Who Is Russell Simmons II? The Full Story of Diggy Simmons’ Brother

Russell Simmons II, known to television viewers as Russy, is the youngest son of Joseph Simmons, the Run-DMC star known as Rev Run, and his wife Justine Simmons. He grew up on television as one of the children in the MTV reality series Run’s House.

He is also the younger brother of rapper and actor Diggy Simmons, and he shares his name with his famous uncle, Def Jam co-founder Russell Simmons. This article tells the documented story of russell simmons ii, his family, his years on television, and what is known about his life as an adult, while keeping to the public record.

Quick Facts

A Famous Name in a Famous Family

Russell Simmons II was born on August 30, 1997, in Bergen County, New Jersey. He was the second child of Joseph and Justine Simmons together, and the youngest son in the family. His parents had married on June 25, 1994, and their first child together, Diggy, had been born two years before him.

His name carries real weight in music history. He was named after his uncle Russell Simmons, the older brother of his father and a co-founder of Def Jam Recordings, the label that helped turn hip hop into a global business. The younger Russell has sometimes been called Russell Simmons Jr. in casual writing, but his correct name is Russell Simmons II.

His father needs little introduction. Joseph Simmons, known as Rev Run, was a founding member of Run-DMC, one of the most important groups in hip hop history. His mother, Justine Simmons, is an author and television personality who became known to a wide audience through the family’s shows.

Growing up as the youngest son in that household meant growing up in public. By the time Russell was a small child, his family was preparing to open its home to television cameras, and his childhood would be shared with millions of viewers in a way few children experience.

His Brothers and Sisters

Russell is part of a large blended family. His older full brother is Daniel Dwayne Simmons III, known to the world as Diggy Simmons, born on March 21, 1995. Diggy built his own career as a rapper, signing with Atlantic Records as a teenager and later acting in the television series Grown-ish.

From his father’s first marriage, Russell has three older half siblings. Vanessa Simmons, born in 1983, is an actress and businesswoman. Angela Simmons is a reality television personality and entrepreneur. Joseph Simmons Jr., known as JoJo, is the oldest son and has worked in music and business.

The family also carries a sad chapter that was shared openly on television. Russell’s younger sister, Victoria Anne Simmons, was born on September 26, 2006, with a condition called omphalocele, and she died shortly after birth. Her story was shown on Run’s House with the family’s agreement, and the family has continued to honor her memory.

In late 2007, Joseph and Justine adopted a baby girl, Miley Justine Simmons, who became the youngest child in the family. For Russell, that meant moving from youngest child to older brother, a change viewers of the show saw happen in real time during its later seasons.

Growing Up on Run’s House

Run’s House premiered on MTV on October 13, 2005, and ran for six seasons until July 13, 2009. The series followed Rev Run, Justine, and their children at home in New Jersey, mixing family comedy with the father’s short lessons on life and faith at the end of episodes.

Russell was about eight years old when the show began, which makes him one of the younger reality television children of that era. On screen he was known as Russy, the playful youngest son, often seen with his brother Diggy and following his older siblings around the house. Because he was a child during filming, this article keeps that period brief and factual, as his childhood belongs first to him and his family.

The show was a success because it offered something different. It presented a famous hip hop family focused on home life, school, faith, and respect, and it helped change how American television showed Black families. For the Simmons children, it also created a public identity before any of them had chosen a career.

After Run’s House ended, Russell appeared with his family in two later series. Rev Run’s Sunday Suppers, a cooking show on the Cooking Channel, premiered on January 27, 2016. The travel series Rev Run Around the World premiered on the Travel Channel on December 2, 2015. Both ran for one season, and both showed the family together in a lighter, grown up format.

Life After the Family Shows

Unlike Diggy, who pursued music and acting in public, and unlike Vanessa and Angela, who built television and business careers, Russell has kept a much lower profile as an adult. He has not released music, launched a known company, or taken a public acting role that major sources have documented.

Profiles of him describe interests he has shared on social media over the years, including skateboarding, gaming, and music. He has also been pictured at family events and in family posts, and fans of the shows still follow his updates to see how the youngest son of Run’s House has grown up.

Readers should be careful with detailed claims about his adult life. Many biography sites list exact figures for his income, height, relationships, and daily work, but those details are not backed by interviews or strong reporting. His net worth, for example, is not verified by any reliable source, and this article does not present a figure for it.

What the record supports is simpler. Russell Simmons II is a private adult member of a very public family. He spent part of his childhood on a well loved television show, he remains part of a close family story that fans still follow, and he has chosen not to build a public career at the level of his father, his uncle, or his brother Diggy.

The Simmons Family Story Around Him

To understand Russell’s place in public life, it helps to see the family arc around him. His father and uncle helped build hip hop’s business side in the 1980s. His older siblings then became one of the first hip hop families shown on reality television in a warm, everyday way.

Diggy’s career is the closest comparison. Diggy used the show as a starting point, released mixtapes from 2009, signed to Atlantic Records, and later acted on television. Russell stood next to him through the show years but did not take the same path afterward, which is why searches for him so often begin by asking who he is.

The family has also faced public grief and public change since the show ended, including the loss of Victoria, the adoption of Miley, and the death in 2025 of Danny Simmons, the artist brother of Rev Run and Russell Simmons, who co-founded the Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation. Through all of it, the family image has stayed tied to faith and staying close.

For fans who watched Russy grow up between 2005 and 2009, he will always be the youngest boy in the big house in New Jersey. His adult choice to live more quietly is part of his story too, and it is respected here by sticking to what is documented and leaving the rest to him.

FAQs

Who is Russell Simmons II?

Russell Simmons II, nicknamed Russy, is the youngest son of Rev Run and Justine Simmons. He was born on August 30, 1997, in New Jersey and became known as a child on the MTV series Run’s House, which ran from 2005 to 2009.

Is Russell Simmons II related to Diggy Simmons?

Yes. Diggy Simmons, born Daniel Dwayne Simmons III on March 21, 1995, is his older full brother. They share the same parents, Joseph and Justine Simmons, and they grew up together on Run’s House.

Who was Russell Simmons II named after?

He was named after his uncle, Russell Simmons, the Def Jam Recordings co-founder and the older brother of his father, Rev Run. The name is written as Russell Simmons II, not Junior, in most family and reference sources.

What does Russell Simmons II do now?

His current work is not documented by major sources. He appeared in family shows including Rev Run’s Sunday Suppers and Rev Run Around the World in the mid 2010s, and since then he has kept a low public profile, with interests such as skateboarding shared on social media.

You may also read: Dale Russell Gudegast: The Full Story of Eric Braeden’s Wife and Family

Final Thoughts

Russell Simmons II grew up inside one of the most famous families in hip hop, with a father who helped invent the genre’s mainstream era and an uncle whose name he carries. Television made him familiar to millions while he was still a child in the Run’s House years.

As an adult, he has taken the quieter road, and the public record about him stays thin for that reason. The full story that can honestly be told is a family story: a youngest son, a close set of brothers and sisters, and a name that links him to music history, whether or not he ever seeks the spotlight again.

Featured photo: Joseph Simmons – photo by David Shankbone, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons