Jay-Z reflects on now-dismissed sexual assault claims: 'I was really heartbroken'
Rapper and record executive Jay-Z is opening up about the now-dismissed sexual assault lawsuit filed against him a little over a year ago, saying the allegations took a severe toll on him.
In a pair of interviews with GQ earlier this year, published Tuesday, the music mogul reflected on the 2024 lawsuit, filed on behalf of a woman who accused Jay-Z and former rapper and record producer Sean "Diddy" Combs of allegedly taking turns sexually assaulting her at a party following the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards, when she was just 13 years old.
Carter and Combs both denied the allegations, and the civil case was dropped in February 2025 after the plaintiff voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit with prejudice through her attorney.
"It was hard. Really hard. I was heartbroken," Jay-Z said, speaking with GQ. "I was really heartbroken by everything that occurred."
The rapper described feeling "uncontrollable anger" over the allegations, adding, "You don't put that on someone -- that's a thing that you better be super sure."
Jay-Z said that despite that frustration, he was confident the court case would be resolved.
"I also got to see how people felt about me, especially people that were close to me," he said, noting that at one point, his daughter Blue Ivy even donned a jersey with his name across the back and wore it to school.
"People can say that [they'll always be there for you], but it's very rare that you're going to have to exercise it," he added. "And in the darkest moment for me, I got to see those sorts of things."
The lawsuit was one of a number of anonymous civil complaints filed by Texas attorney Tony Buzbee against Combs, who was later convicted in July 2025 on two counts of transportation for the purposes of prostitution and sentenced to more than four years in prison.
The suit, initially filed in October 2024, was amended in December that same year to include Carter.
Carter and his lawyer strongly denied the allegations outlined in the suit in both public statements and in court filings, accusing Buzbee, the woman's lawyer, of conducting an "extortionate campaign" against him.
Combs' legal representatives responded to the filing in a statement to ABC News at the time, calling Buzbee's lawsuits "publicity stunts, designed to extract payments from celebrities who fear having lies spread about them."
The plaintiff in the amended lawsuit voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit with prejudice through her attorney in February 2025, according to a court filing.
Carter addressed the dismissal in a statement through his entertainment company Roc Nation at that time, calling it "a victory." Combs' legal team said in a statement that the dismissal was "confirmation that these lawsuits are built on falsehoods, not facts."
Jay-Z subsequently filed a defamation suit against the woman in the withdrawn civil suit in March 2025, also naming her attorneys, Buzbee and David Fortney, and alleging they "were soullessly motivated by greed, in abject disregard of the truth and the most fundamental precepts of human decency."
In response to the defamation suit, Buzbee shared a statement with ABC News that month, saying the case has "no legal merit" and was "just another attempt to intimidate and bully this poor woman."
The defamation lawsuit is ongoing as of March 2026.
Speaking with GQ about his plans moving forward, Jay-Z said that the interviews were "the first thing I'm doing, actually."
"It was just like, alright man, we played enough defense. 2026 is all offense."
ABC News has reached out to Jay-Z's representative for comment.
