How 50 Cent's "Sean Combs: The Reckoning" Ties Diddy Compellingly to 2Pac and Biggie's Murders

 

In the shadow of Sean "Diddy" Combs' recent federal conviction and imprisonment, Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson has unleashed what might be his most audacious troll yet: a four-part Netflix docuseries titled Sean Combs: The Reckoning. Dropping on December 2, 2025, the series—executive produced by 50 and directed by Alexandria Stapleton—doesn't just chronicle Diddy's meteoric rise from Harlem hustler to hip-hop emperor and his equally spectacular fall amid abuse allegations. It goes deeper, excavating the ghosts of the 1990s East Coast-West Coast beef that claimed two of rap's brightest stars: Tupac Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G. (Biggie Smalls). Through insider interviews, never-before-seen footage, and archival bombshells, "The Reckoning" paints Diddy not as a bystander, but as a central architect of the chaos that led to their deaths. Is it definitive proof? No. But it's a masterclass in narrative persuasion, blending testimony, timelines, and 50's signature shade to make the case feel airtight. Here's how it lands those ties with devastating precision.

1. Framing the Beef as Diddy's Personal Vendetta

The docuseries kicks off Episode 2 by zooming in on the infamous label wars: Diddy's Bad Boy Entertainment (home to Biggie, Faith Evans, and Mase) versus Suge Knight's Death Row Records (Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, and later 2Pac). What could have been a healthy rivalry, the film argues, devolved into a blood feud under Diddy's ego-fueled orchestration. Former Bad Boy co-founder Kirk Burrowes drops the first grenade, revealing handwritten journal entries from the era that detail Diddy's "envy" for West Coast success and his obsession with outshining Suge. Burrowes recounts how Diddy allegedly stoked tensions by leaking stories to the press and aligning Bad Boy with Crips affiliates, turning a music clash into a gang inferno—with Bloods backing Death Row. It's compelling because it humanizes the mogul's flaws: Not content with building an empire, Diddy reportedly saw rivals as existential threats, setting the stage for violence.

2. The $1 Million Hit on 2Pac: Keffe D's Chilling Testimony

No thread in hip-hop's unsolved mysteries pulls harder than the 1996 Las Vegas drive-by that killed 2Pac. "The Reckoning" resurrects it with raw, unfiltered police interrogation footage from 2008 featuring Duane "Keffe D" Davis—a Southside Crips "shot caller" now awaiting trial for the murder. Davis claims Diddy offered $1 million to Crips members (via middleman Eric Von Zip) to take out 2Pac and Suge Knight after a Mike Tyson fight. Why? Payback for 2Pac's scathing diss tracks like "Hit 'Em Up," which targeted Diddy and Biggie, and the infamous Quad Studios shooting earlier that year where 2Pac accused Diddy of setup.

The doc bolsters this with LAPD detective Greg Kading's insights, who investigated the case and corroborates Davis' story as part of a proffer deal. Archival clips of a young Diddy shrugging off the rumors on TV ("It's not a good look") contrast sharply with the gravity of Davis' words, making Diddy's denials feel evasive. Social media erupted post-release, with X users like @GatorXcelerator declaring, "50 Cent confirms our suspicions... P Diddy 100% killed Biggie and 2Pac." It's not just allegation—it's a timeline synced with Diddy's own boasts of "taking over" the charts, implying the hit was business as usual.

3. Biggie's "Recoupable" Funeral: Profiting from the Fallout

Six months after 2Pac's death, Biggie met a similar fate in a Los Angeles drive-by on March 9, 1997. "The Reckoning" flips the script here, arguing Diddy's "arrogance and stupidity" sealed his star's doom. Burrowes alleges Diddy ignored Biggie's fears about L.A. travel, pushing him to attend the Soul Train Awards despite Death Row threats—essentially marching him into the crossfire. But the gut-punch? Post-murder, Diddy planned a lavish New York funeral, only to bill Biggie's estate for it as a "recoupable" expense under his contract, ensuring the rapper paid for his own send-off even in death.

This isn't speculation; it's backed by Burrowes' firing for resisting the contract tweaks and Voletta Wallace's (Biggie's mom) archival footage expressing fury at Diddy and Suge for fueling the beef. Former associates like music exec Howard Samuels add layers, claiming Diddy flew him out annually on March 9—the anniversary—to "commemorate" Biggie while allegedly abusing others in private. The doc ties this to the Crips-Bloods escalation Diddy allegedly ignited, suggesting Biggie's killing was retaliatory blowback from the 2Pac hit.

4. 50 Cent's Vendetta as Cultural Reckoning

50 isn't subtle about his motives—he's been beefing with Diddy since the early 2000s, from mocking his Cassie fallout to producing this hit-piece amid Diddy's 2024 sex trafficking trial (where he was acquitted on major counts but got 50 months for prostitution violations). Yet, the series elevates beyond pettiness: Interviews with abuse survivors like Joi Dickerson-Neal (who sued Diddy in 2023) weave a pattern of control and violence, mirroring the power plays in the beef. Diddy's team fired back, calling it a "shameful hit piece," but 50's ABC promo—timed for prison TV access—ensures Diddy can't escape the mirror. X threads buzz with fans praising Eminem's prescience in calling out Diddy, while others dissect lyrics like Diddy's own "rest in peace" nods that now read as confessions.

The Verdict: Justice or Justified Shade?

"Sean Combs: The Reckoning" doesn't "prove" Diddy's guilt—Davis' testimony is immunity-tainted, and no charges have stuck. But in hip-hop's oral history tradition, it compellingly connects dots: Diddy's ambition as accelerant, his Crips ties as fuse, and his post-tragedy profiteering as the smoke. For a culture scarred by those losses, 50's doc isn't vengeance—it's validation, forcing a fresh autopsy on wounds that never healed. Stream it on Netflix, then hit the comments: Does it change how you see the '90s beef, or is it 50 just burying a rival? Either way, the dirt's out, and hip-hop's cleaner for it. RIP 2Pac & Biggie. 🕊️