The infamous BIG raps, he and Diddy were “close like Starsky and Hutch” on the 1997 single “Hypnotize,” the last song he released before his death. Just a week later, the hip-hop legend (born Christopher Wallace) was murdered at the age of 24 while following Diddy’s Chevy Suburban.
Nearly 25 years later, publicist Jonathan Hay was hired by Biggie’s son CJ Wallace to reproduce some of the late MC’s biggest hits for the family estate. But according to Hays, their business arrangement took a dark turn. He claims that a member of Biggie’s team made sexual advances toward him.
“My experiences with the Biggie Smalls team have been horrible, to say the least,” says Hays AllHipHop. “Similar to Diddy’s alleged practices, The Notorious BIG Estate refused to acknowledge my sexual harassment complaints when I awkwardly came forward. I wouldn’t participate in phone sex, nor would I watch one of the representatives of The Notorious BIG estate pleasure himself on a video chat during the pandemic.
“For two years after the horrific incidents, I lived with regret that I didn’t ‘go along’ with all that crazy stuff, because I was immediately shunned and they ended the project. I lost a significant amount of money and almost two years of exclusive Biggie work.
Hays says Diddy was still a partner in the publishing business of The Estate of Christopher Wallace, including musical contributions with JAY-Z. He only got the courage to reveal what happened to him in the aftermath Diddy’s RICO arrest.
“I have strong resources, but there is no way I could go against the legacy of The Notorious BIG, Diddy and JAY-Z,” he admits. “Only now can I speak out about this because so many strong women have come forward with lawsuits and alleged criminal complaints against the former Bad Boy mogul.”
In another incident, Hays claims he was on a Zoom call with Diddy, King Combs and two members of the Estate shortly after the release of Hays and Frank White’s ‘Big Poppa (House Mix)’. While Diddy complained that the song wasn’t “good enough,” Hays said he saw him snorting something he assumed was ketamine or cocaine.
“Diddy told me to make house music with ketamine because that’s how all the ravers would hear it at places like Burning Man and Miami Ultra Music Fest,” Hays continues. “While he was doing this bizarre pep talk from Diddy, he was also snorting ketamine or cocaine, which I thought was so crazy at the time. I was baffled that he was snooping, especially since this kid was also on Zoom.
After the deal fell through, Hays, who had since moved to Brooklyn, made a “last ditch effort” and contacted Faith Evans through her manager.
“I informed them that a representative of The Notorious BIG Estate had made extremely unwanted sexual advances toward me,” he explained. “I have also attached the rough mp3 (heard by AllHipHop) from Biggie’s representative who repeatedly sang that he loved me in a very strange way. Faith Evans’ ex-husband and Biggie’s son’s active stepfather, Todd Russaw, sent me an email acknowledging it was “disturbing” and that he would do something about it… but he never did .
“It became somewhat disturbing when I started receiving random text messages with threats from Diddy’s associates and those associated with Biggie’s estate. For almost a year, I stayed quietly with my girlfriend in Washington Heights, Manhattan, after we temporarily moved to Texas to leave Brooklyn.
Hays ultimately received a cease and desist order over the Biggie project. It read in part: “Our client has informed us that you are threatening to release the aforementioned album without permission. The album and all master recordings embodied therein are hereinafter referred to individually and collectively as the “Album.”
“Specifically, you stated the following in an email to Christopher J. Wallace and Willie Mack on July 2, 2021: ‘I can release it (the album) on my own, without any ties to anything related to Think Big, Frank White, Biggie’s Estate, etc.’ Your statement is patently false.”
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The letter also suggested that Hays may have violated a non-disclosure agreement. It continued: “Our client shared some of your correspondence with its team members and third parties, implying that you may have breached the confidentiality agreement you signed on April 14, 2020 (the ‘NDA’). Our investigation continues and we hereby reserve all rights of our client in relation to this matter. We encourage you to review the NDA and ensure that you do not intentionally or unintentionally violate it in the future.
Needless to say, the project was never fully realized. Hays had largely put the incident behind him, but felt compelled to say something after more and more people came forward with their alleged Diddy horror stories. The unsealed indictment alleges that between 2008 and the present, Diddy abused, threatened, and coerced women and others, and directed a racketeering conspiracy that included sex trafficking, forced labor, kidnapping, arson, bribery, and obstruction of justice. Diddy remains in the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. He pleaded not guilty to all charges.
It was all a dream… until it wasn’t.
