Sean Combs's Real Name: Sean John Combs (Diddy, Puff Daddy)

Quick answer: The rapper and producer known as Puff Daddy, P. Diddy, and Diddy is Sean Combs. He was born Sean John Combs on November 4, 1969, in New York City and grew up in Harlem. Britannica reports that in 2021 he legally changed his middle name from John to Love. He founded Bad Boy Entertainment. In October 2025 he was sentenced to 50 months in federal prison on two Mann Act counts (Britannica; AP).

Real name and early life

The Library of Congress name authority files his works under "Diddy, 1969-" and lists variants including "Combs, Sean," "Combs, Puffy," and "P. Diddy." One citation records that he is "sometimes credited as: Sean 'Puffy' Combs, Puffy Combs, Sean Combs, Combs, Puff Daddy, P. Diddy, P Diddy, Diddy" (LOC).

Britannica says his father was murdered when Combs was three. When he was 12, the family moved to Mount Vernon, New York. There, according to a widely repeated story, he got the nickname "Puffy" for puffing up his chest at football practice. He attended Howard University for two years, then left to intern at Uptown Records and became a vice president within a year.

Career highlights

After Uptown fired him in 1993, Combs built his own label, Bad Boy Entertainment. He signed the Notorious B.I.G. and moved the label to Arista in a $15 million deal. After B.I.G.'s 1997 murder, Combs released No Way Out as Puff Daddy. The tribute single "I'll Be Missing You" helped him win two Grammys in 1998, and that year he launched the Sean John clothing line. He switched to "P. Diddy" for The Saga Continues (2001), won a third Grammy for Nelly's "Shake Ya Tailfeather," dropped the "P." in 2005, and later released Last Train to Paris (2010) and The Love Album: Off the Grid (2023).

Beginning in 2023 he faced multiple civil lawsuits alleging abuse, and he was arrested in September 2024 on federal charges. He denied the allegations. In July 2025 a jury acquitted him of racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking but convicted him on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. On October 3, 2025, a federal judge sentenced him to 50 months in prison and fined him $500,000. AP reported that his lawyers planned to appeal (AP).

Name notes for searchers

Puff Daddy, Puffy, P. Diddy, and Diddy are all stage names for the same man. His legal surname is Combs. His birth middle name was John, which is also the name of his clothing brand, Sean John. He changed it to Love in 2021.