Jamal "Shyne" Barrow, the former Diddy protege who is scheduled to be released today after serving a 10-year prison sentence for a 1999 shooting.

Diddy recently spoke about Shyne, and him being released about a month ago...here's what he had to say;

"It's a blessing that he's coming home," Puff told DJ Absolut in an interview last month. "I spoke with him a couple weeks ago. He sounded like he was in good spirits. I know he can't wait to get home. And I know he's definitely gonna heat the whole scene up. He's definitely gonna do it, you know what I'm saying, he definitely was one of the most talented young artists that I had the pleasure to work with so I'm quite sure he's been using his time wisely and I'm quite sure he has some heat."

Shyne reported over the summer for a parole hearing and was granted a two-and-a-half years post-release supervision. A Manhattan judge signed an order that will see former Bad Boy recording artist Shyne receive two-and-a-half years of post-release supervision stemming from his 2001 conviction and sentencing in the infamous Club New York case. An attorney for Shyne -- born Jamal Barrow but now going by Moses Levi after converting to Judaism while in prison -- said that the order marked one of the last remaining hurdles in the way of his client's release from prison in October. "He's about 90 percent of the way home now," attorney Oscar Michelin said.

Shyne's time behind bars stemmed from a shoot-out at a New York City nightclub nearly ten years ago.

The fracas broke out on December 27, 1999, at a Manhattan nightclub where Shyne, Sean "Diddy" Combs with then-girlfriend Jennifer Lopez and their entourage had been partying. Around 3 a.m., Combs and Shyne allegedly began arguing with another group of patrons. Someone threw money at Combs, a gesture of disrespect, and guns started going off. Three bystanders were shot. Shyne, who police found with a pistol in his waistband, was arrested after bystanders identified him as one of the shooters. Shyne received a 10-year prison. Barrow has always claimed he acted in self-defense and only fired his gun after the other group, Matthew "Scar" Allen and his crew began shooting.[Source]

We all know he bit the bullet for Diddy, he had great potential to be one of the best...let's hope he can hit hard with some new music & not get in trouble!