Diddy has backtracked on the incredible claim that he still pays Sting $5,000 a day for using one of his songs without permission.
The hip-hop legend - who's real name is Sean Combs - sampled 'Every Breath You Take', the 1983 single by The Police, for one of his own songs, 'I'll Be Missing You', which dropped in 1997 - arguably Diddy's best record.
The emotional track was a tribute to the rapper's longtime friend Christopher Wallace, the 'The Notorious B.I.G.'.
Advert
The song also featured Faith Evans, Biggie's former wife and mother to his son C.J. Wallace.
Well, it all started earlier this week when Diddy reacted to a clip of Sting - who's real name is Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner - being interviewed by The Breakfast Club on Twitter.
Charlamagne the God asked the singer: "Is it true that Diddy has to pay you USD $2,000 (AUD $2,986) because he didn't ask permission to sample 'Every Breath You Take'."
"Yep," Sting shockingly revealed, "for the rest of his life."
Advert
Despite not asking permission prior to the song's release, Sumner said that the two remain good friend to this day.
Diddy then went on to correct the actual figure that he sends Sting every single day.
He tweeted: "Nope. 5K a day. Love to my brother @OfficialSting!"
Advert
Fans then got their calculators out to quantify the precise amount that Diddy has owed to Sting after all this time.
"Roughly 47.5 million he paid that man," they posted, which is quite the amount, even if you are a billionaire like Diddy.
However, just yesterday (7 April) Combs backtracked on his statement and said he was being 'facetious'.
Advert
"I want y’all to understand I was joking!" wrote the 53-year-old.
"It’s called being Facetious! Me and @OfficialSting have been friends for a long time!
"He never charged me $3K or $5K a day for Missing You.
"He probably makes more than $5K a day from one of the biggest songs in history."
Advert
So there you have it.
Reacting to the revelation, one fan tweeted: "I love how humble you are by still explaining yourself…I gotta do better."
While another added: "Thanks for clearing that up… I was like some friend that is, he couldn’t had just asked for a lump sum…. But then again a good friend would let you owe an pay off that debt slow."
Anish Vij