SEAN COMBS - P DIDDY SHORTENS NAME TO DIDDY

Rap mogul SEAN 'P DIDDY' COMBS has unveiled his new stage moniker - he wants to be called just DIDDY.

Combs - who changed his name from PUFF DADDY and PUFFY before adopting the name P Diddy in 2001 - announced his moniker change in New York City yesterday (16AUG05).

He tells MTV News, "It's five letters, one word. The name is changed. We made it simpler. We removed the P. The P was getting in between us. We're entering the age of Diddy.

"A lot of my peeps in music been calling me Diddy, so it's not a drastic change for them. But people around the world didn't know what to call me. We was at (Madison Square Garden) rocking with JAY-Z. The last time I was there, half the crowd was chanting 'P Diddy', half the crowd chanting 'Diddy'.

"We gonna stop the confusion. 'Diddy. Diddy, Diddy!' Simple. To the point and it sounds strong. It sounds like something is about to happen. It sounds like something is about to go down in history."

Combs plans a special "unveiling of Diddy" ceremony when he hosts the MTV Video Music Awards in Miami on 28 August (05).

He adds, "You gonna see that in the entrance. You gonna see that swagger. You gonna see how I'm gonna navigate you through the journey."