Sean Combs and Janice Combs Prince Williams/ Getty Images Sean "Diddy" Combs and his mom, Janice Smalls Combs, have had a tight-knit bond throughout his life. "My mother was always working for a job, so I guess I was always trained that I should have multiple jobs, multiple aspirations," Diddy said in a 2010 interview with Nightline. "And I remember she had multiple aspirations, always hearing about her dreams and things she did in the past and things she wanted to do." As Diddy rose to fame in the '90s, Janice was by her son's side throughout his ups and downs.