For the last half-decade, Kimora Lee Simmons has been living in a $25 million Beverly Hills mansion. Unfortunately, as it would later be revealed, her estranged husband, former Goldman Sachs banker Tim Leissner, bought the mansion with money stolen from Malaysia’s infamous 1MDB sovereign wealth fund. Tim is currently serving a two-year prison sentence connected to his involvement in the scandal.
The $25 million estate, located inside the ultra-exclusive Beverly Park gated community, was later sold in a distressed refinancing deal to billionaire investors David and Simon Reuben after a $12 million mortgage reportedly went sideways. Under the terms of that deal, Kimora and Leissner were supposed to pay roughly $67,000 per month in rent. Kimora has apparently not been paying that rent. She and Tim also apparently never paid the mortgage before it was sold.
If Kimora is having financial problems, one might suggest she ask Russell Simmons for some money. After all, he is her ex-husband, father of her two oldest children, and is generally assumed to be extremely rich thanks to a multi-decade career as a hip-hop mogul turned entrepreneur.
But what if Russell isn’t sitting on the kind of fortune most people assume?
Back in June 2023, Russell Simmons’ financial stability was called into question in a very public and very personal way. His daughter Aoki posted screenshots of what she claimed were WhatsApp messages between the two. The exchange was explosive, emotional, and deeply revealing.
In one message, Russell allegedly wrote:
“I’m literally broke… not sure what I’m supposed to do…“
He went on to claim that Kimora and Tim had taken what he described as $250 million of his money.
If true, that would represent a jaw-dropping fall for a man who once sold his stake in Def Jam for nine figures, unloaded Phat Farm for $140 million, and was widely believed to be worth hundreds of millions of dollars at his peak.
So how does someone go from being the architect of hip-hop’s first corporate empire… to allegedly telling his daughter he’s broke?
To answer that, we need to revisit divorce settlements, a controversial Celsius energy drink stake, lawsuits involving Kimora and Tim Leissner, and a financial unraveling that may be far more complicated than a simple headline suggests.
(Photo by David Crotty/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images)
Earning a Fortune
Russell earned his first significant fortune as the co-founder, alongside Rick Rubin, of Def Jam Recordings. Def Jam almost single-handedly popularized rap music in the mainstream thanks to artists like LL Cool J and the Beastie Boys.
In the mid-1990s, Russell sold half of his stake in Def Jam to Polygram for $33 million. In 1999, Russell sold his remaining stake in Def Jam to Seagram for $130 million. That’s the same as around $240 million in today’s dollars. By that point, Rick Rubin had already sold his half of the company to Universal Music Group for $120 million.
Not ready to rest on his laurels, Russell went on to found several more businesses. His umbrella company, Rush Communications, operated a credit card company, a concert promotions business, and an artist management business that represented some of the biggest names in music.
In 1992, Simmons launched the clothing line Phat Farm, introducing hip-hop-inspired clothing into the mainstream fashion industry. The brand later gave rise to Baby Phat, which was led by his then-wife Kimora Lee Simmons. He sold Phat Farm in 2004 for $140 million (roughly $225 million in today’s dollars).
Also in 1992, Simmons co-created the HBO television series “Def Comedy Jam” with Stan Lathan. Over the ensuing years, Def Comedy Jam would play a significant role in launching the careers of several comedians who would go on to become huge stars, including Martin Lawrence, Chris Tucker, Dave Chappelle, Kevin Hart, Eddie Griffin, and Katt Williams.
Losing a Fortune (Allegedly)
Russell and Kimora Lee’s relationship beginnings are actually somewhat of a red flag in hindsight. By her own account, Kimora was “16 or 17” when she first started dating Russell. She was a sophomore in high school. He was 35 years old.
They married in 1998 and separated in 2006. Their contentious divorce was not finalized until 2009.
Russell spent the next few years building new businesses and forging a reputation as somewhat of a Christian vegan yogi guru who espoused the benefits of meditation, animal rights, and social equality.
Unfortunately, his image and empire came crashing down in 2017 after several women came forward with accusations that he had sexually assaulted them in incidents dating back to the 1980s. Seven women accused him of sexual harassment or assault, and six women accused him of rape.
The allegations led to significant personal and professional repercussions for Simmons. He voluntarily stepped down from his multiple businesses, HBO removed his name from the “Def Comedy” series, and a planned book was cancelled. Russell, who has vigorously denied the allegations, became somewhat of a pariah in the very circles he used to dominate.
The “Literally Broke” Bombshell
The cracks in Russell’s financial façade were exposed to the public in mid-2023 during a nuclear social media fallout with his daughters, Aoki and Ming. After a series of public swipes on Father’s Day, Aoki shared screenshots of a WhatsApp conversation that painted a desperate picture of a former mogul in decline.
In the messages, Russell lashed out at Aoki for featuring her mother—whom he called his “piece of shit” ex-wife—on social media, claiming Kimora had “stolen my money and the love of my kids.” Aoki’s response was a blistering reality check:
“I’ll never speak to you again until you DIE. Don’t ever say that again. She DID NOT STEAL IT. YOU LOST IT… Understand?! YOU LOST IT with your actions…“
Russell’s reply was the most stunning admission of all:
“I’m literally broke… not sure what I’m supposed to do…Your mother and Tim took what equals 250 million dollars of my money… “
The “Tim” in that conversation is Kimora’s estranged husband, former Goldman Sachs banker Tim Leissner. Tim Leissner is somewhat notorious on his own outside of Russell and Kimora thanks to his involvement in the 1MDB scandal, in which Malaysian fugitive Jho Low allegedly masterminded a $4.5 billion fraud against Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund.
Leissner’s role in the 1MDB scandal began in 2009. Over the next several years, Leissner and Low worked together to bribe officials at 1MDB and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) in order to secure bond deals for Goldman. The bribes were paid through shell companies and offshore accounts, and they totaled hundreds of millions of dollars. Along the way, Leissner and a partner earned $200 million in fees from the scheme.
Leissner pleaded guilty in 2018 to conspiring to launder money and conspiring to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) in connection with the 1MDB scandal. Leissner admitted to bribing officials in Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates to get bond deals for Goldman, and he was ordered to forfeit $44 million. Goldman Sachs, his former employer, eventually agreed to pay $3 billion in fines.
Apparently, at some point, Russell and Kimora invested in the beverage company Celsius (the same Celsius that was ordered to pay Flo Rida more than $80 million a few years ago). It seems as though that investment yielded 3.9 million shares in Celsius, half of which appears to have been set aside for Kimora in their divorce settlement.
When Leissner was charged over his connection to the 1MDB scandal, apparently, Kimora used those 3.9 million Celsius shares as collateral for his $44 million bail.
In 2019, Russell sued Leissner. In his lawsuit, Simmons claimed that Leissner transferred 3.9 million shares of the Celsius energy drink company to his own account and to the account of a shell company controlled by Leissner. Simmons says that he was unaware of the transfers until after Leissner was arrested in 2018. In May 2025, Leissner was sentenced to two years in prison. He began serving his sentence last week.
In March of 2021, Russell sued Kimora for fraud. In May 2021, Russell sent a letter to Kimora in which he said:
“I am shocked and saddened to see how your side has behaved in response to my repeated attempts to get an agreement from you to rightfully and legally reaffirm my 50% of the Celsius shares..which have been locked up with the government after being used for your husband’s bail money.“
This is the crux of Russell’s financial ruin. He has spent years in court claiming those shares belonged to him and were “stolen” to save Leissner from jail. At one point, thanks to a massive $550 million investment from PepsiCo and Celsius’s subsequent market explosion, those shares were worth north of $800 million.
However, the courts have not been kind to Russell’s claims. By early 2025, federal judges had dismissed his direct claims to the stock, ruling he lacked the standing to sue for them. While he has attempted to pivot to a “derivative” lawsuit, his path to that $250 million payday has effectively been blocked.
Aoki Simmons referenced the lawsuit in a final message to her fathe back during the their 2023 public feud:
“Everytime I spoke to you you would yell and scream about a legal situation that I can’t even respond to because I AM NOT INVOLVED, I am your child, not your lawyer… You were putting so much anger and range on me every phone call. Cursing screaming and god knows what else… You are being blocked for not respecting my boundaries. I asked you 10 million times to not talk to me about this lawsuit again. Happy holidays I love you.“
Today, Russell Simmons remains in Bali, a former titan of industry who claims he has been left with nothing, while Kimora fights to keep the last remaining piece of the 1MDB fortune—a mansion that, according to the latest filings, hasn’t seen a rent payment in over five years.
