Kelly Cutrone is gaining viral fame, with pictures of the fashion executive spreading across social media after her claim that music mogul Russell Simmons tried to rape her.
Cutrone claimed that Simmons met her at a party in 1991, when Cutrone was 26 years old, and invited her back to his apartment. As the New York Post noted, Cutrone declined the invitation but agreed to go with Simmons to his friend’s house. She believes that Simmons actually took her to his own apartment instead, and made an aggressive advance on her when they arrived.
“He pushed me into his apartment and then he threw me down on the floor and literally tried to grab … take my clothes off of me,” Cutrone said. “And I started kicking him really, really hard, screaming, telling him to get the f**k off of me. And that I would have him killed if he ever f**king laid a hand on me.”
Russell Simmons has now been accused of sexual misconduct by more than a dozen women, but denies that he ever had non-consensual sex with anyone. Kelly Cutrone said she was left shaken by her encounter with Simmons, and decided to come forward after the mogul made a post about the #MeToo movement titled #NotMe in which he asked that people “hold my accusers accountable.”
In the hours after Kelly Cutrone came forward, her name began trending across social media and many people tried to find pictures of the fashion executive. Many found her to be a familiar face, as the founder of the fashion public relations company People’s Revolution played roles on MTV’s The Hills and America’s Next Top Model .
Cutrone told Page Six that she was inspired to tell her story because of Simmons’ recent denial of stories of sexual assault and harassment that he has been charged with https://t.co/XSDGI7OoWn
— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) December 15, 2017
. @kellycutrone says #RussellSimmons tried to rape her in 1991 https://t.co/hNjx2ZjYOK pic.twitter.com/QZGeGFMV4Y
— Perez Hilton (@PerezHilton) December 15, 2017
One of the first women to come forward and accuse Russell Simmons of sexual assault saw a similar boost in popularity. Former model Keri Claussen Khalighi made headlines late last month when she claimed that Simmons raped her when she was 17 years old.
Khalighi told the Los Angeles Times that she met Simmons and director Brett Ratner at Simmons’ apartment, where he allegedly forced himself onto her.
Russell Simmons responded to the New York Post through a lawyer, denying the allegations that he tried to rape Kelly Cutrone. As the Hollywood Reporter noted, the New York Police Department is investigating the claims against Simmons to determine if he might face any charges.