Those of you not old enough to remember the storied war(s) between Puffy Combs & Suge Knight have undoubtedly heard about it (them?). The centerpiece of their rivalry was Suge’s speech at the 1995 Source Awards. Although submliminal in nature, Suge mentioned executives dancing in their artists videos, & invited “any” artist that was unhappy with that to join Death Row Records. Subsequently, Sean Combs ad-libbed “I thought I told you that we won’t stop!” on every Bad Boy song after that. Even on songs where it didn’t belong. That phrase went on to become the most annoying string of words since “keep it real!”, followed closely by “we are the best!”.

For all intents & purposes, there was no “east coast, west coast” beef. It was Death Row vs. Bad Boy. It just spilled into the streets.

Thing is, success is the best revenge. While Suge was showing Robert Van Winkle how he felt about Whites in rap music, Puffy was cementing his legacy. The difference between a thug & a boss, indeed. While Suge was showing his women that gangsta luv, Puff was showing that, contrary to popular belief, players do crush alot. Okay, last one…while Suge was talking to the judge for his kid, Puff was talking to the salesman for his. You catch my drift.

This week, when Marion Knight’s possessions were auctioned for unpaid storage fees, marked an all-time low for the previous music mogul. Amongst all the rumors of him having money hidden here & there, I say sternly, no dice. We have watched his empire crumble around him, & if it’s true that he had a hand in Tupac Shakur’s murder, Suge may wanna watch ‘My Name Is Earl‘, & take some notes. I’ve heard similar accusations about Combs in regards to Notorios B.I.G., and while I think he’s too un-masculine to personally do anything of that nature, the whole Shyne situation could most definitely serve as a valid arguing point.

Anyhoo, meanwhile, Puffy stays winning. One would think that an entire career based on coontastic douchebaggery would eventually stall & lose altitude, no? Of course not. He told us that he won’t stop. I call it “The Russell Simmons Phenomenon”. It’s a theory that, if you shit on enough people, eventually you’ll sit upon a pile of excrement so tall & unpleasant that you can look down on everyone, figuratively & literally. At this rate though, soon it will be renamed “The Sean Combs Experience”. But, that’s neither here nor there.

As Puffy teams up with Bawse, Jay Electronica & legally ressurects the LOX, cosmetically, it appears Diddy’s rearing up to take over Hip Hop. Again. After Bad Boy Records recent nip/tuck procedure, it only makes sense. Suge, on the other hand, will remain a running joke every time the “new” Death Row Records releases an album. To add insult to injury, Dr. Dre is suing the current company, claiming that Suge made it so he never saw profit from the classic, ‘The Chronic’ LP. They might wanna change that electric chair logo, immediately. Just saying.