Kimora Lee Simmons was thrust into the fab fast lane when she found out about her daughter's love life.
The Baby Phat founder detailed her reaction to learning that her and ex-husband Russell Simmons' 23-year-old daughter Aoki Lee Simmons sparked a brief romance in 2024 with restauranteur Vittorio Assaf, who is 44 years her senior.
For Kimora, she was particularly overwhelmed to discover the news when photos of Aoki and Vittorio, 65, packing on PDA in St. Barths began circulating online.
"It went from 0 to 100 really quick, and I was like, ‘Aoki, I didn’t even know this was a thing,'" she recalled during a Dec. 8 appearance on Amanda Hirsch's Not Skinny But Not Fat podcast. "I found out when the world found out. So that was what was so shocking."
Kimora went on to admit that she wasn't the biggest fan of the pairing—especially since she's had similar dating experiences of her own.
"Having gone through not exactly the same but similar—that big age-gap relationship, let’s just call it that," she continued, "I do think it’s predatorial."
Still, the Kimora: Back the Fab Lane star was careful not to overreact when she confronted her daughter.
"I didn’t say it in that way because it was this fast,” she explained, snapping her fingers. “And it blew up to be so much, so then you can’t be the mom that’s like, ‘What the hell are you doing?’ But that definitely was the thing."
Luckily, Kimora—who is also mom to daughter Ming Lee Simmons, 25, with Russell, as well as sons Kenzo Lee Hounsou, 16, with ex Djimon Hounsou, Gary Lee Leissner, 15, with ex Tim Leissner, and Wolfe Lee, 10, who she welcomed through adoption in 2020—feels like the romance was over as quickly as it started.
"I don’t even think that was a moment for them—or I should say the opposite," she shared. "I think it was just that: a moment. I don’t think it was anything else."
And ultimately, Kimora believes it's important to let her kids "make their own mistakes," even if those mishaps happen under a microscope for her family.
"That’s the whole thing we were saying about living out your life in public," she said. "I think that’s very, very, very tough."
E! News reached out to a rep for Vittorio for comment but has not heard back.
For more on Kimora and her famous family, keep reading.
Kimora Lee Simmons
In Kimora Lee Simmons' house, she's the mom, the dad, the president and the CFO.
"It's like The Brady Bunch," the runway fixture turned Baby Phat mogul joked of her blended family of seven in the Back in the Fab Lane trailer, "but with no husband."
And when it comes to her crew—she shares daughters Ming and Aoki with former husband Russell Simmons, son Kenzo with ex Djimon Hounsou, son Wolfe with estranged husband Tim Leissner, as well as son Gary and "bonus son" Jayden—"I'm really protective," Kimora told E! News in 2025. "Whatever they need, I'm there. Whatever's a problem, I'm there."
Ming Lee
Ming—the eldest of five siblings—was born on Jan. 21, 2000 to Kimora and her then-husband, hip hop music legend Russell Simmons.
Ming attended NYU and is currently following in her mom's footsteps by pursuing a career in modeling.
"I grew up on the runway, walking with my mom and sister at the end of every Baby Phat show during fashion week in New York," the founder of bodycare brand Boulangerie Beauty told W Magazine in October 2017. "I've been in ads with my mom and sister since I was 2 years old. I'm only now realizing how uncommon that is and I'm deeply appreciative of those experiences."
Aoki Lee
Kimora and Russell welcomed youngest daughter Aoki on Aug. 16, 2002.
In addition to modeling, Aoki has proved herself to be quite the intellectual. She was accepted to Harvard at just 16 and graduated from the prestigious university in 2023.
"I feel grateful, proud and relieved — in that order!" Aoki told People at the time. "It's a surreal feeling to be done with something that was such a huge part of my life. Now, like every other graduate, I'm on to the next chapter."
Kenzo
Kimora and former partner Djimon Hounsou are parents to Kenzo, born May 30, 2009, his name being "third and wise" in Japanese, as Kimora has shared.
Now a teenager and towering over his parents at 6-foot-9, Kenzo is a dual threat: A standout athlete on his high school's varsity basketball team, he also starred in a modeling campaign for clothing brand Eve.
Gary
With so much love to give, Kimora had been pondering adoption "for many years," she revealed to Us Weekly. And she was able to bring then-10-year-old Gary into the fold in 2020.
"We're a big group, a loud group," she explained to Us of the high school football player. "Everyone’s always screaming to me, 'Mom, mom help me do this, do that' all the time. 'Mom, mom, mom.' So he, in that sense, has blended right in."
Wolfe
Kimora welcomed her youngest, known as "Wolfie", into the pack on April 10, 2015.
"I can’t believe my BABY is 10!!!" she wrote in a 2025 Instagram tribute to her son with estranged husband Tim. "You make me so proud every single day, my smart, funny, silly boy!"
Jayden
While not Kimora's biological son, Kimora acts as mama to "bonus son" Jayden. Despite her already sizable brood, she explained during a December 2025 appearance on Today with Jenna & Friends that she serves as a "surrogate mom" to several other children.
"I have my kids, and then I have kids on the side," Kimora noted. "I'm a lot of people's mom."