The model celebrates her daughter's beauty and brains.
Kimora Lee Simmons knows exactly where her daughter, Aoki Lee Simmons, gets her “feisty” side -- from her! The 20-year-old Harvard student/model has made a name for herself on TikTok, unapologetically shutting down the haters who bring the negative vibes to her page.
While the proud mom knows her daughter can hold her own, she still worries about her online. “I always say, ‘Are you too feisty, Aoki? You better watch it,’” the 47-year-old tells ET. “What if someone comes with the opposing view and it's like too much heat? You know what she said to me? ‘Mom, since when have I not been feisty? I can take a little heat.‘”
The fashion mogul adds, “It makes me feel so proud. Sometimes I am a little worried. So, in my household I am always yelling like, ‘Is that OK? Is that too see through? Is that too short? Did you piss off the wrong person?’ And they're all like, 'Mom, are you going soft on us? ‘Cause this is not like the same queen of fabulosity.’ I think as a mom or as a parent, you worry, you want them to be OK. You want them to be safe, you don't want them to invite any unwanted drama.”
Although, when it comes to the drama, Aoki is ready for it. As evidenced by her TikTok videos, Simmons and ex-husband Russell Simmons’ youngest daughter is ready for anything and anyone who challenges her and the idea that she hasn’t worked hard for her education and the modeling career she has.
“It makes me so proud. And to see that she understands both sides and she understands how other people feel and she understands how she is perceived,” Simmons says. “And I think that all of these things just make for a well-rounded person. It sets the stage for her, for her future, in such an amazing way. It makes me feel really warm inside that I raised her the right way.”
Aoki, who was accepted to Harvard at the age of 15, has decided that she is going to follow in her mother’s footsteps down the runway with a career in modeling when she graduates. A career path, her mother says, that demonstrates she has brains and beauty.
“You're allowed to have aspirations,” she said of her daughter’s career path.
“You're allowed to have fun. She's two or three years ahead so she just turned 20. She's almost graduating. She was accepted at 15. One of the youngest in modern history," Simmons says. "I think that oftentimes women aren't expected to have it all. That goes especially for women of color. We weren't expected to have it all. Who said you couldn't have brains and beauty?”
Simmons doesn’t have many worries when it comes to her daughter stepping into the world of fashion. The former model says that on top of the changes that have been made in the industry, she knows how it works and could be the best guide for her daughter.
“I think as a mom, you worry. I have experienced so much since I was 12 years old. I have been in this business. We didn't have, you know, MeToo back in the day. We didn't know about a lot of things that we know now. We didn't have the rights, we didn't have the wherewithal,” she says.
“When I say we, I mean women, young women, people of color, you name it. We didn't have all of these things that the kids kind of have now. So if I didn't, I wouldn't choose it for her if I had to push her into something of a career," she says. "A lot of times people say, ‘But you went to Harvard.’ And, ‘Why would you go and model now?’ and sometimes I am like, ‘Yeah yeah,’ but then on the other side, I am like, ‘Wait a minute, well, why wouldn't she?’”
Aoki’s education and background in fashion is also a huge benefit, as it leaves space for her to take on Simmons’ business ventures in the future.
“We're businesswomen too,” Simmons, who is also mother to Ming, 22, Kenzo, 13, Gary, 13 and Wolf, 7, tells ET.
“That's what's underneath it all. Don't let the beauty confuse you. I have an empire I'm turning over to my kids, and they need to know how to run that. They support me and I support them. It doesn't matter what you look like, it matters what's up here. That's something that no one can take away from you. I think that's very important," she says. "And however you get that education is good. It doesn't have to be higher, institutionalized learning. That it doesn't have to be our way. It doesn't have to be everybody's way. But to learn and acquire knowledge and grow, no one can take that away from you. What you look like can come and go.”
She adds, “I want her to have both. But, hey, while you're 20 and beautiful and you look like a beautiful butterfly, go right ahead.”
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