P. Diddy accused of age discrimination

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NEW YORK, Sept. 2 (UPI) -- A 51-year-old music executive at Sean "P. Diddy" Combs' Bad Boy Records in New York sued Combs for $12 million, alleging age discrimination, her lawsuit said.

Francesca Spero, known as "the Mom" or "Auntie" at Bad Boy Records, said in her lawsuit she had a falling out with Combs after she underwent hip surgery, NBC-New York reported Thursday.

"Francesca Spero opened the door for Combs's career and, now that she's 51, he showed her the door at Bad Boy," her attorney, Laurie Berke-Weiss, said.

In her lawsuit, Spero said she met Combs in 1988 and began working for him a decade later, helping him sign new writers, obtain music clearances for endorsements, implement Bad Boy's $38 million contract with Warner Bros. and produce the "Making the Band" reality show on MTV.

Their partnership soured about two years ago when she had the surgery and he allegedly said, among other things, she had too high a salary for "someone who could no longer keep up with his fast-paced lifestyle," the lawsuit said.

Spero, fired in March, said her replacement was about 10-15 years younger and "lacked the skill-set and experience" Spero brought to the position, the lawsuit said.

NBC-New York said Combs's representative could not be reached for comment.