "Mo Money, Mo Problems" and "Notorious Thugs," Mariah Carey's "Honey" and even his ex-girlfriend Eve's biggest hit, "Let Me Blow Ya Mind" with Gwen Stefani.

Diddy wants a Black woman in his corner when his federal trial begins -- in less than 3 weeks -- and that's why he's searching for a new attorney to add to his defense team.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Diddy's lawyers are searching for a Black female attorney to join his current trial team of Marc Agnifilo and Teny Geragos.

Keep in mind, the mogul's attorneys have already raised race as a critical part of its defense ... accusing the feds of trying to take down a rich, successful Black man.

Stevie J has been one of the few Diddy supporters who's never wavered throughout the numerous lawsuits and charges ... and he wants the world to know the embattled Bad Boy mogul is doing just fine!!!

TMZ Hip Hop bumped into Stevie in Bev. Hills on Monday full of energy, calling for Diddy's freedom.

We thought he was on a hot lunch date -- but turns out, the woman accompanying him is his new artist, Miala Doche.

Diddy says the feds have him all wrong and he's just an innocent man ... because he's pleading not guilty to a couple new charges against him.

The Bad Boy Records founder appeared in court Monday in Manhattan for his arraignment on two new charges ... one for sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion, and another for transportation to engage in prostitution ... a couple things he says he definitely didn't do.

Feds tacked on the charges in a recent superseding indictment ... the third one we've seen so far in the Diddy case. Diddy showed up in court today with white hair and a short beard, and pled not guilty to the superseding indictment charges.

Diddy's trial begins in just a few weeks ... and, it seems some of his infamous "freak off" tapes may actually be shown to the jury -- if a new proposed questionnaire is any indication.

The rap mogul's lawyers submitted this questionnaire late Friday ... and, according to the Associated Press, it contains questions about potential jurors' willingness to watch sexually explicit videos or videos that depict physical assault.

Diddy's team also reportedly wants to know about jurors' views on people with multiple sexual partners.

Diddy is taking a page from O.J. Simpson's playbook and assembling a dream team of lawyers to defend him at his upcoming trial ... but don't ask Mark Geragos about making the cut and taking the reins.

In the latest episode of the "2 Angry Men" podcast Harvey Levin asks Mark about a fact we've known about for weeks ... that Geragos is going to have a significant role in Diddy's case when it goes to trial next month in New York.

Mark does everything he can to deflect ... changing the subject, bantering with Harvey and then shifting the focus to turn this into competition of who has more people over to their homes.

Spoiler ... it's Mark by a landslide, and Harvey's got an admission of guilt when it comes to peeing in some bushes.

But the big story here is we've learned Mark is going to tackle the Diddy case and defend him in court ... we've known about this for three weeks and just brought it up to Mark now, and ya gotta see how he deflects.

Mark joined the podcast after scoring a legal win in court on behalf of the Menendez Brothers ... and while he tells us he's been busy working for Erik and Lyle, we know Geragos can multi task with the best of them.

Beyoncé coming face-to-face with a drugged-up guy wearing a penis mask must've been a crazy-ass fever dream -- the Diddy accuser who claimed Bey and Jay-Z saw him at a "freak off" has changed his mind.

Manzaro Joseph, who sued Diddy earlier this month, just filed an amended lawsuit -- and while he's still going after Diddy in court, he's very noticeably dropped the Carters from his narrative.

In the new docs, Joseph makes ZERO mention of Jay or Beyoncé -- and as far as we can tell, that's the only change he's made to the lawsuit. TMZ broke the story ... Joseph originally claimed the couple saw him in one helluva state during a 2015 birthday party in Miami for Diddy's son, King Combs.

Tony Buzbee is taking legal steps to try to dismiss a Jay-Z lawsuit against him, claiming they struck a deal and Jay reneged -- but Jay's camp says Buzbee is full of it.

Buzbee, the Texas lawyer famous for representing 120 alleged Diddy victims, filed new legal docs Monday to dismiss the defamation lawsuit Jay-Z filed against him in Alabama.

Tony was representing the Jane Doe who claimed Jay-Z and Diddy raped her in New York back in 2000. She ultimately dropped the rape lawsuit ... and Jay-Z then sued her and Buzbee in Alabama, where she lives, over bringing the case in the first place.

Cassie plans on testifying during Diddy's upcoming trial -- and it won't be anonymous, TMZ has confirmed.

"Victim 1" is "prepared to testify under her own name" during the upcoming trial, where Diddy will defend himself against charges of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution.

Cassie is the person known as "Victim 1." There are three other alleged victims who have requested their identities remain secret during the trial. Prosecutors say using pseudonyms instead of real names will prevent harassment and other adverse consequences for the alleged victims.

Terrence Howard just gave a glimpse into what he said was the dark side of Hollywood ... and one example he used from his personal experience was none other than Diddy!

The film and TV actor was a recent guest on Patrick Bet-David's "PBD Podcast" ... where he claimed he was targeted by Diddy for sex under the guise of coaching.

TH doesn't say exactly when this alleged attempt by Diddy occurred ... but claims he was invited to Diddy's place when the music mogul asked Terrence for acting lessons.

2:22 PM PT -- Diddy's legal team tells TMZ ... “These are not new allegations or new accusers. These are the same individuals, former long-term girlfriends, who were involved in consensual relationships. This was their private sex life, defined by consent, not coercion.”

Diddy is facing new criminal charges in his federal case in New York ... because federal prosecutors just hit him with their third superseding indictment.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, the feds are tacking on two additional charges ... one for sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion and another for transportation to engage in prostitution.

The feds say the new charges stem from allegations against Diddy from 2021 to 2024 and relate to an individual the feds simply refer to as "Victim-2."

2:02 PM PT -- Law enforcement sources tell us Dylan and Paul got into a fight at work, where they observed surveillance footage of Dylan slapping Paul two times.

The warrant for his arrest was then issued and police located Dylan and arrested him.

Dylan John, the reggae rapper whose ego was even too big for Diddy on the 2nd iteration of his infamous "Making The Band" series, was arrested this week for allegedly not keeping his hands to himself when cops say he smacked another man's face!!!

The trailer for the newest season of "South Park" was just released ... and, as usual, the creative team behind the show ain't holding back -- blending some of the biggest news stories in the world with the show's trademark irreverent humor.

Watch the video ... the trailer begins with a shot of a dark, live-action playground -- and, a message on the screen notes the "acclaimed drama" is returning.

Fan-favorite character Randy Marsh then pops up onscreen and offers his daughter ketamine ... explaining he feels she could really benefit from it.

3:48 PM PT -- A spokesperson for LeBron James tells TMZ ... “This is demonstrably false and doesn’t even merit a report or response. A basic internet search shows what LeBron was doing all of April 2015. He was playing basketball for the Cleveland Cavaliers and never in Miami.”

3:43 PM PT -- Brian Bieber, attorney for Brendan Paul tells TMZ ... “Is this an April Fool’s Day joke? If someone seriously filed this lawsuit, the allegations against Brendan are 100% false and literally impossible to have occurred.

Brendan was still in high school in Ohio at the time, having never even set foot in West Palm Beach in his life.  It’s unfortunate that anyone who pays the filing fee and gets directions to the Courthouse can file a frivolous lawsuit. We will be seeking an immediate dismissal of the case, and appropriate sanctions.”

12:06 PM PT -- Jay-Z’s attorney Alex Spiro tells TMZ ... "Mr Carter wasn't in Florida at that time to witness this incident - he was engaged in easily findable public activities that prove he was not at this event. This is more nonsense that erodes the trust in our "justice" system"

11:45 AM PT -- A rep for Gloria and Emilio Estefan tells TMZ ... "Gloria and Emilio Estefan strongly deny the allegations made.  The property in question was never a home where Gloria and Emilio resided, but it was rather a house they owned for family use. There were no parties thrown at that property between 2012 and 2019. We have all necessary documentation to support these facts and will provide it to the court."

A new Diddy accuser claims he was sexually assaulted, raped and humiliated at a "freak-off" party in Miami ... and he says Jay-Z, Beyoncé, LeBron James and Gloria Estefan saw him in rough shape.

Diddy is being sued for human trafficking by a Florida man named Manzaro Joseph , who claims Diddy humiliated him at an April 2015 birthday party for King Combs by strapping a penis to his face and parading him around.

In the lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, Manzaro claims he was drugged and transported to Star Island in Miami for the big party in April 2015 ... he says he was first dragged into the back entrance of Emilio and Gloria Estefan's mansion, where a panicked Gloria saw his "drug-induced stupor" and demanded someone call an ambulance.

The Diddy trial is going to spend a lot of time on his "Freak Off" parties, and the issue here is consent ... his defense says the encounters were consensual, and the prosecution needs to prove otherwise.

TMZ examines the legal strategy surrounding the Freak Offs in our new documentary, "The Downfall of Diddy: His Defense," available now on Tubi.

Criminal defense lawyers who have won some of the most high-profile celebrity criminal cases in America break down how consent will play a big role in Diddy's trial.