Will Smith denies Sean Combs connection: 'I don't have s--- to do with Puffy'

Will Smith wants no affiliation with Sean "Diddy" Combs.

The King Richard star took a moment between songs at a concert near San Diego on Friday to distance himself from the artist formerly known as Puff Daddy, who is incarcerated following federal charges of racketeering and sex trafficking. "I haven't addressed any of this publicly, but I just wanna say this very clearly: I don't have s--- to do with Puffy, so y'all can stop all them memes," Smith said in a video acquired by TMZ. "You can stop all of that bulls---."

Rumors have swirled online about other musicians and entertainers attending Diddy's alleged "freak-offs" — that is, Combs-hosted gatherings that allegedly involved sex workers and/or sexual assaults, as described by Cassie Ventura in her now-settled lawsuit. (Combs has denied all allegations of sexual assault.) Smith said that he had no connection to those events: "I ain't been nowhere near no damn freak-off," he told the audience. "Listen, I do enough of my own s---, don't be putting me in other people's bulls---."

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Although Smith has been photographed alongside Combs at multiple industry events over the years, he said, "I ain't been nowhere near that man, ain't did none of that stupid s---. So whenever y'all hear it, if somebody say that, it's a damn lie."

Smith noted that he ordinarily doesn't like to address rumors or online chatter about him, but he thought it'd be worthwhile to distance himself from the conversation around Combs. "I usually don't respond to dumbass stuff, 'cause like, it's so many things," he said. "People say so much stuff. But that one, your memes was doing too much. Y'all was having me mad."

Related: See Sean Combs brag about his parties getting shut down in resurfaced 1999 video: 'Probably be arresting me'

Smith's comments come in the wake of Jay-Z being named in a new lawsuit accusing the "99 Problems" rapper of raping a 13-year-old girl alongside Combs at an afterparty for the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards. Jay-Z denied the allegations and claimed the lawsuit was attempted extortion.

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Related: Sean 'Diddy' Combs' kids are 'united' in support of him amid sex trafficking arrest: 'We love you, Dad'

Jay-Z is the first major star to be named as a co-defendant during Combs' recent legal battles, though prosecuting attorney Tony Buzbee implied that numerous other well-known celebrities may be implicated in future lawsuits against Diddy. "The names that we’re going to name, assuming our investigators confirm and corroborate what we’ve been told, are names that will shock you," Buzbee said at a press conference in October.

Combs was arrested in September on charges of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking, and transportation to engage in prostitution. He pleaded not guilty to all charges. His arrest followed several civil lawsuits that accused him of sex trafficking and sexual assault, as well as federal raids on his homes that he condemned as "excessive show of force."

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