Source: Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty
A former producer and executive who worked with Russell Simmons sued the tycoon, claiming he sexually assaulted her in the 1990s.
According References, Hip-Hop pioneer and Def Jam Recordings founder Russell Simmons was sued on Tuesday (February 13) in Manhattan, New York. The lawsuit, filed by a woman referred to as “Jane Doe,” alleges that Simmons raped her in the late 1990s in his apartment. The woman describes herself as a former senior music executive and music video producer who worked for Def Jam at the time.
In the deposition, Ms. Doe claimed that Simmons had invited her to his home to watch a rough cut of a music video. Soon after her arrival, his behavior turned from professional to sexual, which she dismissed as a joke. He then made a 'wrestling move' and pinned her down before raping. He described how he tried to fight him off, but failed. She would further describe how Simmons then sexually harassed her in the office, invading her personal space. The lawsuit says this resigned by Def Jam in 1997.
Her attorneys, Kenya Davis and Sigrid McCawley, said their client was advancing in her career before the sexual assault. “She was proud of her contribution to the burgeoning music genre of hip hop, but her hard work and music career were disrupted and derailed by Mr. Simmons, a wealthy and powerful celebrity whose wealth and influence enabled his abusive behavior. not to be disputed. for decades,” they said in a statement. “Now a successful writer and producer in the entertainment industry, Jane Doe's traumatic experiences with Simmons echo those of so many other women he has pursued for decades.”
The lawsuit was filed under New York's Adult Survivors Act and the New York Gender-Based Violence Act. Both laws contain “review windows,” which allow lawsuits to be filed that would not have arisen because they are outside the statute of limitations. Russell Simmons faced other lawsuits accusing him of sexual assault in 2018 and was the subject of On The Record documentary in 2020 where other accusers detail their allegations against him. Simmons has said in the past that he has been in “compromising situations,” but claimed in an interview that he took and passed nine lie detector tests about those allegations.
