Russell Simmons is finally speaking out after his ex-wife and daughters blasted him on Father’s Day!
If you missed it, Ming Lee Simmons hinted at a family feud when she honored her mother Kimora Lee Simmons on the patriarchal holiday with an Instagram tribute instead of her father. The Def Jam Recordings co-founder then followed up by posting two very cryptic quotes on his IG Story, which read:
“Stop telling fathers they should have fought harder to see their children & start asking mothers why he had to fight at all.”
“The father you have is the perfect father for the evolution of your soul and the lessons that you needed to learn in this lifetime.”
His reaction did not sit well with Kimora or his other daughter Aoki Lee Simmons, and both of them used their platforms to call him out for alleged verbal abuse!
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The 20-year-old not only went live in a teary video explaining all the ways Russell had “been awful to [her] for years,” but she also shared several screenshots of texts with her father, in which she revealed she had to stop talking to him because he was allegedly causing her to have extreme panic attacks. See (below):
The model reshared the post to her feed, reflecting:
“No one should live like this. No one’s child. This is abuse. Not ok. The threats. Not ok. The fear mongering. Not ok.”
The exes were married from 1998 to 2009 and were embroiled in a lawsuit when Russell sued Kimora and her husband Tim Leissner in 2021, claiming they were trying to steal nearly $4 million worth of Celsius shares from him. Kimora denied the allegations. Things have apparently continued to be VERY messy behind the scenes!
According to Aoki, the music exec’s behavior has changed in the last few years and those around him believe he could be suffering from some sort of mental illness, though he has refused to seek help.
So, what does Russell have to say for himself? Well, the 65-year-old took to the ‘gram with a photo of his daughters to share a somewhat half-hearted apology on Monday. He began:
“God is testing you a little bit, it’s ok, be strong. . . they are called growing pains . . . as you know, we grow through adversity and struggle . . . you read my books and heard me preach your whole childhood . . . reach back to old lessons and remember to remember ‘smile and breathe’
‘smile and breathe’ . . . you are the watchers of this world . . . so let go . . . be at ease . . . God is driving and he is working on you
‘smile and breathe’ . . . you are the watchers of this world . . . so let go . . . be at ease . . . God is driving and he is working on you Uhh, does that read extremely passive-aggressive to anyone else?! Just “smile and breath” through all the s**t he’s allegedly putting them through. SMH.
He went on to apologize — but not for everything! Seemingly addressing a viral FaceTime recording of him screaming at Aoki, he shared:
“DEEPLY sorry for being frustrated and yelling . . . but know this . . . there are no conditions . . . for sure i love you guys more than i love myself”
Hmm. So he does recognize he f**ked up a bit! Guess that’s better than nothing… but we don’t think Kimora, Ming, or Aoki are going to be very satisfied with this response.
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As for fans, many of them don’t love that Russell is continuing to make this a public matter, but some are still supporting him regardless of the accusations. Those on his side wrote:
Author Boyce Watkins: “Family stuff should not be settled on the internet. The public doesn’t care about Russell or his family — y’all just love the drama. I pray for your healing. All of you. Period”
Rapper Fat Joe: “This ain’t none of our business
“Pray for them both and try not to judge. We have all been yelled at by our parents lol…it’s okay life goes on”
Meanwhile, the overwhelming majority of commenters are standing by what the women had to say:
“We believe Aoki, Ming, and Kimora.”
“Nothing here to see but some Oscar worthy gaslighting !”
“This is passive aggressive af considering what we saw earlier. You would’ve been better off saying nothing”
“No accountability in this post.”
There’s certainly not much accountability… Thoughts?! Let us know what you think about this apology (below)!
[Image via Rob Rich/MEGA/WENN]
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