The Diddy Curse: 8 Of The Best Artists Formerly On Bad Boy Records

There is no question that Diddy (or is it P. Diddy nowadays?) is a hugely influential music mogul, ever since his job as a record executive in the ’90s era. But there have been many instances where the businessman fell short of doing his job. Bad Boy Records is notorious for being the Bermuda Triangle of record labels. Sure, there were artists like Faith Evans, and Notorious B.I.G. who scored major success. But many others in the Bad Boy camp could not achieve the same.

So in light of Danity Kane‘s third and final studio album, DK3 (released on October 28), we’re taking a look back at eight of the most overlooked artists who unfortunately succumbed to the Bad Boy curse. but at least they had talent!

See which artists made the cut after the jump!

8. Da Band

Kicking off this list is Da Band, a product of MTV’s reality show Making The Band 2 (hence their original name) that aired from 2002-2004. During the show’s second season, Diddy sought out the best rappers and singers to create a hip-hop group. The end result was a band of six members: Sara Stokes, Dylan Dylinjah, Chopper, Babs, Ness and Freddy P. They released their certified Gold debut album Too Hot For TV in September 2003.

But, to be fair, their reality show drama was the most entertaining factor of Da Band — which included fights between members and walking from one borough to another to buy Junior’s cheesecake for their boss. Da Band quickly fell victim to the Diddy curse in 2004, when the mogul dissolved the group.

7. Yung Joc

Diddy has always seemed to do well with rappers on his label, with artists like Biggie Smalls and French Montana. But one artist who had a spark of fame who is overlooked is Yung Joc. The Atlanta-based rapper emerged on the Bad Boy South label during the Dirty South takeover, along with artists like Lil Jon, D4L, Dem Franchise Boyz, Hurricane Chris and more. The first single off his 2006 debut LP New Joc City, titled “It’s Goin’ Down,” peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 and is certified three times Platinum.

But things went downhill in 2009 when the rapper sued the label due to alleged unpaid royalties. Yung Joc is no longer part of Bad Boy South, and is now signed to RCA. He is also a recurring member on Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta, where his fiascos with no-name women have overshadowed his music. Go figure!

6. Donnie Klang

Donnie Klang‘s career was formed during the fourth installment of Making The Band in conjunction with Day26 and Danity Kane. Diddy thought it was a brilliant idea to have the singer break out into his own stardom. It was a good plan, seeing how Klang had solid talent (and incredibly good looks). But the businessman couldn’t pull through, and left his artist without a fulfilling career despite a feature on his breakout single “Take You There” — off his debut LP Like A Rolling Stone.

But it all worked out in the end, as he is still in the music industry as the CEO of The Loft Sound Studio. Let’s just hope he decided to cut a follow-up album!

5. Day26

Diddy had success with male R&B solo artists and groups back in the late ’90s/early ’00s, but in recent years luck was not on his side! Beginning in June 2007, he had a master plan of forming the ultimate all-male band — hence the creation of Day26. They released their self-titled debut album in 2008, one week after their labelmates Danity Kane dropped their record (we’ll get to those girls later).

Day26 debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, and all seemed to be going well for the boys. They released their sophomore album Forever In A Day, which landed at the number two spot on the Billboard 200 in its first week. Yet their impending curse occurred in July 2012, when the band announced their split. Since then, they’ve worked on solo careers and even tried to plan a reunion last year. But, their success will never be the same.

4. Cassie

Cassie (a fresh-faced singer from Connecticut) released her self-titled debut album in 2006 as part of Bad Boy Records, after Diddy heard the lead single “Me & U” in a club. Since then, her career has had more downs than ups as her music has failed to make a lasting impact (or hasn’t been properly released at all). She has actually been dating Diddy since 2007, which gives her the ultimate advantage among the Bad Boy artists of the past.

In April 2013, Cassie released her killer (and underrated) mixtape RockaByeBaby, which received positive reviews from music critics — thanks to songs like the Wiz Khalifa-assisted “Paradise.” Yet she’d rather party on yachts than put effort into her music career. Now, there’s nothing wrong with that. But we would gladly appreciate another album, a mixtape or even an EP!

3. Dream

One of the most promising girl groups of the new millennium was Dream. As seen with hit songs like “He Loves U Not” and “This Is Me,” they had super catchy pop hooks combined with soulful vocal harmonies. Despite their debut album It Was All A Dream being certified Platinum, Dream was sadly hit with the Bad Boy Records curse. Seriously, is this in hidden within contracts’ fine print?

Their sophomore album was shelved without any explanation to the media or their fans, and the ladies ultimately disbanded just three years after their musical debut. Guess who is to blame? Why, Diddy of course!

2. Total

Diddy arguably had the most triumphs in the 1990’s. One of his biggest feats was R&B girl group Total. They formed in 1994 and made their musical introduction by singing the hook of Notorious B.I.G.‘s classic hit, “Juicy.” After that, they released their self-titled debut in 1996 that went on to become certified Platinum. It included songs like the Biggie-assisted “Can’t You See” and “No One Else” featuring Da Brat. A sophomore album arrived two years later, which came along with their musical decline.

There’s no question the trio of singers had talent, but unfortunately their careers couldn’t last past the birth of the new millennium. To be fair, many artists did not have the same success in the early 2000’s as they did in the 1990’s. So we can’t blame Diddy too much, right?

1. Danity Kane

Ending this list is the heavily discussed and arguably the most talented group of artists — Danity Kane. These ladies first started as a five-piece pop/R&B troupe in the third installment of Making The Band. They were released from their Bad Boy contract in 2009 after two chart-topping albums, and the curse followed them all throughout their short-lived careers. It started with an official disbandment that same year, Dawn Richard joining Diddy-Dirty Money and D. Woods leaving the girls in 2013 after they announced a reunion.

After that, Aundrea Fimbres took a permanent maternity leave in May 2014 and Danity Kane was now a three-member group (Destiny’s Child‘s impact). In September, they announced their third and final LP after kicking Dawn out the group due to alleged physical altercations (3LW‘s impact). Now, only Aubrey O’Day and Shannon Bex are left in Danity Kane — but who knows what their fate will be. At least they gave us some memorable bops (“Damaged, “Show Stopper,” “Lemonade”) over the years!

Did we miss any of your Bad Boy favorites on the list? Let us know in the comments below!

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