For more than two decades, Sean ''Diddy'' Combs was one of hip-hop's most opportunistic entrepreneurs, spinning his hitmaking talents into a broad business empire that included a record label, a fashion brand, a TV network, deals with liquor companies and a key role in a reality TV show.
But U.S. prosecutors say that behind the scenes, Combs was coercing and abusing women with help from a network of associates who helped silence victims through blackmail and violence.
Combs has pleaded not guilty and denied the allegations. Jury selection for his trial starts Monday.
Here is a timeline of major events in his rise and fall:
1990: Combs, then a student at Howard University, gets his start in the music business with an internship at Uptown Records in New York.
Dec. 28, 1991: Nine people die at a celebrity basketball game promoted by Combs and the rapper Heavy D when thousands of fans try to get into a gym at the City College of New York. A mayoral report lays part of the blame for the catastrophe on poor planning by Combs.
1992: Combs is one of the executive producers on ''What's the 411?,'' the debut album by Mary J. Blige.
1993: After being fired by Uptown, Combs establishes his own label, Bad Boy, which quickly cuts a lucrative deal with Arista Records.