4 those of u who question his business sense...read on:

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P. Diddy Parts with Arista
Thu Jun 20, 5:00 PM ET
By Mark Armstrong

Sean "P. Diddy" Combs may not get J.Lo back, but for now, he can settle for Bad Boy Records.

After nearly a decade of success turning Notorious B.I.G., Faith Evans and--of course--himself into multiplatinum superstars, the rap mogul announced Thursday that his Bad Boy Records label has officially ended its partnership with Arista Records.

The decision, described as amicable, was hardly unexpected, having been the subject of New York tabloid reports for months now. Combs, who's been in a 50-50 partnership with Arista since 1996, will now take complete control of the label--including both his artist roster and his entire catalogue, which includes his own recent top seller, We Invented the Remix.

"I have enjoyed my successful partnership with Arista and most recently working with [Arista president] L.A. Reid," P. Diddy said in a statement. "I decided it was time to move my company to a new home and I wish L.A. the best and look forward to working with him in the future."

There appears to be no bad blood, as Arista still plans to keep working with Combs and company, as the label says it will continue providing sales, promotion and marketing support for the time being, as well as distribution for the Bad Boy catalog.

The 32-year-old Combs, meanwhile, said he will "continue to be available to Arista artists in his multi-faceted role as record producer, songwriter, remixer extraordinaire, and so on."

When asked why he's parting with Arista, Combs told the Associated Press, "Everybody grows up and has to move out of the house."

For his part, Arista prez Reid wished Diddy luck. "P. Diddy and his Bad Boy Records remain at the forefront of the rap and hip-hop movement, whose culture and climate continue to influence today's musical scene," Reid said. "I value my relationship with Sean and I wish him well in his future endeavors."

Bad Boy Records has had a nice run with Arista, most recently with artists like Evans, Black Rob, 112 and Carl Thomas. As for what's next, Combs told the AP he wants to build Bad Boy into a major label.

"I want to put out more records," he said. "I want to have different divisions, i.e. country divisions, a soul division, dance, hip-hop...I'm about to be Arista's competition."

The New York Post reported in May that both Sony Music and Interscope were eyeing a distribution deal with Bad Boy Records, and Combs said he may announce a new partnership in the coming weeks.

Ah Ha!

Yeah,I heard this rumor a long time ago.Looks like it's true.In recent years,Bad Boy Records has had a few problems keeping their artists happy...Faith Evans left the label and now records directly for Arista,and 112 tried to sign a new contract with Interscope Records.But I guess P.Diddy will survive after all.

Speaking of Arista,they recently rejected Jam and Lewis' new label (Flytetyme Records) and Babyfaces's new label (America Records) was also cancelled by the company.I read a recent article in Billboard about how major labels are trying to do away with artist-controlled "vanity labels" that,in many cases,are not profitable for the company.

June7 said:

i think i choked on a pretzel with that one... only thing correct in that statement is the "so on" tag...

Maybe Piddy-da-fool could do all of us a real favor and just retire from music indefinitely. They played his video on a cable show this afternoon called "Music that Sucks!"

LQ

if there truly is a god, this talentless slug will not get another deal. maybe he'll start dating one of his backup dancers, just like J Lo did...

HAHAHAHA

Why hate on Diddy like dat, the man DOES have SOME talent come on now people he invented the REMIX!!

Diddy may not have the musical skill of lets say Prince but he can make a hit, and not one of you can say that there isn't a song Diddy has done that hasn't had you bop'n in your car.

Then man has some good stuff, I for one wish him the best of luck.

no, the original versions of the songs he samples have me boppin', not the mixed-up beats with his mumbly-ass rap over it...

Puffy's on the move again. The shrewdest businessman in hip-hop (besides Russel) is on the way to making history.

Watch and Learn!

Puffy needs to get with and produce Total once again...those girls were BAD!