Kimora Lee Simmons has broken her silence about her daughter Aoki Lee Simmons' brief relationship with Vittorio Assaf.
The 49-year-old fashion designer spoke with TMZ about his 21-year-old daughter's romance with the 65-year-old restaurateur. Simmons, who shares her daughter Aoki and Ming Lee with her ex-husband Russell Simmons, told the outlet that she felt “a little embarrassed” when she saw photos of them kissing in April.
“She is a young and pretty girl,” said the 49-year-old model, before referring to the founder of the Serafina Restaurant Group as a “toad.”
“We don't think kissable frogs are going to be transmitted,” Simmons continued, adding, “There's definitely an age dynamic there.”
Although the mother of five children noted that she felt “a little embarrassed” by her daughter's PDA with Assaf, she maintained that “it is what it is” and expressed: “Mom has your back.”
The Harvard University graduate recently sparked romance rumors with the Italian businessman when they were photographed kissing on the Caribbean island of St Barts on April 2. Aoki was seen wearing an olive green tribal print bikini top and matching bikini bottoms, while Assaf took photos of her with his phone. While the couple did not publicly address relationship speculation at the time, the model later shared a cryptic post on her Instagram Story seemingly in response to the PDA photos.
“Err, well now I know why people were calling me,” she wrote on April 5 after the photos went viral.
However, just a week after their trip to St Barts it was reported that Aoki and Assaf had broken up. “Not only was it 'over,' it never existed,” a source said. People April 9th. “Aoki is learning to navigate his private life in a public sphere. And that can be difficult. However, Kimora was concerned about seeing her daughter in that type of relationship because of what she herself went through.”
Aoki is the youngest daughter of Kimora Lee Simmons and Russell Simmons. She began modeling for her mother's fashion brand, Baby Phat, before graduating from Harvard University when she was just 20 years old.
In addition to the model, who has worked with major fashion brands including Tommy Hilfiger, Michael Kors and Dolce and Gabbana, the former couple also shares daughter Ming Lee, 24.
Meanwhile, Assaf is the founder of Serafina, a popular Italian restaurant chain in New York City. He was previously married to model Charlotte Bonstrom before separating in 2021. They share two children: Vittorio, 21, and Valentina, 17.
