In “that’s not what you said earlier” news, Sean “Diddy” Combs looks to have made a complete 180 degree turn regarding his stance of the importance of voting.
Diddy, whose Citizen Change political service group spearheaded the popular and celebrity-heavy “Vote or Die” campaign in 2004, is singing a different tune these days. The music mogul revealed his frustration with the system during an interview at the recent Revolt Music Conferece in Miami.
“See the things that’s tricky about politics is there’s so much bulls–t with it. We started Vote or Die and … and from the community we’re in, we’re not with hearing too much of the bulls–t,” Diddy said. “So that’s why we get disenfranchised, [we’re] disconnected because nothing that they’re saying actually relates to us … So Vote or Die, and getting out the vote, those things [were] laid out there so people could understand about the process. We started Vote or Die, and the whole process was all full of s–t. The whole s–t is a scam.”
Back in 2004, upon the lauch of his Citizen Change group, a nonprofit initiative with the mission of registering eligible youth to vote, Diddy went on a mini-tour to educate young people about the importance of voting, and told the Associated Press that he was focused on holding politicians accountable if they wanted his vote.
“From here on, I’m asking questions and I want answers,” Diddy said in 2004. “As Citizen Combs, I’ve got one vote and I need to know which candidate represents me and my concerns. Part of the responsibility I’m taking on is to write up a job description for the candidates and make sure they do their job.”
Though he may presently think the election process is a scam, Diddy made it clear that he wasn’t completely discouraging people from exercising their right to vote: “At the end of the day, I’m not telling you not to vote. But I’m saying be a realist and know that they’re motherf—–g kicking some bulls–t up there.”
