Jay-Z and Kanye West were both at P Diddy’s 50th birthday party this weekend. It was packed with some of the biggest names in movies and music and television. Everyone wanted to be there to celebrate a half century of Puffy. And everyone being there was again a testament to the power and the influence of Black entertainers and their contributions to the industry.
But, of course, one of the strongest relationships in the industry has been fractured for a few years now. Jay and Kanye haven’t been photographed together in over three years and in that time, Kanye has openly criticised Jay for not coming to his wedding, not supporting him enough. So there was a lot of chatter yesterday on social media about this shot – and Jay’s expression in particular:
That’s why we love Photo Assumption, our favourite game of baseless conclusions. The incorrect conclusion from that image is that things are still strained. And this next one doesn’t help:
LOLOLOL, only Diddy is looking like this was a fun night. As I say often, Boy Sh-t is the Best Sh-t.
But that’s not actually the story. Multiple witnesses are reporting via multiple outlets that the Carters sat with Kanye and Kim Kardashian during the party and that all four seemed to be pleasantly engaging with one another. And this, really, is the image that is the most accurate representation of what really went down.
To see Jay happily welcoming Kanye is not a surprise. In his interview with Dean Baquet for the NY Times in 2017, Jay said there was “genuine love” between them and that relationships often go through challenges but that while he did not accept certain positions that Kanye had taken, he was confident that he and Ye would find their way back to each other again. And here we are. Just in time for the holidays. Two music titans reconciling for Diddy. Which only adds to Diddy’s Godfather status. He’s the big winner here.
