Making the Band's Que (Part 2)

Summary

Podcast Title: Amy Robach & T.J. Holmes present: Aubrey O’Day, Covering the Diddy Trial
Host/Author: iHeartPodcasts
Episode: Making the Band's Que (Part 2)
Release Date: May 25, 2025

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Introduction

In the compelling episode titled "Making the Band's Que (Part 2)," hosts Amy Robach and T.J. Holmes delve deep into the ongoing Diddy Trial, providing an exclusive and personal perspective through their guest, Aubrey O’Day, alongside Q from Day26 and his mother, Nicole. This episode aims to unpack the complexities of the trial, shedding light on the personal struggles and systemic issues within the music industry that have come to the forefront.

Unveiling the Past: Q’s Early Struggles

The conversation begins with reflections on past interviews where Q exhibited signs of distress. At [00:33], Aubrey references a 2017 interview where Q asks, "Do I look okay to you? I'm not okay." Nicole elaborates on this moment, explaining that Q was grappling with personal issues even before the Diddy scandal surfaced:
Nicole (00:30): "I wouldn't know at that point. I'm looking at you like, what is wrong with him?"

These early signs were dismissed by many, highlighting a lack of support and understanding for Q's mental health struggles.

From Laughter to Tears: The Shift in Public Perception

As the trial progresses, public perception shifts dramatically. Aubrey observes a cultural obsession with vilifying Diddy, often overshadowing the nuanced truths of the case:
Aubrey (05:30): "There's this uproar of people just disgusted with the testimony and really just wanting to see him go down."

Nicole contrasts earlier dismissive attitudes toward Q with the emotional responses witnessed during recent interviews:
Nicole (03:27): "They laughed at Q in the interview. But the last interview on Vlad, everybody's crying."

This shift underscores the evolving narrative as more personal testimonies come to light.

Justice and Accountability: Seeking Closure

The hosts probe into what justice means for Q and his mother. Nicole expresses a desire for accountability not just from Diddy but from everyone involved:
Nicole (09:13): "Anyone that was willingly bringing people in, anyone that was willingly doing things with somebody that was passed out."

Aubrey echoes this sentiment, emphasizing the need for a legal resolution devoid of emotional bias:
Aubrey (05:30): "I want justice legally occur. I don't want it to feel like it's an emotional choice."

The Toxic Culture of Fame: Systemic Issues in the Music Industry

Aubrey critically examines the culture of fame propagated by Diddy’s shows like Making the Band, where ordinary individuals are thrust into the limelight, often facing toxic environments:
Aubrey (07:27): "He takes a bunch of unknown people on this TV show and he makes them a band... There's a cultural reset needed on the music industry."

Nicole adds context by sharing her experiences avoiding the typical celebrity lifestyle, striving to protect her son from the pitfalls of fame:
Nicole (23:07): "I always tried to stay out of it... I never pressured you guys."

Personal Journeys: Healing and Resilience

The heart of the episode centers on the personal stories of Q and Nicole. Q articulates his need for validation and an apology from Diddy to affirm his traumatic experiences:
Q (11:12): "I want a genuine apology... I don't want to sue you."

Nicole shares her maternal anguish, expressing guilt over her inability to protect Q from the influences that led to his current state:
Nicole (17:06): "I can agree with what you're saying... I just wish my son would have just stayed in college."

Aubrey underscores the importance of legal justice while acknowledging the emotional toll:
Aubrey (12:07): "I want the case to be proven... maybe you have to leave room for even with dawn."

Conclusion: Moving Forward with Truth and Understanding

As the episode wraps up, hosts express gratitude towards the guests for their bravery in sharing their stories, emphasizing the broader implications for others who have faced similar abuses:
TJ (20:32): "We’re grateful for you all having the courage to speak up... this is not unique."

Nicole concludes with a heartfelt message about her protective instincts as a mother and her unwavering support for Q:
Nicole (24:29): "Anybody that's trying to take my family down or hurt any of my children... I'm there."

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Notable Quotes:

• Aubrey (05:30): "There's this uproar of people just disgusted with the testimony and really just wanting to see him go down."
• Nicole (17:19): "I begged him when he called me and he says, mom, I'm not gonna stay in college."
• Q (11:12): "I want a genuine apology... I don't want to sue you."
• Aubrey (07:27): "There's a cultural reset needed on the music industry."

Final Thoughts

This episode of "Covering the Diddy Trial" offers a profound exploration of the intersection between fame, personal trauma, and the quest for justice. Through candid conversations, it not only sheds light on the specifics of the trial but also invites listeners to reflect on broader societal issues within the entertainment industry.

Transcript

[Host]

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[TJ]

Amy and TJ presents Aubrey o' Day.

[Host]

Covering the Diddy trial. We are back now with Aubrey q from day 26 and his mom Nicole. You made a reference in that Vlad interview that to a previous interview. You say, yeah, y' all go back and look at me in that. I think it was 2017 or something interview. And you say, you look at me in that thing. Do I look okay to you? I'm not okay. Something's wrong with when people go back. I encourage them to look at this, but we see a different individual from the rest sitting there. And I didn't know at that point. I'm looking at you like, what is wrong with him? Like, without context, you would look at that video and go, what's wrong with that kid? What was wrong in that moment that you. You were describing what was wrong?

[Q]

You were.

[Nicole]

That's when he was going through. We were trying to figure out what exactly was happening. But even before that, I don't know. Day 26 did an interview and all the guys were laughing. That was the very first. When all this Diddy stuff came out, they did an interview and Q was in the back and he was saying, you know, people don't. I don't. What.

[Q]

I was. I was saying something, and this is 50. Yeah, this is 50.

[Nicole]

Yeah. And he was. He was talking then. And people relate.

[Q]

People have to have.

[Nicole]

People went back on that same interview and said, he tried to tell y' all a long time ago.

[Host]

A lot of people.

[Nicole]

That was the very first interesting.

[Host]

Are pulling stuff up like that now and say, oh, it was right there. It was. It was in our face. It was right in our face. It was in our face.

[Nicole]

I would still travel with him when day 26 was out doing performances, and they would say, well, where's Q? I would go up to the hotel room. In the room. He's in the shower, sitting in the middle of the shower with the water just pouring. Like he was trying to get his thoughts and everything to act.

[Aubrey]

You know what's interesting? I ran into somebody during the AIDS walk. And they said to me, you said it all along, but you weren't the person we wanted to hear it from. And I, as I'm hearing your line of your discussion that you guys are having, I'm thinking to myself, it wasn't just. I wasn't the one they wanted to hear from. They weren't trying to hear it from any of us. It took so many people along the way to, to have these types of interviews that you're discussing to finally culminate in some way. I still wonder systematically what the energy is in that department that took. That potentially has a role in this. Because I don't even, I don't know how much anyone cared about any of us. And if you could even see it back in an interview, then I've been saying it for 20 years. What kind of person needed to say it in order for everybody to listen?

[Nicole]

What's crazy is then they laughed at him. His own bandmates, oh, he's talking crazy, he doesn't know what he's saying. They were laughing at Q in the interview. However, what's interesting is that interview, they laughed at him. But the last interview on Vlad, everybody's crying.

[TJ]

Crying. Everyone was crying because, you know, you said, who. What's it going to take?

[Host]

Right?

[TJ]

It was, it was Cassie. It was Cassie Ventura filing a lawsuit. And that's finally when you have the federal investigators looking into it on a criminal level. And now you obviously have him where he is, on trial. I'm curious from both of you and from Mama, what was your reaction when the lawsuit was filed and then when the federal charges actually came down?

[Nicole]

Well, well, I felt some kind of way. I didn't feel some kind of way until the interesting. Right. I felt some kind of way when. The day that he was arrested. How Don came out then. Haha.

[Host]

Remember, what did she do that day? I can't remember.

[Nicole]

She. That's when she came out that she was filing a lawsuit on him as well.

[Aubrey]

It was a bit after that, but yeah.

[Nicole]

Yeah, well, you know what I mean, that's, that's when I really like.

[Aubrey]

And I'm sorry, again, you don't know what that she could have been working with the feds. She could have been helping build a case. We don't know. Or she. There could be something else. We don't know.

[Host]

You're willing to give her the benefit of the doubt. I mean, for legal reasons as well.

[Nicole]

But I'm not giving serious. I'm having a mother's intuition and I'm Sticking with that.

[Aubrey]

And I'm gonna respect that even if.

[Host]

He'S found guilty on all five counts. Aubrey and Q, is that justice for you? Is that justice for you? Right. Everybody may have their own level of.

[Q]

It ain't justice for me, because for.

[Aubrey]

Me personally, I'm noticing this, like, cultural obsession with just being disgusted by him and wanting him to go down. They want him under the jail. It's just this. I'm noticing just within the. The press that I experienced on a very, like, lower scale just this past week. I was so loved when I was going to testify. Then if I'm doing a podcast or. Or there were headlines that I potentially were supporting him or whatever the. The narrative was being put out there. But either way, what I notice is, like, there's this, like, uproar of people just disgusted with the testimony and really just wanting to see him go down.

[TJ]

And.

[Aubrey]

And I. I just want to. I just really am. I'm seeing that, like, without even listening to reason and following everybody's testimony and the law and everything else, we're just. It just feels like it's been decided. And I know how I personally feel, but I also, coming from, you know, a parent that's a lawyer and wanting to go to law school myself and having like, you know, an obsession, you know, a love language with the law, I want to see justice legally occur. I don't want it to feel like it's an emotional choice, and I don't know how a juror takes emotion out of it at this point, because just hearing the details of one person's story eliminates the ability for that, in my opinion. Now you've. Now you've heard. You know, I. I haven't fully. I can't fully talk about mine, but now that you guys up close and personally know, too, and now with Cassie's three, it's. It's loaded. It's layered. There's a lot going on. There's all kinds of things that I'm seeing are wrong, in my opinion. I want to see a cultural reset on the music industry. I think there are toxic levels and layers to this that involve all kinds of things and people. It's been gossiped in the streets for a long time that there are things. Things that are off with him. No, mama. Have you heard the gossip in the streets?

[Nicole]

I have.

[Aubrey]

There's gossip in the streets. It's been there for a long time. And. And some people like me or whoever said it put things together for people. I don't know. I. I just.

[Nicole]

I Think that people don't look at it like that just as much because if you just. Like I said, people, there are people out here that fame is what they want. They want to be in the shoes of someone who has the money. They want that lifestyle, they want that, that fame that, you know, I think.

[Aubrey]

That'S a big, it's a big part of what you're saying in this case that's this kind of was his brand. Right. He takes a bunch of unknown people on this TV show and he makes them a band. You know, it's bringing the non celebrity fame person to the light and giving them celebrity and fame. And because his brand of celebrity and fame was engulfed in all kinds of, you know, however one wants to see it. I don't want to place judgment. So I'm looking for the word, but let's just say dark behavior.

[Nicole]

Yeah.

[Aubrey]

Like, because there's, there's that energy over there. Everybody that was in his area of celebrity and fame experience that they also experienced all of the highs that he has, all of the lows. Like, you know, the, the emotions were very extreme and very instant. You know, it was giving.

[Nicole]

Even watching you guys on Danny Di Kane when all that stuff unfolded and he had a little personal. Oh, well, Aubrey, we're just missing you. You can go too. And you can go too. And I felt at that moment then I felt, I just felt that. I just, I don't just. It's just crazy.

[Host]

I was asking about justice. I want to hear from you. What does justice look like for you with the Diddy?

[Nicole]

With Diddy.

[Host]

With Diddy, yeah. And for what your son has experienced in this whole situation. Is there different levels of.

[Nicole]

I think that everybody that had a hand in everything that's going on, that part.

[TJ]

So how many people are we talking about? Seriously?

[Nicole]

Because I don't really see. I don't really know. I can only speak on what I've experienced around my child.

[Aubrey]

Anyone that was willingly bringing people in, anyone that was willingly doing things with somebody that was passed out?

[Nicole]

Correct.

[Aubrey]

Anyone that was part of the wrangling or the actual behavior? To me, the wranglers are just as bad as the behavior.

[TJ]

And Q, has anyone ever reached the. Reached out to you from law enforcement, Homeland Security investigators, asking for your take on what happened to you, what your experiences were?

[Q]

No, I honestly think the picture of me wasn't painted correctly. I don't believe, if I believe that maybe someone had a conversation and told them a false story about me, didn't tell them the truth about who I Am. And which probably made them be like, okay, this is not a person to believe or I don't know. So I'm just thinking like, maybe like, like you guys didn't know, like the information I told you, like, that's the truth. I'm thinking they got like another story, like, this is who he is and don't believe him.

[TJ]

And do you think perhaps your mental health issues, which have been publicly documented, might have created a situation which they thought, well, he'll just get torn apart?

[Q]

Well, they don't know about my mental.

[Aubrey]

Health prior to this trial. You did announce it, so maybe they just felt.

[Q]

Yeah.

[Aubrey]

The thing is though, is that you can't. You can't take somebody's experience out of the water because they have. Have any type of ment. Condition. Like people that I. Everybody in this room probably has some. It's a sliding scale. Everybody slides on the scale.

[Nicole]

And let's be clear.

[Aubrey]

You have to take Diddy out of the trial if you're not going to address mental health.

[Nicole]

But this is the thing. And let's be clear. Q never had any intentions on suing anyone.

[Aubrey]

He never has. I know he. That's what made. That's what made me want to bring him here.

[Nicole]

Because he doesn't if I can only get an apology.

[Aubrey]

He wants an apology. I asked him, did he? And I kept saying to myself, he wants apology.

[Nicole]

Who in the hell wants an apology? I want you to pay for what you've done. If you had something to do with hurting and harming me. He asked for an apology.

[Q]

But this is why I want an apology from Diddy, because at the time, I was very young. He has sons my age. He has sons that are my age. And I'm like.

[Aubrey]

And they're in their own court supporting.

[Q]

Him, you know what I mean? And the way he orchestrated that pill to be given to me was fucked up. Cuz you weren't the one who might do that to your kids. And I was very, very young around his kids, his young son's kids age, you know what I'm saying? Maybe a couple of years older. So I think that's why I asked, like, man, I just really want a genuine apology of. Of why you did that to me, because I don't really understand. And can you, man, be man enough to apologize to me? Because I don't want to sue you.

[Aubrey]

When you woke up in that room, was he in the room?

[Q]

Yes. He was down there with the camera? Yes.

[Host]

And with that. Do you think that's enough for you? You Think if Diddy comes and fill in the blank. If he says Q, I apologize for blank. And you're telling me that it's going to be a healing moment.

[Q]

Tell me what is. I would know that I'm not. That I'm not talking crazy to people. You know what I mean?

[TJ]

Do you start to doubt your own story.

[Q]

Yeah.

[TJ]

At a certain point, or what your own experience was?

[Q]

Yeah. Yeah, that's true.

[Aubrey]

The testimony has been so dramatic that I get wrapped up in the emotion of it, and then I go home and go, girl, stop. You saw little bits of X, Y and Z where you know. You know what you know. And then I calm down for a second and go, okay, let me just. I always try to come back. Like I said day one, when you said, what do I want the ending to be? I want that. I want to wait. I don't have a choice. I don't have, like a dog in the fight. I. Like I said, my. My. My number one thing that I love is the law. The number one thing I respect are the officers that went around and did what they did. And the number one thing that I want to see happen is I want them to prove the case that they brought forward. They're the Southern District. They fail very, very few times. I don't think they'd take a fail on Diddy. The biggest iconic. You know, one of the biggest, most iconic people in the music world. So to me, I just want the case to be proven. And maybe it, you know, it is in the. The weave, the weaving of the good and bad. You know, I think there was admission by Cassie that of the things that she said that appear like there was desires in some of it and then not desires in a lot of it. You know, maybe it is complicated and complex and maybe you have to leave room for even with dawn. And I know you guys don't feel that way right now.

[Host]

Mama, I want to ask you one last thing here first. You've. We didn't understand fully. Did you spend any time with Diddy?

[Nicole]

I. I met Diddy one time.

[Host]

Just what was your impression?

[Nicole]

I can't really say nothing bad because I didn't meet him until after they made the band and there was a club appearance and I think album release. It was the album release. I just know it was a club appearance or a little party, private party or something. And I met him that one time and just introduce. This is Q's mom. He just say, hey, Cassie was there, but that was the last time that I've ever physically Been around Diddy. I've never.

[Host]

So here's the last thing I want to say.

[Aubrey]

Oh, sorry.

[Nicole]

He was very quiet. He was very quiet. And I can't put anything onto how I felt at that time because I just knew it was Diddy and just.

[Aubrey]

Being in the room, I mean, was it exciting?

[Nicole]

It was very exciting for me. But let me just say this. I've been in the room with a lot of celebrities since then, and I'm the one that stands back. I never. I can't even give you pictures of celebrities that I've even been in the room with. Just traveling along with Q. Because I always wanted. I didn't want to. I didn't want to feel like I was a groupie, you know what I mean? So, I mean, it's exciting. Most people be like, oh, can I get a picture? You know, with you just as a mo. I've never been that type of person, so I can't even give you photos of people that I actually been around. Not even with you guys. I've never pressured you guys. And when day 26 was around, I've never said Aubrey or Andrea or, you know, even Dawn. Even having my son and dawn together was a powerful thing because back then they were dq. Everybody loved them, you know, and I can't even remember really how many photos I have on hand with just my son and dawn, because I just never was that. I just, I just, I'm not. This is the very first interview that I've ever done and had anything to say because I don't want people to think that, you know, oh, what, there's his mom again. You know what I mean? Or, you know, anything like. But this time I wanted to speak how I felt because I thought it was important.

[Host]

And why I wanted to ask you this last is because we've been covering this story and all this for a long, long time, very closely. And one of the most human moments of this whole story happened in this room while we're doing this podcast because of you. We watched this trial and so many. It's celebrity and we see famous folks doing it and it seems so far fetched and out of reach. But this is the most relatable part that anybody, or at least I've heard because there is a mother crying for her son. And my question was about, and I'm sorry to ask this lastly, but as a parent, I think it's probably there some bit of guilt that you feel for putting your son in that position which you were trying to just help him but do you as a mother, and I'm asking it in a human way versus forget to try. But just as a mother, did you have moments and has this all been difficult in that regard? Just as a mother, forget the celebrity feeling like you in some way down in some way. I know those guilty parties, and I'm not saying you're your fault. But do you as a mother cannot.

[Nicole]

Help but feel that, yes, I, I, I, I, I, I can agree with what you're saying. That's why I say, I just wish my son would have just stayed in college. I just. I don't, I don't. I hate this fame stuff.

[Q]

I. Oh, it's okay. But don't feel guilty, because the decision was my decision, Mama. I decided to my dream.

[Nicole]

I begged him when he called me and he says, mom, I'm not gonna stay in college. I'm gonna do this making in the band. And I said, q, you wasted my money. That was the first thing.

[Q]

Yeah, he did three.

[Nicole]

He did three months. One semester, Five Towns College, one semester. I'm like, are you serious? My money's gone down the drain. Like, how are we gonna pay this back? You know, we're already struggling to send you to Five Towns College, Very expensive, New York City. So, you know, just to get that call. And he's like, mom, I'm not going back to school. I'm gonna do this fame stuff. So, like, q, please think about what you're doing. And then he called me back and he said, I made the next round. Oh, and I made the next round.

[Aubrey]

My gut dropped to the ground.

[Nicole]

I made the next round. And then when you go to I'm on the show, then I made the band. I was very excited because even though I doubted him about moving forward with this, he did what he wanted to do and he accomplished it. And I was happy for him. Today I don't feel so happy because I was hurt along the way about how my son was hurt. And you think that, you think you would think that you would be so happy for your child to make it as a celebrity because that's what they wanted to be. And to be drugged through the dirt, the way all of this has played out, it's really terrible.

[TJ]

You couldn't protect him.

[Nicole]

I couldn't protect him. I couldn't protect him from his management. I couldn't protect him from Diddy. I couldn't protect him from Dawn. And it hurts. It hurts because my son was so vibrant. And a lot of times I still look at him today as how he even talks. It's different.

[Q]

Yeah.

[Nicole]

At 37, I know that something traumatic has happened to him because of just how he explains his things.

[Q]

Right.

[Nicole]

How he talks.

[Aubrey]

That when you were talking today, it's not the same cue that I met.

[Q]

No, it's not. It's.

[Nicole]

Sometimes it's because he's the medication.

[Aubrey]

But what you said, how you went back to, like, a kid level.

[Nicole]

Seriously, about you.

[Q]

Yes. I'm. I'm. I'm still healing. This is a process. So, like, I tried to shield years. Like, a couple years ago, like, I was. I wasn't talking like this. It was more like a kid talking.

[Nicole]

To a kid who wouldn't understand.

[Q]

You wouldn't understand what I'm saying. You. You wouldn't get it at all. So it. She's telling the truth, man.

[Nicole]

Like, Aubrey. You know, Q, from being on the show, for you to say that there's a different Q today. It is. But you know what? I'm learning now that he's better. And I just thank God that I was able to come in it, be there to help save my son from whatever they were trying to do, take him down.

[TJ]

I just want to applaud all of you for being here and for being open and being real and being humbled and vulnerable and all of those things, because I think it's really remarkable and should be pointed out, Q, you did not file a lawsuit.

[Q]

No.

[TJ]

You're not trying to get financial gain from the pain that you've suffered at all. And it's clear. And you've been telling your story for years and years, and nobody would listen. And still you didn't sue. You didn't try to find a way to get a payout. And I think for me and for everyone listening, that matters. That's remarkable, and that speaks to your credibility. And I just want to say thank you. I know TG and I both feel this way.

[Q]

Oh, thank you.

[TJ]

To just. We're grateful for you all having the courage to speak up, because you're still being. You know, when this podcast comes out, Aubrey, we spoke last week. You get hate. You get. People have an opinion, but they don't know what they're talking about. They just have their already formed opinions based on whatever the headline they've read. So it takes real courage to come here and to speak your truth, to talk about the pain and to be open. And I think so many people, you are going to help on their healing process, because unfortunately, this is not unique. People are taken advantage of. They are manipulated. They are abused. And so for you all to be able to put a face to that and say, it's been hard, but I'm still here and now I'm being believed. But I just, from the bottom of my heart, want to say thank you.

[Host]

You're welcome.

[Q]

Thank you.

[Host]

You're welcome.

[Nicole]

Thank you for having me. I'm just being a mom, and I'm just giving how I truly feel about how my son was done.

[Aubrey]

And there aren't a lot of platforms where people can just go and release because you fear what they're going to do with it, because the platforms aren't truly for you. They're for themselves. That's why I wanted to be here and do this, because this right here is for anybody and everybody. We're also covering the trial. We also have an inside perspective. So. So it's just. There's got to be a place because you get so bottled up that you could. You can tell just by Q's mom, she's, like, bubbling over, wanting. Wanting everybody to understand and know things. And that almost becomes an unlivable state.

[Nicole]

When you're dealing with a person that's an icon figure in the public's eye. I can tell you, I don't. These people out here, man, they would chew you up and spit you out.

[Aubrey]

Yes.

[Nicole]

I'm not the one for it. I'm. I'm not the one for it. I really am not. That's why I try to stay out of it, because I'm that one, that mama that will get on the line when you say something that I know is not true. Wait a minute. What do you. And I'm. I'm commenting. I'm commenting, and I know I shouldn't be, but I can't stand it because you don't know what you're talking about. You're saying. But that's the thing. And that's why I've always tried to stay out of the media, because social media, I could never be famous. I just. I could never. I just couldn't do it because my mouth. You know what I mean?

[Host]

Exactly.

[Aubrey]

Who needs to be famous, right?

[Nicole]

It's my mouth. So I'm kind of like. I feel like. Aubrey, I'm kind of like you. You can't say anything to me without me not responding, because I don't care what position you have. You're not going to talk to me any kind of way. You're not going to degrade me in any kind of way without me responding. And I think that's why Q had me around a lot of times because I didn't play. I did not play. Screwface knew it. His manager and a lot of other people, his band members, they could say now that new album, Day Ones, I am definitely a Day one. Never went anywhere. And I'm here to stay. And anybody that's trying to take my family down or hurt any of my children, and if I have something to say about it, I'm there. I'm there.

[Host]

My mama need to step her game up, right?