Taraji P. Henson Visit To Russell Simmons Vexes Xitter Users

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Taraji P. Henson’s recent visit to Russell Simmons in Bali has raised the ire of social media users, who pointed out other celebs who’ve done the same. On Monday (August 12), former Def Jam founder Russell Simmons shared a photo of himself and Taraji P. Henson in a post on social media, thanking her for her friendship and for visiting his resort complex in Bali, Indonesia. “People when you have friends like this, you are truly blessed!!!! Everyone comes to Gdas for healing, some people exude healing energy. You are one of those,” Simmons wrote in the caption of the Instagram post. “You make everyone happy just with your presence. Love you baby girl, you are back home safe now and are already missed. Until we meet again darling, only love. PS, you mean so much to so many people, keep inspiring us all.”

A few who saw the post had mistakenly thought that Henson had passed, but other commenters quickly corrected them. But many more were upset that the actress was chummy with Simmons, venting their frustration in posts on X, formerly Twitter. One user, Kelezy Kae Graham wrote, “Yuh know they could take the picture and not post it? Like everything is not for the media.” Others were incredulous that she went there, and livid at other celebrities such as Snoop Dogg, MC Lyte, and Usher also making visits to Simmons at the Gdas resort.

Simmons is currently facing several lawsuits for sexual abuse, and the public perception that his living in Bali since 2018 is to avoid prosecution. He was “caught off guard” when served with papers relating to a defamation lawsuit from former Def Jam executive Drew Dixon in February. The 61-year-old has firmly denied that he’s hiding out, recently doing so in a statement in May. “People saying that I somehow can’t come home when I’m there all the time wears on you,” Simmons said. “It wears on me after a while to keep hearing the same narrative, which is false. I’m always in L.A., I’m always in New York and Miami. And I’ve never had any reason to feel unsafe in America.”