May 26, 2004 @ 12:01 am

VIBE Magazine (Sep. 02): A Woman's Worth

Mimi Valdés

Email this article Print this article Send us a tip

Kimora Lee Simmons is no trophy wife. As creative director of Baby Phat, the women’s counterpart to her husband Russell Simmons’s Phat Farm, she’s showing that she’s got game, too. Mimi Valdés catches the model turned fashion mogul in action.

She's one of the few who truly live the hip hop fantasy. Home is a gorgeous, 50,000-square-foot contemporary mansion in New Jersey. In the driveway and garage are several luxury vehicles, including the new Mercedes-Benz G500 truck in silver and a burgundy Bentley. She wears gems the size of miniboulders. Even before she married Russell Simmons, 44, the godfather of hip hop and one of the most successful men in the entertainment industry, she began accumulating stilettos and boots for her immense Manolo Blahnik collection. "Sometimes I'll hear a rapper talking about how he got this and that, and I'll be like, Wait a minute, you're lying! I just drove by you in mine, why you frontin'?" she says, laughing. "I can trick bank and ball with the best of them!" But the life of Kimora Lee Simmons, 26, isn't just diamonds and pearls. As the brains behind the burgeoning $75 million fashion empire known as Baby Phat, she oversees every detail, from the design of a hang tag to the fit of a pair of jeans. "I don't pimp my nigga," she says to those who might assume she leads the life of the laid-back luxury spouse. "I work." That's more than obvious the February night before Baby Phat's fall 2002 show. The showroom, in the heart of Manhattan's fashion district, is a blur of stylists, seamstresses, and models all scurrying to finesse the final touches on the collection. In the middle of the madness sits Kimora (who stands 6'4" in heels and is in the early stages of her second pregnancy), looking fierce in Baby Phat jeans, nude stiletto boots, and a nude shirt that keeps riding up to reveal her belly ring. Her playful 2-year-old daughter, Ming Lee, competes for attention with Kimora's two-way and cell phone. But just when Kimora seems to be ignoring the proceedings, she'll suddenly shout out, "I no like!" or "It looks janky!" Immediately, a shirt is switched up, a belt added, or pants shortened to her liking. The attention to detail will prove crucial for Kimora's Fashion Week debut the following evening. The audience almost eclipses the clothing: such luminaries as Jermaine Dupri, Jay-Z, Damon Dash, Tyrese, former New York City Mayor David Dinkins, the Rev. Al Sharpton, as well as the man himself, Russell Simmons, occupy the coveted front-row seats. Just before the show, Sen. Hillary Clinton-another woman who has emerged from the shadow of a famous husband-calls Kimora on her cell to wish her luck. She doesn't need it, though. The show, an ingenious synthesis of Asian elements-obis, kimono sleeves, Chinese tassels, and flaming red Thai embroidery-is a hit. "Simmons knows a thing or two about looking hot," fashion bible Women's Wear Daily will write two days later, adding, "There's no doubt that these clothes are meant to turn heads." At the end of the show, Kimora and Ming come out in matching kimono- and cheongsam-inspired outfits, waving to thunderous applause. It is a moment of déjà vu for the statuesque ex-model, whom Karl Lagerfeld once called "the face of the 21st century" because of her rare Afro-Asian beauty. Growing up in St. Louis, the child of a Japanese mother and African-American father, Kimora didn't always feel so graceful or pretty. But she began modeling at 13, and by the age of 14, she was in Paris, causing a stir by closing a Chanel show for Karl Lagerfeld. Soon she became a runway darling for such designers as Yves Saint Laurent and Patrick Kelly. Needless to say, the gangly teenager's self-esteem improved. "People used to call me chinky giraffe and all kinds of vicious stuff," she says. "Fast-forward to Europe, and all of a sudden, it's glamorous to be different." Russell Simmons became smitten with Kimora when he saw her on the runway at a Mary McFadden fashion show. She was 17; he was 36 and a notorious playboy. Although their friendship blossomed, he kept Kimora guessing. "I'd hear about him giving other women fur coats to the floor," she recalls. Still, she dug in her heels, helping him through his mother's death; their relationship deepened, and she was the last woman standing. "I'm a very determined woman, and I knew I had to carve out my own spot," she says. After a storybook wedding in St. Barts in December 1998, Kimora tried the trophy-wife lifestyle in New York City. "Manicures, sleeping all day-it wasn't fulfilling," she says. "Being around someone as driven as Russell rubs off on you." Baby Phat started out as a guerrilla marketing idea, with some baby tees that Russell handed out to model friends like Naomi Campbell and Christy Turlington. But as it grew, Kimora was unhappy with the fit and style of the clothes. "Everything was dead wrong, terrible looking. I was like, I'm not gonna wear this and neither is anyone I know," she recalls. Russell, seeing her passion, let her run with it. "I wasn't bad," he says of his efforts with women's wear. "But what she did was much better." Kimora quickly showed a knack for adapting design ideas for her audience. "I love high-end fashion, but not every girl can afford a pair of $5,000 Roberto Cavalli jeans. I know I can do a jean that's probably better and grabs your ass the right way," she says, cracking up. No wonder fashion-conscious urban stars such as Mary J. Blige, Alicia Keys, Pink, Faith Evans, and Beyoncé Knowles are all Baby Phat devotees. In less than three years, the sexy fashion line, which is sold in department stores such as Macy's, has grown to include lingerie, bedding, handbags, jewelry, leather, faux fur, and an upcoming cosmetics line. "I want to be like a permanent household fixture, from the pots in your kitchen to the sheets on your bed," says Kimora. "I want you to sleep on me." Two months after the show, Kimora is on the road with her nanny, Latoya, and Ming for the 30-minute drive to her Manhattan offices. As the black Suburban-with a pink embroidered Baby Phat logo on each seat-rolls along the highway, the group enjoys a rare moment of peace, eating the sandwiches that the Simmonses' cook, Michelle, neatly packed for them. But once Kimora steps foot in the office, staffers start swarming. She needs to have her hair and makeup done immediately for an E! interview. She also has to pick a model for a new Baby Phat campaign, approve the invitation design for an upcoming benefit for their visual-arts youth-mentorship program, yell at Jacob the Jeweler about some bauble that gave her an allergic reaction, and choose a charter-helicopter company for her family's summer outings to the Hamptons. Her mom, Joanne Syng, wishes Kimora didn't spend so much. "She's always like, 'You bought another diamond what? You don't need that, people are starving,'" Kimora says. "But my diamond necklace does not cause someone to starve-that's two separate things. Russell and I are very much into helping people." Indeed, the couple is aggressive in its activism and philanthropy, fighting cutbacks in education spending and spearheading both AIDS and slavery-reparation awareness among young people. "We know that when you get money, you give a cut away," she says. "Russell is very spiritual and so not into the stuff I'm into. He got rid of his Bentley a long time ago." For her part, Kimora is still nursing grand ambitions, including acting (she guest starred in For Your Love). "Russell is always saying I have to focus on one thing. Yeah, okay, Mr. Def Jam, Mr. Phat Farm, Mr. Def Pictures. You got an advertising company, a magazine, a book, all the HBO stuff, but I can't? Whatever," she says. "He always wants to steer me down the wise road, and I want to take it, but sometimes I'm like, Damn! Let me breathe a little bit and find out on my own." With nearly 20 years on her, Russell speaks from experience, but Kimora insists the age difference isn't as wide as all that. "I think Russell is a kid at heart, and I'm kind of an older soul," she says. "But I do appreciate how he's affected my life, his contributions to our culture, not to mention all the people he helps to feed. He's a great, great, great man, and I'm very honored to be in his presence. But scoot over, because Kimora Lee Simmons is here, honey!" Spoken like a true player.

Page printed from:
http://www.vibe.com/news/magazine_features/2004/05/vibe_magazine_sep_02_womans_worth/

Return to previous page