Sting‘s massive 1983 hit with The Police, “Every Breath You Take,” was sampled and interpolated by Diddy for his own hit tribute to The Notorious B.I.G., “I’ll Be Missing You.” But Sting has said that the Bad Boy mogul’s recent string of sexual assault allegations, and his arrest on federal racketeering and sex trafficking charges, haven’t colored his feelings about his creation.
In an interview with The Los Angeles Times published on Monday (November 11), the English rock icon was asked if “the recent allegations” against Diddy “taint[ed]” how he thought about “Every Breath You Take.”
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“No,” he replied. “I mean, I don’t know what went on [with Diddy]. But it doesn’t taint the song at all for me. It’s still my song.”
Sting agreed with with interviewer Mikael Wood that “people still love to hear the song.”
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As for Diddy, he recently suffered another legal setback as he continues to fight multiple charges of sex trafficking.
The currently incarcerated mogul was seeking to have a gag order imposed on any potential witnesses involved in the trial given the high-profile nature of proceedings.
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He and his attorneys attempted to argue that any public statements made by alleged victims and potential witnesses and their legal representation could interfere with his right to a fair trial.
This was explicitly rejected by the case’s judge, Arun Subramanian.
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In his ruling, Subramanian said: “Combs’s authorities don’t support a gag order applicable not only to trial participants but also to any alleged victim and their lawyer.”
He also claimed a gag order was a “last resort” measure for the courts and Diddy’s case did not yet warrant such a ruling.
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Diddy was also rejected in his bid to have Subramanian order the removal of social media posts made by potential witnesses.
Diddy also requested access to government communications regarding the social media post which was also denied by the judge.
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Subramanian ruled: “The unprecedented relief that Combs seeks on this motion is unwarranted.”
Diddy’s bid for a gag order was prompted by public remarks made by Courtney Burgess, an alleged friend of his late partner, Kim Porter.
Burgess gave a public press conference claiming he had spoken to the grand jury investigating Diddy and had footage of the Bad Boy Records founder committing sexual assault.
Burgess also claimed the video featured A-list celebrities and children.
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Diddy called the claims made by Burgess “false and outrageous”.
