Judge Scolds Diddy for ‘Nodding Vigorously' to the Jury, Threatens to Remove Him From Courtroom
Sean 'Diddy' Combs was put on warning during his sex trafficking trial, as the judge overseeing the courtroom scolded him for making facial expressions at the jurors.
'I was very clear there should be no facial expressions to the jury, and I could not have been clearer,' Judge Arun Subramanian told Combs' attorneys during the lunch break on Thursday. 'There was a line of questioning where your client was nodding vigorously and looking at the jury,' he said, adding that it was 'absolutely unacceptable.'
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'There should be no efforts to have any interactions with this jury,' said Subramanian, asking Combs' attorney Marc Agnifilo if it would happen again. 'No, your honor, it's not going to happen again,' Agnifilo replied.
The judge said if Combs could not comply with his order, 'I will give an instruction to the jury or it could result in the exclusion of your client from the courtroom.'
Combs has often appeared stoic during the court proceedings, but there have been certain testimonies (including that of his former assistant George Kaplan) during which he has peered over at the jurors and nodded. Combs also tends to look at the members of the public and press seated behind him, often giving a gesture of gratitude to those in the friends and family section.
On Thursday, the court heard testimony from Bryana Bongolan, a woman who claims Combs held her over a 17th-floor balcony, and a former romantic partner of Combs' who is using the pseudonym 'Jane.'
Combs is charged with sex trafficking and racketeering. If he's convicted, he could spend the rest of his life behind bars.
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Against all odds, Rae has pulled off a rare pivot, trading a massive but unenthusiastic audience of passive social media scrollers for critical acclaim and a passionate niche of die-hard fans. As Walden Green wrote for Pitchfork, "Addison Rae has achieved something arguably more impressive than success: coolness." How did she do it? Act I: Flipping the script Rae is hardly the first celebrity to switch lanes, but the transition from TikToker to bona fide celebrity is particularly difficult — just ask Charli D'Amelio or Bella Poarch, both of whom boasted more followers than Rae in 2020, but have so far failed to parlay social-media fame into traditional Hollywood prestige. Lili Colwell, the vice president of digital at Night, a talent representation platform for online creators, said her clients face greater stigma when transitioning into a new discipline, as skeptics often assume that influencers are lazy trend hoppers, not creative forces in their own right. 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In May 2025, Rae only shared 12 videos on TikTok for the entire month, mostly to promote music videos that were painstakingly styled, shot, and edited — a far cry from the off-the-cuff, low-effort clips that defined her early days on the app. Now, if she's going to lip sync or dance, it's to her own songs. Taking a step back from algorithmic ubiquity not only gave Rae more control over her narrative but also added a crucial layer of mystique to her persona — a key element in transforming her reputation from regular Louisiana girl with a knack for nailing TikTok dances to an aspirational, slightly unknowable celebrity and artist. "She's releasing bits and pieces to intrigue the audience and make them want more," Goodwin said of Rae's current social media strategy. "She's actually now creating a story." Online and in interviews, Rae has managed to sell her rebrand as an earnest progression in her creative coming-of-age. 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She has been working to personify that character ever since, with every carefully selected public appearance, red carpet look, and new song revealing another layer of her new self-mythology. Sara Andréasson, cofounder of Michele Marie PR, told Business Insider that this strategy has created demand and curiosity. "She's no longer just an influencer making music — she's a pop artist who happens to come from an influencer background." Act II: Finding a backer During her TikTok reign, Rae told BI, "You are who you hang out with." Though she was speaking at the time about how close she was with her family, the statement has become a key tenet of the Rae Rebrand. Rae's music earned its first major stamp of approval from the alt-pop star Charli XCX, who, after hitting it off with Rae in a studio session, asked to contribute a verse to "2 Die 4," a ringtone-era throwback track that was included on Rae's 2023 EP "AR." Before Charli XCX had her major crossover moment in the summer of last year with the ubiquitous acid-green rollout of her album "Brat," the British singer was known as a platinum-selling songwriter for other artists and an ahead-of-the-curve pop prophet in her own right. Her interest in supporting and collaborating with Rae, whom she'd also recruit for the remix of her "Brat" single, "Von Dutch," around the same time, legitimized Rae's artistic pursuits. DJ Louie XIV, a music critic and host of the Pop Pantheon podcast, said he's "keen to ascribe agency" to Rae, even if it could seem like her fame has been propelled by her shrewd choice of collaborators. It's not that he believes Charli is pulling the strings — it's that he trusts her eye for talent. "Maybe I'm buying the hype," he told BI, "but I think if Charli sees something in her, that means something to me." Rae's connection to Charli introduced her to a wider audience, made her more chic by association, and staved off doubts about her staying power. As Brat Summer raged on, Rae took a page out of Charli's cool-girl playbook, crashing parties and smoking cigarettes with club kids, and winning respect from celebrated songwriters like Lorde and Lana Del Rey. To top it off, she generated buzz when she joined Charli onstage for surprise performances during the singer's tour stops at Madison Square Garden and Coachella, and cheekily announced her album release date via a pair of pink underwear while performing the "Aquamarine" remix with Arca at the festival. Act III: Dressing the part Having good style is relatively easy; making your fashion serve a narrative purpose is harder. Rae is largely focused on the latter, using her outfits to signal her new priorities. Gone are the Brandy Melville sweatpants and backward baseball caps that made her look laid-back and accessible, like the average girl at Erewhon. Instead, she's worked closely with Interview magazine fashion director Dara Allen to execute a series of looks that aren't simply pretty or well-fitted, but edgy, flamboyant, and evocative. Rae savvily uses her clothing to evoke movie stars and pop icons and project herself into that lineage, landing a series of indelible fashion moments, from her pap walk in a baby tee accessorized with Britney Spears' memoir to the white satin lingerie set she wore for her VMAs red carpet debut, which Vogue described as "'Swan Lake' meets Las Vegas showgirl." Andréasson, who has experience dressing A-list celebrities for events, said Rae's style evolution stands out for its use of surrealism and storytelling. Rae in 2021. Gotham/GC Images Rae in 2024. XNY/Star Max/GC Images "She does a great job avoiding the costumey elements of nostalgia and instead reinterprets it with modern tailoring and fresh beauty choices," Andréasson said. "Nostalgia only works when it's recontextualized, and Addison seems to understand that." In a media landscape where rewearing a historic Marilyn Monroe gown or recreating a memorable look from a '90s sitcom are easy ways to score headlines, Rae has avoided the plug-and-play approach. Her style may be full of references, but crucially, she doesn't mimic other celebrities or copy exact outfits. Instead, she prefers to arouse a broader feeling of familiarity. For example, Rae cited the 2006 friendship comedy "Aquamarine" as an inspiration for her song of the same name and her mermaid-inspired look for the 2024 CFDA Awards — not in terms of the movie's content or plot, but in how watching it made her feel. "I wanted to find what aquamarine meant to me," she said. Act IV: Living up to the hype Rae's flair for refracting nostalgia through her own original lens is evident in her new music as much as in her aesthetic. Her debut album "Addison" is full of dreamy, mid-tempo pop that flirts with its influences, from Madonna's "Ray of Light" and Björk's "Post" to Spears' "Blackout" and Del Rey's "Born to Die." As the tracklist dances between decades, genres, and moods, Rae's personal touch fills the gaps. This kaleidescopic technique isn't always radio-friendly, but Rae no longer seems to be aiming for immediate chart success (none of the album's five singles have yet cracked the Billboard Hot 100's top 40, with "Diet Pepsi" peaking the highest at No. 54). And why should she? If there's anyone who knows the drawbacks of an abrupt rise to fame without a sensible plan to sustain it, it's Rae. Instead, she and her team are executing a strategy that prioritizes artistic legitimacy and real staying power, something Rae hinted at in a recent interview with Elle. "I feel like I've surpassed Addison Rae," she said. "It's just Addison now." Going mononymous is a shorthand for prestige: think Madonna, Cher, Beyoncé. Rae hasn't earned that level of name recognition yet, but if her journey thus far is any indication, her ambition, marketing savvy, and willingness to play the long game are not to be underestimated — at least, not anymore. "Back in the '50s, people were discovered in Hollywood by sitting at a lunch counter on a stool. TikTok was her stool," Andréasson said. "It's going to fade away, and all of the new things that she's doing are what she's going to be known for. That's just going to be a postscript in the Addison story."
