Twenty-one-year-old model Aoki Lee Simmons is on everyone’s radar after pictures hit the internet showing her kissing restaurateur Vittorio Assaf, 65, while baecationing in St. Barth’s.
The Harvard grad is now dating a man one year younger than her hip-hop mogul father, Russell Simmons, 66.
Assaf, Aoki’s lover is an Italian-born co-founder of the Serafina Restaurant Group, with an estimated net worth of $250 million.
While the couple appears genuinely enamored with each other, there are already rumors the romance fizzled. But speculation abounds regarding the motivations behind this spring/winter romance. Is it purely financial?
Simmons Family Wealth
Such assumptions might be off based. The Aoki is no stranger to wealth herself. Born into the Simmons dynasty, which played a pivotal role in elevating hip-hop into the multibillion-dollar industry it is today (Her dad co-founded Def Jam Records and her uncle is Run of RUN-DMC), one would think her family’s financial background is nothing short of substantial. But there have been suggestions of financial trouble.
Her dad, whose net worth was estimated in 2011 to be around $350 million, more recently has gone to social media claiming he’s “broke.” Celebrity Net Worth now lists his worth as low as $10 million, although there has been now substantial evidence of his money downfall.
Aoki’s mother, Kimora Lee Simmons, a former supermodel, fashion designer, and the force behind Baby Phat, commands her own impressive net worth of $80 million.
Precise figures regarding Aoki’s personal fortune remain elusive, still, unverified sources suggest a net worth of $55 million.
Aoki Simmons does pull in her own money. The Harvard grad has become a designer fashion runway favorite. She made her runway debut for Pyer Moss Paris Couture in July 2021.
Yet in a public display on Father’s Day of 2023, she took to social media to air grievances against her father. Amidst his contentious relationship with her mother, his ex-wife, Aoki made startling claims about her father’s financial standing.
She alleged that Simmons was facing financial hardships, unable to provide her with the luxurious lifestyle to which she had become accustomed. Aoki further claimed that her father’s financial constraints were so severe that he could no longer afford rideshares like Uber and had resorted to using public transportation.
Simmons, now residing in Bali, shot back that he was in fact “broke” due to actions of Kimora, whom he took legal action against over her withdrawing some of their joint shares in the energy drink company Celsius. This action, he said, cost him millions.
These public revelations of the Simmons family fortune being at stake (and a joke she made to her dad about being so broke that she might get a “sugar daddy”) added a new dimension to the ongoing family drama surrounding the Simmons family that’s centered around money, capturing the attention of media outlets and fans alike.
Simmons is clear that all things are well with his daughter and that he continues to support her in her endeavors.
In a recent post on social media, he wrote, “Throw back from last fathers day nyc …bode bikram yoga express class .. vegan lunch cryotherapy vitamin drip … all around amazing day,” the post captioned. “@aokileesimmons love you always”
He also said in an interview with TMZ about her romance, “I’m not gonna kick and scream about her choices. All I can do is offer my advice and unconditional love.” He also noted that he was aware of their romance from his daughter before it was made public.
