(NewsNation) — Eagle eyes are on the lookout for who actually shows up this year at the Anna Wintour-hosted fashion bonanza, the Met Gala, which is being held on May 5 — the first day of Sean “Diddy” Combs’ trial for sex trafficking (among other charges).
Combs, once a regular at the Met Gala, will instead be in a courtroom fighting for his freedom, with his former friends and allies absent from not only his side but also the Metropolitan Museum — all except LeBron James, who is hosting Wintour’s gala.
To be fair, Combs did try to get the date of his trial moved to after the gala, but a judge denied his request. Jury selection starts Monday.
Prosecutors say Combs coerced and abused women for two decades, using his “power and prestige” as a music star to silence victims through blackmail and violence, including kidnapping, arson and physical beatings.
Who will be going to the Met Gala?
As I reported in October, there were some uncomfortable mumblings about the guest list for this year’s Met Gala.
After the Metropolitan Museum and Anna Wintour announced that its Spring 2025 gala would be themed “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,” people started looking closely at the guest list.
While attendees aren’t announced beforehand, the host committee includes:
- André 3000
- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
- Jordan Casteel
- Dapper Dan
- Doechii
- Ayo Edebiri
- Edward Enninful
- Jeremy O. Harris
- Branden Jacobs-Jenkins
- Rashid Johnson
- Spike Lee and Tonya Lewis Lee
- Audra McDonald
- Janelle Monáe
- Jeremy Pope
- Angel Reese
- Sha’Carri Richardson
- Tyla
- Usher
- Kara Walker
The gala and ensuing exhibit will focus “on the history of the Black dandy and the way peacocking goes beyond aesthetics to empowerment,” the New York Times noted. A$AP Rocky, Colman Domingo, Lewis Hamilton, Pharrell Williams and Anna Wintour will be co-chairing the gala, and LeBron James will be the honorary chair.
‘Everybody’s very scared right now’: Hip-hop cop on Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs case
As I noted, it was ”the last bit that” raised eyebrows in the New York social scene as James’ name has come up many times after Sean “Diddy” Combs was charged with racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution in September.
“Hip-hop cop” Derrick Parker even told me last week some of the names that may come up in the investigation, saying: “Jay-Z and Diddy were pretty close. … It’s not just Jay-Z. There are other more important people that are at these ‘Freak Off’ parties … everybody’s very scared right now.”
NEW YORK, NY – MAY 07: Cassie Ventura and Sean “Diddy” Combs attend the Heavenly Bodies: Fashion & The Catholic Imagination Costume Institute Gala at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 7, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by John Shearer/Getty Images for The Hollywood Reporter) 
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MAY 01: Yung Miami and Sean ‘Diddy‘ Combs attend The 2023 Met Gala Celebrating “Karl Lagerfeld: A Line Of Beauty” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 01, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by John Shearer/WireImage) 
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MAY 01: Yung Miami and Sean Combs attend the 2023 Costume Institute Benefit celebrating “Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty” at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 01, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Taylor Hill/Getty Images) 
FILE – Sean Combs arrives at the Pre-Grammy Gala And Salute To Industry Icons at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2020, in Beverly Hills, Calif. (Photo by Mark Von Holden/Invision/AP, File) 
LOS ANGELES, CA – MARCH 25: In an aerial view, the home of Sean “Diddy” Combs is seen during a raid by federal law enforcement agents on March 25, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by MEGA/GC Images) 
LOS ANGELES, CA – MARCH 25: In an aerial view, the home of Sean “Diddy” Combs is seen during a raid by federal law enforcement agents on March 25, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by MEGA/GC Images) 
FILE – Sean “Diddy” Combs arrives at the BET Awards at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, on June 26, 2022. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP File) 
FILE – Rap moguls Sean “Diddy” Combs, left, and Jay-Z attend the NBA All-Star basketball game, Feb. 15, 2015, in New York. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens, File) 
In this courtroom sketch, Sean “Diddy” Combs’ defense attorney Marc Agnifilo, left, addresses the judge while Combs, seated second from right, in prison uniform, watches during a hearing in federal court in New York, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. Combs’ new defense attorney, Anthony Ricco is seated far right. (Elizabeth Williams via AP)
Other names Parker mentioned: LeBron James, Chris Brown and Kevin Hart (who was seen “interviewing” a woman in a bathtub at a Diddy party in the past and has since tried to distance himself from the mogul). After Diddy was arrested, a video resurfaced of James saying, “Ain’t no party like a Diddy party”; however, the NBA superstar has not been linked to any of Combs’ alleged crimes.
None of these men have been charged with any wrongdoing.
Eagle-eyed viewers will also be looking to see if former Diddy pal Jay-Z and his wife, Beyoncé, attend the gala, as they have done in years past.
But most associates of Diddy (or, now, former associates) are said to be nervous about whether they will be mentioned in court, and whether or not they attended the “white parties” or “freak-offs.”
Either way, the irony of the two events happening on the same day is apropos.
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