On the eve of Super Tuesday, Russell Simmons and the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network (HSAN) call for a massive, unprecedented young voters turnout across America.

Recent polls show that young voters are poised to be the determining factor in the twenty-two states that will be holding Presidential primary elections tomorrow. Since 2003, HSAN has been a national leader in youth voter education, registration and mobilization. Its’ Hip-Hop Team Vote program has enabled and encouraged millions of young voters to participate in the electoral process. (more…)

Russell Simmons is starting his own fashion line for the sophisticated urban man. “Argyle Culture” and “Atman” are designed for the hip-hop generation now grown up; fashionable in a classic way yet still seeking that bit of urban flare.

The argyle pattern itself has been associated with country club prep and the Ivy League yet this iconic cuspidate pattern and sophisticated fabrics such as herringbone and houndstooth have been incorporated into Argyle Culture’s premier collection, subtly enhanced with Simmons iconoclastic urban aesthetic. Atman is an even higher end men’s boutique line. (more…)

Russell Simmons is hanging with an arty crowd lately. The hip-hop mogul, down here Basel-ing, hosted a dinner at The Delano Thursday for his Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation, which he cofounded with brothers Danny, a painter, and Joseph, of iconic rap band Run-DMC.

Its goal: to help artists and young people who face adversity. The brothers will host a big fundraiser in Miami Beach April 5. (more…)

On Saturday, October 20 the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network (HSAN) is coming back to Miami with the timely message of financial literacy, bringing the Hip-Hop Summit on Financial Empowerment “Get Your Money Right” International Tour to the Sunshine State.

With the recent housing market crash affecting the economy, jobs, student loans and consumer confidence, young people need some sound financial advice on how to best manage their money and navigate through this volatile economic environment. (more…)

HIPHOPNEWSBLOG.COM has recently given Russell Simmons a bunch of props for his recent community service actions, all of which you can read about here.

However, what I was most excited about was his late-November “fact-finding mission” to South Africa and Botswana and it’s apparent intention of helping to empower Africans. (more…)

A lot of the underground seems to hate on my man Russell Simmons. Many apparently feel that he is part of the corporate entity that is commercializing and neatly packaging hip-hop for mainstream acceptance. To be honest with you, I don’t necessarily have an opinion on that right now. But I do think critics are not paying enough attention to all the positive, political and community-related endeavors of Russell Simmons.

I was skimming through our news archives recently, and couldn’t believe how much Russ is doing for the advancement of true hip-hop culture and politics recently: (more…)