Sean Combs’ lavish White Parties marked the peak of his cultural influence

  

There was a time when one of the hottest summer tickets belonged to anyone who was able to score an invite to party with Sean “Diddy” Combs.

These days, people aren’t rushing to be associated with the now disgraced and detained businessman and producer.

Combs faces up to life in prison if convicted for his indictment in the Southern District of New York on counts of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution. He has pleaded not guilty.

The case has put a spotlight on the lifestyle Combs once lived.

That allegedly included “Freak Offs,” Combs’ name for elaborate sex performances in which, according to the indictment, he is accused of drugging and coercing victims into performing extended sex acts with male sex workers, beginning around 2009.

The indictment has sparked conversation about the contrast between Combs’ cultural influence at its peak, like the massive White Parties he hosted from 1998 to 2009, and his alleged behavior behind closed doors in the years that followed.