Puff Daddy alters his name to P Diddy

Puff Daddy says he is to change his name to P Diddy to freshen up his image after his guns-and-bribery trial.

The musician, whose real name is Sean Combs, walked free at the end of a six-week trial in which he faced up to 15 years in jail over possession of a gun a New York nightclub shooting.

He has told MTV News he is going to change his nickname in a bid to put the ordeal behind him.

He said: "No more Puff Daddy - the first week in June, we're going to have a name-change ceremony. I'm not doing it as serious as Prince. I just want something fresh. I'm rocking with P Diddy just now."

The nickname had been suggested in the past by his fellow rapper Biggie Smalls, he told the programme in his first interview after his acquittal.

Combs has already used the name as an alias in record credits for his production work on other musicians' work, and in a guest appearance on a new single by rapper G-Dep.

Biggie Smalls, also known as Notorious BIG, was shot in 1996 during the so-called rap wars between east and west coast musicians, in an assassination in which Combs was widely believed to be the target.

Combs says he is set to take a two-month break to revaluate his personal and professional life.