Russell Simmons is owning up to his mistakes after his daughters and ex-wife publicly called him out for “abuse” on Father’s Day.
“God is testing you a little bit, it’s ok, be strong. . . they are called growing pains,” the Def Jam Recordings co-founder began a lengthy message on Instagram Monday to Ming Lee Simmons, 23, and Aoki Lee Simmons, 20.
“As you know, we grow through adversity and struggle . . . you read my books and heard me preach your whole childhood,” he continued.
“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 ❤️.”
Russell, 65, then apologized, “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.”
Reps for Ming, Aoki and their mother, Kimora Lee Simmons, did not immediately return Pvnew’s request for comment on Russell’s mea culpa.
However, several people in the comments section let the former record executive know that he should not have shared his family drama with the world.
“This ain’t none of our business ❤️,” Fat Joe wrote.
“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,” author Boyce Watkins added.
The family feud began on Father’s Day when Ming Lee posted a photo celebrating Kimora, 48, instead of her dad on the patriarchal holiday.
Russell then posted cryptic messages on social media that alluded to him feeling slighted by his girls.
“Stop telling fathers they should have fought harder to see their children & start asking mothers why he had to fight at all,” a meme he shared on his Instagram Story Sunday read.
The entrepreneur then added another image that said, “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.”
The posts set off Aoki, who shared screenshots of texts her father previously sent her, noting she “had enough” because he had allegedly “been awful to [her] for years and that’s just the truth.”
The Harvard graduate also claimed in a lengthier message that her dad had caused her “panic attacks to the point [she] was placed on emergency medication every time [they] spoke.”
She also spoke of how she felt Russell had put her in the middle of his disputes with her mom.
Kimora, for her part, reposted one of Aoki’s messages and wrote above the screenshot, “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. Kimora then married Tim Leissner in 2014.
Russell sued the Baby Phat founder and the former Goldman Sachs banker in March 2021, claiming they had fraudulently transferred his nearly four million Celsius shares to their banks accounts in an effort to allegedly fund the latter’s 2018 money laundering case.
Kimora’s lawyers denied the allegations and accused Russell of “extortive harassment” at the time.
