Short answers, pulled from the story.
Russell Wendell Simmons was born in the Hollis neighborhood of Queens on the 4th of October 1957. His father worked as a public school administrator while his mother managed parks for New York City Parks and Recreation.
Russ Simmons co-founded Def Jam Recordings with Rick Rubin in 1984 and launched Phat Fashions LLC using the Phat Farm and Baby Phat labels in 1992. He sold his share of Def Jam to Universal Music Group in 1998 and sold Phat Farm and Baby Phat to the Kellwood Company in 2004.
Russ Simmons has been a vegan since 1999 after watching the film Diet for a New America in the 1990s. He cites animal rights along with environmental and health benefits as his motivation for this lifestyle change.
In November 2017, model Keri Claussen Khalighi accused Simmons of raping her in 1991 when she was 17 years old. On the 30th of November 2017, writer Jenny Lumet claimed that Simmons had raped her in 1991.
On the 13th of February 2024, a lawsuit filed by Jane Doe in New York Federal Court alleged she was sexually assaulted and harassed by her boss Russell Simmons in the 1990s. On the 15th of February 2024, another lawsuit alleging defamation was filed against Simmons by former Def Jam executive Drew Dixon.