Ghostface Killah has alleged that Diddy admitted to playing a role in Wu-Tang Clan’s struggles to get radio airplay in 1997. In an August 18, 2025, interview on The Bootleg Kev Podcast, the Staten Island rapper said he recently learned from RZA that Diddy accepted responsibility for blacklisting the group during the release of their second studio album, Wu-Tang Forever.As reported by Complex on August 18, 2025, Ghostface claimed that RZA told him in 2024 that Diddy had admitted to stopping their music from being played on the Hot 97 station."RZA told me this like maybe a year ago, and said like, ‘Yo, Puff admitted to saying that he stopped our records up there.’ ... So it was all Bad Boy. We dropped ‘Triumph,’ no radio play with that sh*t. So it came out that he told the truth, like, ‘Yo, I had to do it.’ … Listen, we was a threat." View this post on Instagram Instagram PostMore about Wu-Tang Clan’s 1997 troubles with Hot 97The allegations trace back to Wu-Tang Clan’s 1997 tour with Rage Against the Machine. Ghostface explained that the group left the tour early, creating tension within their fanbase."We left that tour, and it was messed up because we had to make a decision. Like, come back to your people over here, or stay over here and get big with these guys... We left."That same summer, Wu-Tang Clan had a beef with radio station Hot 97 after Ghost led a profanity-laced chant against the station during Summer Jam. Hot 97 responded by blacklisting their music, cutting records like Triumph from the rotation."When we left and did the Hot 97... sh*t was a disaster. They cut our records off that day, they didn't play no Wu sh*t no more. That's when Puffy was really getting on his sh*t... I cursed them n****s out."For Wu-Tang Clan, already dealing with fractured momentum from leaving the Rage tour, the lack of radio play marked a serious setback.Ghostface suggested that Diddy's influence tipped the scales, with Bad Boy Records enjoying heavy rotation at Hot 97 while Wu-Tang Clan’s singles struggled for airtime."He had the power. I don’t know what he paid ’em, but he had the power."ODB’s 1998 Grammy protestAs reported by Complex in February 2024, the tension spilled onto the global stage in February 1998, when Wu-Tang Clan lost the Best Rap Album award to Diddy’s No Way Out at the 40th Annual Grammy Awards. According to the report, Ol’ Dirty Bastard (ODB) interrupted Shawn Colvin’s acceptance speech for Song of the Year to make his feelings clear.Diddy, born Sean "Puffy" Combs, pictured with Will Smith at the 40th Annual GRAMMY Awards (Image via Getty)"Puffy is good, but Wu-Tang is the best, OK? I want you all to know that this is ODB, and I love you all. Wu-Tang is for the children."According to RZA, ODB had been convinced the group would win the Grammy."He was like, we lost because we weren’t dressed for the occasion. He didn’t realize that the vote was already cast before you got there that night."RZA later reflected on what ODB said, interpreting it as a statement about Wu-Tang Clan's legacy."Based on what we started, what we bring to the world, what we put into it-that a child and a young mind would be better to follow our path than to follow that path."There has been no direct response from Diddy at the time of writing.