Three Women Have Accused Russell Simmons of Rape

Three women have gone on the record and accused legendary hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons of rape. The news was published by the NY Times on Wednesday evening. One new additional woman accused Simmons of sexual misconduct.

READ:Russell Simmons Writes Open Letter Denying Sexual Assault Allegations

The women who spoke out were Drew Dixon, an executive at Def Jam Records in the mid-'90s; Tina Baker, a singer Russell managed in the early '90s; Toni Sallie, a music journalist who was working for Black Radio Exclusive at the time; and Christina Moore.

All the women described Simmons as being relentless with his harassment. Dixon told the Times Russell would expose himself to her and talk openly about how she aroused him. In 1995, when she was 24, he raped her. She left the company soon after. She told the NY Times: “I was broken.”

Baker claimed Russell raped her in the early '90s. It was something that had a massive effect on her career. She fell into and depression. “I didn’t sing for almost a year,”  she told the NY Times.

Sallie says she met the mogul in 1987 while profiling him for a piece. The next year, she said, Simmons invited her to a party at his apartment. But when she got there the place was empty. That's when he raped her:

“He pushed me on the bed and jumped on top of me, and physically attacked me.”

The NY Times talked to two of her friends and a colleague who confirmed Sallie told them the story around the time it happened.

Moore says her encounter with Russell occurred in 2014. Moore said that Russell misled her, taking her to his hotel room instead of a bar. She said that Simmons put his hands all over her, pinned her against the wall, and said he wanted to tie her up. She then ran out of the premise. “I felt assaulted,”Moore said.

Simmons has denied all of these encounters, saying:

“I vehemently deny all these allegations. These horrific accusations have shocked me to my core and all of my relations have been consensual...I have enormous respect for the women’s movement worldwide and their struggle for respect, dignity, equality and power."

These new allegations come about a month after screenwriter Jenny Lumet and model Keri Claussen Khalighi accused Simmons of sexual misconduct. After Lumet told her story, Simmons denied any wrong doing but stepped down from his companies.

Source: NY Times