Spotlight: Dia Simms, The Woman Behind the Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Empire

FanBolt is excited to kick-off a new 2015 series that will profile the lives of women in the entertainment industry. Women who work hard in front of and behind the scenes, doing their part to keep the wheels of this monster of an industry turning.

This month we’re proud to spotlight a hard working woman who is that one you always hear about standing behind the strong man. In this case the man is Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs and the woman is none other than Dia Simms.

Dia is a phenomenal woman in the industry who wears many hats (no, seriously, it’s inspiring how many hats she manages to balance). “My number one focus is around Ciroc Vodka. Any and everything to do with the branding, the marketing, working with Puff on the flavor, ‘what are we gonna do next?’, working with our partner Diageo on our distribution chains, supply and how do we look in liquor stores. Beyond that, I work on what we’ll be doing next. Are we looking at other spirits opportunities? And then I work in an advisory capacity really across all of our companies. So we’re involved in the RevoltTV launch and right now also leading up the DeLeón Tequila launch, working with some of the Sean John digital activities. Really anything Sean Combs personal, and I say personal in terms of ‘Oh, maybe he’ll be in this brand’s commercial’ or he’s hosting a white party somewhere in the world. I’m usually involved in that. Pretty much anything and everything across the Combs enterprises.”

As if that weren’t enough (and I’m tired from just having to type it out) Dia commutes between Atlanta and New York weekly and has been doing so for the past 7 years! Phew!

Not only is Dia a well-rounded working woman, she’s also a mommy, going against the old idea that women can’t have it all. She’s got a message for all of her “Cupcake Assassins” ( Dia’s loving term for “badass women that are great wives and mothers and friends and lawyers and doctors and CEOs”). “The only advice that I can really offer is that, hands down, no matter how much you love your job, no matter how hard you work, there’s nothing more important than your family and your loved ones in totality. It’s very easy to work for decades and look up and miss critical moments with your family and your friends. Only thing I would say is make sure you take the time to take advantage of what you are truly working for.”

Dia is definitely fulfilled by her career and feels that “the coolest part is the ability to actually affect culture.”

“We’re able to sit around a boardroom and and think about our new brand launch and literally no one may have heard of it, but we’ll determine what our plan and our strategy is and then watching something people never heard of and see within a few weeks something going from five hits to billions of hits. This may be a little Pinky and the Brain like, but I do love making something from nothing and see it grow into a global phenomenon,” she explained.

This last part of the article is for the young women that are trying to figure out how to navigate the entertainment industry to find their own personal success. There’s no one better to learn from than someone that’s already done it, and Dia definitely has some words of advice for you. “I do always say that I try to just be in the moment of wherever I am. If I’m on the playground with my daughter, I’m 100% in that moment. If I am in a boardroom negotiating a multi-billion dollar deal, then I’m gonna be 100% in that moment.”

Also, be sure you aren’t doing things halfway, just because your eyes may be on another prize. “I run across people who say things like ‘Well, I’m a receptionist today, but this is not my real job, so I’m going to do this receptionist job halfway, but really I’m a singer.’ Well, you know, today you’re a receptionist. Maybe you might be a singer, but why not just be great at the job you’re in? There’s always honor in work.”

Finally she advises, “I love being a woman, so I would encourage young women to be always 100% who you are. Figure out what role is going to compliment your natural skill sets. My father always said to me ‘Do what you love and the money will follow.’ and I think that’s great advice for any young woman. Obviously, you need to be tenacious and work hard and show up early and be professional, but there’s a bazillion jobs that you might not realize exist… I would just encourage you to do your research and determine what job is going to make you happy.”

Dia recently helped launch the new Ciroc Pineapple, vodka with a splash of pineapple juice and ginger ale, which you can find at liquor stores near you. Be sure to drink responsibly and check back each month for a new article spotlighting women in the entertainment industry!

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