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TikTok’s famed influencer family, the LaBrants, are facing backlash for posting a video of their 11-year-old daughter dancing to one of Diddy’s songs after he was arrested.
Diddy, whose real name is Sean Combs, was taken into custody in New York City on September 16 and indicted on charges of sex-trafficking, racketeering conspiracy, and transportation to engage in prostitution amid ongoing accusations of sexual assault and abuse.
A few days after the 54-year-old record producer was apprehended, Cole Labrant, a TikTok creator known for his goofy, family-friendly content, posted a now-deleted video set to Diddy’s and Faith Evans’ 1997 hit, “I’ll Be Missing You” with his stepdaughter.
In the footage previously shared on TikTok and Instagram, the young father danced with 11-year-old Everleigh while on vacation. His caption read: “How we feel while on Vacay.”
Before being deleted, the clip was widely reshared as viewers criticized Cole for having his daughter dance to a Diddy song in the midst of the rapper’s criminal charges.
“I know this is supposed to be a cutesy father-daughter dance but was now the right time to use this sound?” one TikTok user questioned.
Blogger Perez Hilton added to the conversation, writing: “Using a Diddy song NOW, with his daughter, was a choice.
“Why this song during the Diddy scandal!?? With a kid in the video,” a third commented on Instagram.
The Independent has contacted representatives for the LaBrant family for comment.
Earlier this year, CNN published never-before-seen footage of Diddy physically assaulting his former girlfriend, Cassie Ventura, in a hotel hallway in 2016. The footage showed the music mogul dragging, kicking, and shoving Ventura by the elevators of the hotel floor.
A few days after the video was released, Diddy took to his Instagram to apologize for his actions. “My behavior on that video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility for my actions in that video,” he wrote.
Cole and his wife Savannah share five kids together. The family got their start on TikTok by sharing fun-loving clips of them dancing with Everleigh. Now, they’ve tweaked their content to focus more on the day-to-day of taking care of their five children – Everleigh, Posie, five, Zealand, four, Sunday, two, and Beckham, four months.
With most of their life online, the LaBrant family has been faced with several criticisms over the years since they started social media. Two years ago, Cole and Savannah were slammed for comparing abortion to the Holocaust in a YouTube video.
While many pointed to issues in their statement, the pair never responded or published a follow-up video after the backlash. Instead, they deactivated their X/Twitter accounts, but continued to post frequently on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.
