Jay-Z Accuser Formally Retracts Rape Allegation, Says Claims Were False

A woman who accused Jay-Z of raping her when she was 13 has formally withdrawn the allegations, saying she never met or spoke to the rapper and that her claims against him were false.

The woman, identified in court documents as Jane Doe, made the declaration on Thursday in connection with a lawsuit filed by Jay-Z, whose real name is Shawn Carter, after she previously dropped her own case against him.

In the new statement, she said: “Shawn ‘Jay-Z’ Carter never raped me. I have never met or spoken to Mr. Carter. Mr. Carter never engaged in any inappropriate conduct toward me whatsoever.”

She also withdrew her allegation that Carter and Sean “Diddy” Combs had raped her at a party following the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards, while another celebrity allegedly watched.

Accuser Says Claims Caused Jay-Z Harm

The woman said she understood that her accusations had caused Carter and his family “immense pain, suffering, and damage”, adding that she had not received money from him or anyone acting on his behalf in exchange for the declaration.

Carter had strongly denied the original allegations and described them as false. He later sued the woman and the lawyers who represented her after she withdrew the case in February 2025.

The woman has now been removed from Carter’s lawsuit, although his legal action against her former lawyers continues.

Her former attorney, Tony Buzbee, has disputed aspects of her new account. He said he had not seen the latest declaration and maintained that she had previously given the same account to several lawyers before his involvement.

The woman also stated in her declaration that she had not been threatened by Carter or anyone acting on his behalf.

The original allegations against Carter were never established in court, and his denial has remained consistent throughout the dispute.