Sean John Combs, also known professionally as Diddy (formerly Puff Daddy and P. Diddy), is an American former rapper, record producer, record executive, and actor. Born in Harlem, Combs worked as a talent director at Uptown Records before founding his own record label, Bad Boy Records, in 1993. He is credited with the discovery and development of musical artists such as the Notorious B.I.G., Mary J. Blige, and Usher, among others.
Combs's debut studio album, No Way Out (1997), peaked atop the Billboard 200 and sold over 7 million copies in the US. Two of its singles, "Can't Nobody Hold Me Down" (featuring Mase) and "I'll Be Missing You" (with Faith Evans featuring 112), topped the Billboard Hot 100—the latter was the first hip-hop song to debut atop the chart. With his guest appearance on "Mo Money Mo Problems", Combs became the first solo artist to replace himself atop the chart. His second and third albums, Forever (1999) and The Saga Continues... (2001), both peaked at number two on the Billboard 200. The collaborative singles "Bump, Bump, Bump" (2002) and "Shake Ya Tailfeather" (2003) made him the first rapper with five US number-one singles.