Drew Dixon’s legal war with Russell Simmons has become an international conflict, after the mogul was tracked down to his Bali resort and served with a lawsuit. Dixon, once a prominent executive in the Hip-Hop industry, filed a lawsuit against Simmons, accusing the him of defamation.
The lawsuit was triggered by Simmons’ remarks in a December 2023 interview in which he called Dixon a “liar” and suggested the harassment and sexual assault claims against him could be motivated by individuals seeking fame. Dixon’s lawsuit aims to hold Simmons responsible for these comments, which she claims have severely damaged her reputation and professional life.
On March 5, Simmons was served at the posh Gdas Bali Health And Wellness Resort, which he owns. A process server named Daniel John Ayoub arrived at the resort around 12:30 p.m. local time. Ayoub managed to get through two security checkpoints. Once he entered, he told staff members he was interested in the resort. He sat in the restaurant area and ordered some refreshments in hopes of spotting Simmons.
After waiting for an hour and not seeing him, Ayoub asked for a tour of the resort. But just a few minutes later, Simmons came up into the restaurant area and stood right in front of where Ayoub was seated.
“I recognized him as the person named in the service papers as Russell Simmons is a well-known celebrity and widely known in Bali, Indonesia as well as in the United States and other places,” Ayoub explained.
Simmons then sat down with a group of people and began conversing. Ayoub said he waited a few moments and then made his move.
“I said ‘Excuse me, Mr. Simmons, sorry to interrupt your meeting.’ I then handed Simmons the service documents in an envelope and said, ‘This is for you,'” Ayoub said.
Simmons, who was caught off guard grabbed the envelope from Ayoub and said, ‘What’s this from?’ I replied, ‘You’ve been served from the State of New York.’ Simmons then quickly dropped the envelope on the table and said, ‘Ah f###, s###'” Ayoub revealed.
Ayoub went back to his own table and waited for the bill. At that moment, Simmons made a phone call, possibly to his attorney, asking for some advice on what to do next. By that time, Ayoub had paid his tab and was ready to leave.
As Ayoub was exiting the resort, he could hear Simmons calling his security staff, questioning how the process server managed to get in to serve him the lawsuit, which is required by law. The legal action was filed during a challenging time for Simmons, who’s been facing numerous allegations of sexual misconduct.
Dixon seeks both compensatory and punitive damages from Simmons for defamation. He also faces another legal action by a different former Def Jam executive, who also accused Simmons of rape. Despite these serious accusations, Simmons has consistently claimed his innocence, insisting that all of his sexual encounters were consensual.
The legal challenges Dixon mounting go beyond her lawsuit against Simmons. She’s filed another lawsuit against L.A. Reid, using New York’s Adult Survivors Act, in which she accuses the music executive of sexual assault and harassment.
Dixon claims that Reid’s behavior not only caused her immediate harm but also significantly obstructed her career progress and her ability to discover and promote new talent in the industry. According to documents viewed by AllHipHop, lawyers for Dixon and Reid are involved in settlement talks.
