Tyrese Gibson, Sean "Diddy" Combs and Rapper Baby
Photo: Jemal Countess/Getty Images

NEW YORK — Still fly, still relevant, still making multiple hustles lucrative. Sean "Diddy" Combs is 40 years old. The money in the room was anything but dirty on Thursday night, as Diddy celebrated his birthday (which was actually November 4) in the Grand Ballroom of the Plaza Hotel. The atmosphere was almost like Garden of Eden meets "The Godfather," with trees, grass and black decorations. Diddy and his goodfellas came dressed in tuxedos, the ladies in elegant gowns, and all were greeted by ballerinas serving drinks.

A little before midnight, the host walked in with a huge entourage that included Trey Songz, Tyrese, Red Café, Andre Harrell and director F. Gary Gray. Jay-Z, Young Jeezy, Rick Ross, Kim Kardashian, Martha Stewart, Gayle King, Jimmy Fallon, Bell Biv DeVoe, Jimmy Iovine, Bono and countless others all came to express their love for one of the most important figures in music over the past two decades.

"Some people start at 19, [by] 26 they're done. He's 40. He's better than he's ever been," Russell Simmons marveled. "He's hotter now than ever. I just watch him. He keeps getting better. He never changes with the hustle. He branches out in different areas, opens new doors. He's an inspiration."

Nelly echoed that sentiment. "It's incredible, he's one of my biggest inspirations in this," he said. "He does the most in everything, probably working with the least. He maximizes it to the max. You see somebody doing that, how can you not want to be inspired by it?"

Estelle said the greatest thing she's learned by watching Diddy over the years is to "do things your way versus doing things anybody else's way. Do it the way you're gonna do it, and be extra big and extra large."

"It's 4-0. You just get better," actress Regina King said. "Forty is the new 30; it's elegant. He wants everybody to be beautiful [at the party]. So the photographs, when he looks back on it 20 years from now, he'll say, 'Look how beautiful we were.' It's an opportunity to get pretty and throw on pretty dresses.

"I love the way [Diddy]'s evolved," she added. "I'm glad he's grown up. Whether he likes it or not, he's still a role model. You can be a good role model or a bad role model. He's grown up in a lot of people's eyes. Those kids who want to be like him, they're gonna pull up their pants and look to be [in multiple businesses] as opposed to just the rapper."

So do the industry icons who've already past this milestone age have advice to give Mr. Combs?

"The great thing is, he has done so much in 40 years. There's a lot of advice he can give to other people," Grammy winner Herbie Hancock said. "There's so much he's learned. I hope he continues to do that, continues to grow. I see this path he's set for himself to expand and continue to grow in various directions. That's a great inspiration to others."

Russell Simmons agreed. "There's no advice. Put one foot in front of the other. What advice can I give him? Smile and breathe."

And dance! Diddy is known for having his guests dance all night.

"The thing I can appreciate about Puff is that at one point you can go into any club and from 12:30 on, every hit they're playing, it's a Bad Boy hit," said actor Malcolm Jamal Warner, who's known Diddy since the '80s.

"I'll make sure I grab Lil Kim and we'll cut up the rug definitely," "Dancing with the Stars" pro Derek Hough smiled. "One of my all-time favorite songs was the 'Mo Money, Mo Problems.' Even now when it comes on, I'm a cheeseball, I'm a dork. I'm out there singing the whole song. I get into it."

DJ Cassidy and D-Nice spun the records at this party, but Kid Capri listed the playlist he wanted to hear. " 'Mo Money, Mo Problems,' you gotta have that," he said. "You gotta have any Biggie record, 'Hypnotize,' 'Juicy,' 'One More Chance.' There's so many bad Boy records that was classics! It was like that with them. They gonna keep moving too."

While the DJs played all the hits, they could not compare to a live performance by Al Green, who took the stage to sing "Love and Happiness."

• Diddy Celebrates His 40th Birthday

• Diddy

Diddy-Dirty Money
Photo: Bad Boy

Diddy says he's just taking his time. His Last Train to Paris doesn't arrive until next year, but he's going to continue to put out music and get the audience ready for his LP.

"We're just trying to roll it out properly," Diddy told MTV News. "I wanted a chance to lay out songs for you. A lot of singles we putting out now — that's the introduction. We didn't even get to that Train music. We're hitting you with warning shots, letting you know we're here.

"I wanted to make sure I told the story, I took my time and didn't want to alienate people," he added. "As soon as you hit [the fans] with something that's too far, they be thinking you got on some spandex thongs and a shiny suit and you dancing in Ibiza naked."

Diddy-Dirty Money, which features Dawn Richard and Kalenna, premiered their "Love Come Down" video Thursday (November 12) on MTV.com.

"It reminds me of the old Bad Boy videos, when you saw shiny suits and you said, 'This is official,' " Richard said on the set of the video last month. "It felt like a club on TV. This is what it is. It's like the futuristic '90s. It's raw — that's what the record is and our sound is. It's what love is. Love is like that. You're up, down, around, in your face — that's kinda what this video is. We take you to a place where it's just three people, black, and it's telling you a story. I miss videos when people told you exactly what the song was about."

In the clip, Diddy and the group set the tone with an all-black motif, dressing in black and performing on a black stage — except for the occasional flash of Diddy's gold teeth. Toward the end, the trio change to all-white outfits before going back to black.

Prior to "Love Come Down," Diddy-Dirty Money released a video for "Angels." Diddy announced via Twitter that two popular MCs laid new vocals for the song.

"Lupe [Fiasco] hit me this week and said that 'Angels' is one of his fav songs," Diddy tweeted. "So he did a remix!!! When I tell you crazy! F---in crazy! Crazy!

"Then when I thought it couldn't get any better, Rick Ross called and said 'Angels' is one of his fav records too!" Diddy continued. "And so he did a remix! Stupid!"

• Diddy-Dirty Money
• Diddy

Diddy-Dirty Money
Photo: MTV News

Diddy insists his new group is more than a trio. The legendary mogul says Diddy-Dirty Money is a "look, sound, feeling, emotion," and wants it to be a movement.

On Tuesday (October 20) in Los Angeles, the group shot the video for "Love Come Down."

"Finding love, losing love and getting love back again," Dawn Richard, formerly of Danity Kane, said about the 2010 album Last Train to Paris. "This single off of that album demonstrates that. 'Love Come Down' ... Kalenna and I were in the studio vibing and Puff walks in. He was like, 'I love that melody.' It just fell into place. It's one of the hypest club bangers out there right now and we want to bring it to life with this new video.

"It reminds me of the old Bad Boy videos when you saw shiny suits and you said, 'This is official,' " she added. "It felt like a club on TV. This is what it is. It's like the futuristic '90s. It's raw — that's what the record is and our sound is. It's what love is. Love is like that. You're up, down, around, in your face — that's kinda what this video is. We take you to a place where it's just three people, black, and it's telling you a story. I miss videos when people told you exactly what the song was about."

"One of the things we're trying to represent is emotion," Diddy said of the upcoming album. "Not being afraid to show emotion on record. A lot of records out right now — no disrespect to them, but they're all surface. It's about what people have or a dance. All our records are gonna be about love, feelings and emotion. Last Train to Paris is a love story and the most vulnerable album I've ever been involved in. It's raw emotion — you get a feeling, a vibe."

• Diddy

Ludacris and Diddy at Young Jeezy's birthday party in Atlanta on Saturday
Photo: MTV News

ATLANTA — The BET Hip-Hop Awards ended Saturday night, but the afterparties in Atlanta lasted well into Monday morning. Diddy and his girls in Dirty Money had been doing radio promo and headlining clubs all weekend long, and the trio ended their Hotlanta excursion at one of the most popular night spots in town, the Velvet Room.

But it wasn't just a Bad Boy affair — Ludacris also brought his Disturbing Tha Peace family to make for a unified front of hip-hop stars.

DJ Infamous hyped the crowd from his booth and with the two platinum factions overlooking most of the club, revelers from their VIP section (other stars such as Busta Rhymes, Fabolous, Lyfe Jennings and Jazze Pha also had spots in VIP), Infamous dropped the needle on some classics.

First came "It's All About the Benjamins." "What y'all wanna do?" The recorded vocals roared through the club. Diddy then got on the mic and told Inf to bring the record back. The mogul then started rapping over the record.

"What y'all wanna do?/ Wanna be ballers, shot-callers ... "

After Puff's timeless verse, Inf threw on another signature Diddy song, "Mo Money, Mo Problems," and the Bad Boy boss rapped over that record as well.

Shawty Lo, who was standing with Diddy and Luda, also got his shine. First came "Dun Dun" and then "Dey Know," with 'Cris adding his rhymes from the remix.

Luda kept control of the mic as Infamous put on the beat from his new record "How Low Can You Go," a track from Luda's upcoming joint LP with Shawnna, Battle of the Sexes.

Dirty Money took the spotlight next, as Diddy and his girls did "Angels" and "Love Come Down."

The mic moved to Red Café as he came in with "Hottest in the Hood," then Playaz Circle followed with a medley of records highlighted by "Duffle Bag Boy."

That's hip-hop: no stage, no prior planning, just on-the-spot performing.

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Diddy and Jadakiss
Photo: Bad Boy

The O.D.: A Mixtape Daily Exclusive

People have been talking about Diddy and Mase reuniting ever since an online video surfaced in which the Harlem MC said he was coming from a meeting with the Bad Boy head honcho. But a different reunion might be going down between Diddy and one of his other acts.

"I would definitely love to do the next LOX album," he told Mixtape Daily recently in Los Angeles. "I would love to collaborate with them. I think it's important just to do. ... I would look forward to it."

Puff and the Warlocks together again? That would be big news for New York. The two factions were at odds for years before eventually patching things up. Jadakiss has openly discussed the possibilities in the past, but nothing has ever come out of it.

Now, with the Yonkers trio and Diddy both aligned under the Interscope umbrella, it sounds like things could be happening soon.

"We been talking about it," Diddy revealed. "We have to sit down and have a real meeting about it."

The ink on Diddy's new deal for Bad Boy with Interscope is still drying, but he's hard at work managing projects between the 'Scope and Atlantic, where a handful of his artists, including Cassie and Day26, still reside.

Acquisitions were on Diddy's mind, as he spoke about Raekwon's previous comments about him trying to sign the Cuban Linx rapper and Ghostface. But Diddy has too much unfinished business to handle, not to mention putting the finishing touches on his next album, before he recruits anyone into the fold. So any future plans may have to wait.

"I've always been a fan of Raekwon and Ghostface and Wu-Tang," Diddy explained. "To be honest, I don't know what the future holds for Bad Boy/ Interscope. I wanna take it day by day and get acquainted. The first move now is to get out this Dirty Money album, The Last Train to Paris. We gonna focus on that. Cassie has a new single, we're gonna focus on that. Day26, we still in business with Atlantic, we're gonna see that all the way through. We still have some unfinished business we have to take care of before we get into the future."

For other artists featured in Mixtape Daily, check out Mixtape Daily Headlines.

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Diddy
Photo: MTV News

Diddy has had a few mantras over the years, from "we won't stop" to "the saga continues," which also doubled as an album title of him. Now, the hip-hop heavyweight has another one to add to the list: "It's a new era for Bad Boy."

Diddy has taken his label to a new company, recently announcing a partnership with Interscope Records after spending the past five years at Atlantic Records. The new union will usher in Diddy's next LP, the much-hyped concept album Last Train to Paris. On the project, Diddy will be aided by ex-Danity Kane singer Dawn Richard and songwriter Kalenna Harper, who make up the group Dirty Money along with the music mogul.

Diddy said Interscope — which includes Dr. Dre, Eminem, 50 Cent and Lady Gaga, among others — is the best home for the high-minded project, tentatively slated for an early 2009 release.

"The Last Train to Paris album is definitely a perfect fit for the whole Interscope system, because the album is pushing the envelope, it's something fresh and it's something new," he told MTV News. "And we know that when Interscope gets behind an album and gets behind an artist that it breaks big."

For the album, Diddy has lined up some big names to join him on his trans-Atlantic journey, including Drake, T-Pain, Rick Ross, Lil Wayne and possibly Jay-Z, the Bad Boy top dog revealed to MTV News.

"The thing about the album, it's not about the features," Diddy said. "Each artist, they got down with the story line, they got down with the movement. I think that's when features work — when people come into your work and they adapt to what you're trying to portray."

According to Diddy, his new deal came together after he and Interscope/Geffen/A&M chairman Jimmy Iovine entered into several other business deals first, including a set of headphones similar to the Beats by Dr. Dre line. The "Making His Band" superstar acknowledged Lyor Cohen and Julie Greenwald, executives at Warner Music Group and Atlantic, and profusely thanked them for a harmonious parting. His roster of acts, including Cassie and Day26, will stay at Atlantic. Diddy's career and any new acts he signs will be part of the Interscope family.

"I feel like I'm in great company. I'm in the best company of the world," Diddy said. "I feel like how A-Rod felt when he got traded to the Yankees."

• Diddy

Raekwon
Photo: Universal

The O.D.: A Mixtape Daily Exclusive

Hail to the Chef. Raekwon will debut in SoundScan's top five with his classic Only Built 4 Cuban Linx II. Rae popped up at the VMA Radio Forum over the weekend, and we had the opportunity to ask him about a longstanding rumor that at one time, Diddy wanted to sign him and Ghostface Killah to Bad Boy.

"I heard that too," Rae said. "We did a show at the Palladium [years back], and Puff had security with him that was from Staten Island. When we got back to Staten Island, we bump into the kid, and he told us while he was up there performing, Puff said, 'I need them two. What I gotta do?' He was excited about working with us [and] signing us too. I don't know why it ain't happen, either. You never know. Maybe he may want to do that now. I'm independent, baby. So let's get it right. Let's cut them checks, Puff. We know what time it is!"

The Wu-Tang/ Diddy/ Bad Boy connection has spawned a lot of hits from "The What" to the remixes of "All I Need" and "Special Delivery." Diddy and Rae did hook up last week for the album-release party for Cuban Linx II. Diddy hosted the party at Manhattan's Santos Party House.

"One day I'm in the car, I'm just driving," he said. "I get a call from Puff out of the blue. He's like, 'Yo, I wanna congratulate you on your album.' That's what's up. One thing led to another, and I told him about the party. He said, 'If I'm in town, I'm coming through.' I said, 'Would you like to come through and host?' Because you know what kinda dude Diddy is. He's like our Sammy Davis Jr. He's done so much on all levels, [so] I just asked. What's wrong with asking? He was like, 'I'mma check my schedule, and if it permits for it to happen, I'm there for you.' Next thing you know, he called me 48 hours later: 'It's on. I'm with you.' "

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Wonder if he works for Time Warner or Direct TV? Fabolous pulled a Jim Carrey and plays the Cable Guy on Ghostface Killah's new record "The Guest House" from Ghostdini: The Wizard of Poetry in Emerald City.

On the song, Ghost is frantic when his girl turns up missing. He calls around and then goes searching. He goes to the guest house on his estate and finds the lady with Fabolous as he's laying cable. Verbal jousting ensues between Fab's and Ghostface's characters.

"I was the cable guy in there," Fab explained. "I happened to come up on Ghostface's girl. Ghost reached out to me and said, 'I got this dope joint I wanna get you on.' It's kinda like, you know, how R. Kelly used to have those story joints with Mr. Biggs. I was like 'OK, cool.' As long as the joint sounds dope, which I can only expect from Ghost, and it came through. It was good."

For other artists featured in Mixtape Daily, check out Mixtape Daily Headlines.

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Lady Gaga attends her VMA after party at Avenue in New York City on Sunday
Photo: Amy Sussman/ Getty Images

NEW YORK — How many outfits did Lady Gaga have for Sunday night anyway? After keeping the audience at Radio City Music Hall and at home guessing what she was going to wear next on the VMA stage, the singer made one more costume change after the show and arrived at her Interscope Records party at Avenue dressed like a bride.

Gaga, who was in all white, took off a veil that covered her face and threw it to some fans. Also at the party were Perez Hilton, Katy Perry, Russell Brand, Diddy, Akon, Keri Hilson, Kim Kardashian, Nicky Hilton, Polow Da Don and Soulja Boy Tell'em, who got cozy with Teyana Taylor.

	2009 Video Music Awards Afterparties

Meanwhile, another industry powerhouse, the Warner Music Group, held a party at Abe & Arthur's. DJ D-Nice kept the energy up with his spins for a crowd that included Green Day, Sean Garrett, Gabrielle Union, Maino and DJ Premier. Premier wore a T-shirt that had a photo of himself and DJ AM on the front. Diddy was also present, but he later made his way over to NYC hot spot 1 Oak.

Outside of 1 Oak, some eyewitnesses reported a huge verbal confrontation with Diddy and his crew and some police officers and security. Everything simmered down and the Diddy eventually made it into the club. He indirectly touched on the situation via Twitter, saying everyone needs to respect each other.

Inside, Kim Kardashian, Cassie, Kimora Lee Simmons and husband Djimon Hounsou could be seen in the VIP section. Jay-Z and Rihanna sat the same table with their respective crews. Most of the table — and the rest of the club — sang along to Alicia Keys' chorus when the DJ played "Empire State of Mind," the moving song she and Jay closed the VMAs with just hours before.

The 2009 MTV Video Music Awards may have wrapped, but the party is far from over. Stay tuned for behind-the-scenes updates, party reports and much more.

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Diddy
Photo: MTV News

The 2009 MTV Video Music Awards are back in New York, if you haven't heard. And that means serious business, according to Diddy. The consummate New Yorker advised visitors this weekend that they should focus on the festivities at hand, which include plenty of parties and, of course, the big show on Sunday. Kitschy tourist plans will have to wait until the next trip, it seems.

"This is New York. I would just not speak or smile at anybody," he told MTV News, removing his sunglasses and laughing. "I would just keep focused. The way we walk around. We don't speak to each other. We don't look up. All that getting off the plane like, 'Hey, how you doing?' — don't do that here."

The hustle of the Big Apple, however, shouldn't be confused with grumpy residents, Diddy said.

"This is New York, people," he said. "But have a good time."

One of the nominees expected to have the most fun at the VMAs is Kanye West. The MC leads all rappers with nods in four categories, including Best Rap Video. West will face off in each category against Eminem, creating a matchup between two of the hip-hop community's biggest icons.

Diddy has a pretty good ear when it comes to music and said this year he had to give the nod to 'Ye over Eminem, despite the Detroit superstar's career achievements. The Bad Boy Records CEO said the 12 months belonged to Kanye. He emphasized, though, that his pick takes nothing away from the return of Slim Shady, who released his first album in five years this past May.

"I think Kanye had more of an impact — that's just real sports talk," Diddy said. "That's not taking nothing away from anybody else."

The 2009 MTV Video Music Awards air live this Sunday, September 13, at 9 p.m. ET, but New York is celebrating the VMAs all week long! Stay tuned for party coverage, concert reports, behind-the-scenes updates and more.

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• Diddy

Littles and Raekwon at his <i>Only Built 4 Cuban Linx II</i> album-release party
Photo: Jerritt Clark/ Getty Images

NEW YORK — Wu-Tang Clan member Raekwon the Chef will be forever lauded, not just because of his lyrical exploits on proper Wu-Tang Clan LPs, but because his solo debut, 1995's Only Built 4 Cuban Linx is one of the greatest rap albums ever.

But nostalgia can only take you so far; you have to live in the here and now eventually. Over a decade later, Raekwon finds himself a relevant MC again after cooking up that great product once more. Only Built 4 Cuban Linx II was released on Tuesday, and some have already certified the album as a classic. With RZA sharing production with J. Dilla, Dr. Dre and others, and the Chef opening up the recording session to Beanie Sigel, the LOX and his Clan, the LP takes off where the last album ended.

	Raekwon's Cuban Linx II Album Release Party

On Tuesday night, Rae, in conjunction with former Mobb Deep manager turned DVD producer Littles, threw an album-release celebration at Santos Party House that featured the likes of Ice-T, Q-Tip and host Diddy.

"Attendance is mandatory," Ice-T said onstage early in the night. "Hip-hop is on life support. Raekwon is gonna try to bring [it] back to life."

Ice then blasted part of the hip-hop hipster movement. "F--- that happy-ass rap they doing," he ranted. "If you do not have power, you should not hold the mic."

Marley Marl, Q-Tip, Redman, Erick Sermon and the Brand Nubian also joined the celebration. Craig G got on the mic and spit his verse from "The Symphony." Later, Redman started to perform "Tonight's Da Night."

Ghostface officially kicked off the Raekwon show with "Bring Da Ruckus."

Ghost then shouted out the new album. "Cuban Linx, n---a. Make some noise for the album. Tell 'em, Puff."

Diddy then took the mic. "New York, stand up! Hip-hop, stand up. We all started together. Wu-Tang, Bad Boy, Big," Diddy said. "We're gonna get real buck f---in' wild in here. We're gonna take it back to the tunnel. Are y'all ready for Raekwon the Chef?"

Ghost then went into "Fish" and was followed by a snow flurry of big hits by Raekwon, Ghost and Cappadonna (who was also onstage). The new Wu-Banger "10 Bricks" was sandwiched in between the classics "Ice Cream" and "Daytona 500." Later came "Camay" and the most popular record of the night, "C.R.E.A.M."

Diddy then realized he never properly introduced the man of the hour and put the spotlight on Rae. "Make some noise for a living legend, Raekwon the Chef!"

Rae took the opportunity to address the doubters. "They say that n---a's washed up," he said. "Look what happened."

The Staten Island general moved onto the new album's Dr. Dre-produced "Catalina," then threw it back to "Incarcerated Scarfaces" and "Heaven and Hell."

After the "Wu Oh," Rae compared his battle to sell records against Jay-Z, who also dropped The Blueprint 3 this week, to David vs. Goliath.

"Good luck with your album, sir," he openly addressed Young Hov and wished Jay the best of luck from the bottom of his heart.

"Flying Daggers" was the last Clan record before Rae gave up the mic to Melle Mel and Grand Puba.

"Shout to MTV!" the Chef yelled.

Rae's party is the first of many in New York that coincide with MTV's week-long VMA celebration. Check back at MTV News for the latest from all the parties and high-profile concerts going on up until the big show this Sunday night at 9 p.m. ET.

The 2009 MTV Video Music Awards will take place this Sunday, September 13, at 9 p.m. ET. Stay tuned all week long for news on additional performers and celebrity presenters.

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