A biography for Russell Simmonshasn’t been written yet.
“You know, I love all kinds of activism. I certainly think blacks deserve to have something whether it is affirmative action or an opportunity that should be opened up to them. But at the same time I believe that people of color are not the only poor people in America and all over the world.”
“I'm a creative guy. And I only do businesses as a result of like I've - I'm try to find what my gifts are and give them immediately. As soon as I get them and I understand, I give them back.”
“Service is the key to everything in life.”
“I want to get involved in things that makes a difference in peoples lives and lifts them up. I don't want to be a part of anything that's not inspiring or helpful to the community that I'm serving.”
“People are afraid of failure - they don't like to work so hard and have people keep saying, 'No.' I think that's what people fear most.”
“The difference between blues, jazz, rock n' roll and rap is that rap stayed poor. Even the white rappers are poor. It's scarier to look at poor people; it makes everyone uncomfortable. Their pain is something that people would like to see swept under the rug.”
“No matter where you're from or what you've done, you're never stuck in a particular circumstance, relationship, or cycle unless you say you are.”
“Art is a way to express yourself and through that you can escape a bad situation.”
“You can't jump to vegan if you're not. Some people are absolute. Some people are able to be gradual.”
“Surround yourself with people who are smarter than you. Pick people who are interested in what you're interested in.”
“I don't spend any time thinking about my place in history, ever. If people say I changed things, it's nice, and I take it - but if I could give it to a charity it would be useful. I really believe now that my only job in life is to achieve a state of comfort and happiness.”
“The conditions of suffering that exist today in our impoverished communities are not acceptable. The reflection of those conditions are less concerning to me. And I work everyday about changing the conditions.”
“Surround yourself with people who are smarter than you.”
“I want to fight poverty and ignorance and give opportunity to those people who are locked out.”
“I think people instinctively know that their job is to give service and that they are part of a community. It had a great impact on me when my father walked the picket lines and I walked with him during the civil rights movement.”
“American democracy is spoiled by people buying everything in sight and then selling and buying everything in sight, including our politicians.”
“The thing about hip-hop is that it's from the underground, ideas from the underbelly, from people who have mostly been locked out, who have not been recognized.”
“I try to create businesses that I think are not hurtful.”
“The reason that I have Global Grind is to communicate ideas to people who might otherwise not be listening.”
“I don't use my brain about the creative thing. From a business standpoint, I instinctively do things: when I get something right, it's never because I use my brain.”