Russell Simmons is hands-off when it comes to the romantic life of his youngest daughter, Aoki Lee Simmons, although the 21-year-old is dating a man nearly three times her age.
Days after Aoki and restaurateur Vittorio Assaf, 65, were spotted frolicking in St. Barts, images of their lovefest circulated online. However, Simmons doesn't have any grievances about his daughter's "choices," which makes sense as Simmons was 35 when he met Aoki's mother, a then-17-year-old Kimora Lee Simmons. With Kimora, Russell has another daughter, Ming Lee Simmons, 24.
"I’m not gonna kick and scream about her choices," Simmons told TMZ about Aoki. "All I can do is offer my advice and unconditional love."
In an Instagram post uploaded over the weekend, Simmons shared a photo beside his daughter, writing, "love you always im always waiting for any call any time."
But Kimora Lee Simmons appeared to be dissatisfied with the news, sharing a clip in her Instagram stories of a mother panda frustratedly grabbing onto her cub. "On my last nerve right now!" Simmons wrote.
It's unclear whether Russell Simmons and Aoki have reconciled, as last year, around Father's Day, Aoki claimed that her father was "directly harmful" to her, adding that Simmons threatened her sister, mother, and grandmother.
“Some of us do think he's mentally ill or experiencing something like dementia, he really acts like he hates and does not know his children frequently," Aoki wrote in her Instagram stories. "Prior to his media issues, he was really the best dad ever and a great co-parent. He and my mom were best friends. We all defended him against anything, and then he suddenly turned on ANYONE who will let him lash out. It's a really just terrifying change to watch."
Earlier this year, Russell Simmons was hit with yet another another rape allegation, that time from a Jane Doe who said she who worked at Def Jam in the 1990s. Since 2017, multiple women accused the mogul of rape and sexual assault. In the HBO Max documentary On the Record, 20 women alleged sexual abuse and harassment from Simmons.
