Diddy Pays Sting $5,000 Every Day For Using 'Every Breath You Take' In His Song

Sean "Diddy" Combs revealed that he pays former The Police frontman Sting a hefty sum of $5,000 a day in royalties for sampling the rocker's 1983 single "Every Breath You Take" in his song without permission.

Diddy made the revelation via Twitter Wednesday in response to a resurfaced clip from Sting's 2018 interview with "The Breakfast Club," where he first spoke about the agreement.

During the interview, the 71-year-old English singer told host Charlamagne tha God that Diddy has to pay him $2,000 a day "for the rest of his life" for reportedly not getting permission before sampling the hit in Diddy's 1997 track "I'll Be Missing You."

Sting clarified that the Bad Boy Records founder eventually got permission to sample "Every Breath You Take," though it was after the release of "I'll Be Missing You."

He noted that there are no hard feelings and that the two are "are very good friends now," adding, "It was a beautiful version of that song."

Diddy confirmed the payments but corrected Sting, writing that he was actually paying $3,000 more than what the singer said.

"Nope. 5K a day. Love to my brother @OfficialSting!" the music executive wrote.

This means Diddy forks over a total of $1.825 million to Sting per year.

The rapper is considered one of the highest-paid celebrities in the world, having an estimated net worth of $900 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

Diddy's "I'll Be Missing You," featuring Faith Evans and 112, was written as a tribute to his friend and collaborator Notorious B.I.G after the rapper was murdered in a drive-by shooting in March 1997, according to Billboard.

It became an instant hit, debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earning him the trophy for best rap performance by a duo or group at the 40th Annual Grammy Awards in 1998.

Meanwhile, "Every Breath You Take" was the biggest hit by Sting's former band, topping the U.S. charts for some eight weeks in 1983 and winning two Grammy Awards. It also went No. 1 in the U.K., Canada and several other countries.

Sting previously addressed the sampling issue during a 2003 interview with Rolling Stone, saying, "Those guys just take your s--t, put it on a record, and deal with the legality later."

"Elton John told me, 'You gotta hear ['I'll Be Missing You'], you're gonna be a millionaire!' I said, 'I am a millionaire!' He said, 'You're gonna be a millionaire twice over!'" he said, adding that he put "a couple of my kids through college with the proceeds, and me and P. Diddy are good pals still."