“Man after my heart,” the rapper responds. “That’s what I’m talking about.”

Representatives for Bieber and Combs did not immediately respond to The Independent’s request for comment.

Combs, 54, is credited with helping launch the careers of artists including Biggie Smalls, Mary J Blige and Usher.

The current criminal investigation into Combs is a major escalation in the scrutiny of the music mogul, who has been the defendant in several sexual abuse lawsuits in recent months.

In February, a male music producer has accused Combs of sexually assaulting him and forcing him to sleep with sex workers.

In November of last year, Combs’s former partner, Casandra “Cassie” Ventura filed a lawsuit in which she claimed she was trafficked, raped and beaten by the rapper on numerous occasions over the course of 10 years.

Ventura’s lawsuit was settled a day after she filed it for an undisclosed amount of money.

Another of Diddy’s accusers is a woman who alleges that he raped her two decades ago, when she was 17 years old.

Combs vehemently denied the allegations. In a statement in December, he called the claims “sickening” and said his accusers were “looking for a quick payday”.

“Let me be absolutely clear: I did not do any of the awful things being alleged,” he said in a statement. “I will fight for my name, my family and for the truth.”