Who is Russell Simmons’ accuser Drew Dixon – and why did she subpoena Oprah Winfrey? The ex-Def Jam exec, who worked with Pharrell and Lauryn Hill, also went to university with Diddy

Drew Dixon, one of the women who has accused Russell Simmons of rape, has subpoenaed superstar Oprah Winfrey in her defamation case against him – so who is she, exactly?
Dixon, a former director of A&R at Def Jam Recordings, has demanded that Winfrey give evidence and supply documents in the case.

“You are hereby commanded … to produce the books, records, papers, data, documents, evidences, writings, and all other tangible things as described more fully in the attached Schedule A at [law firm] Boies Schiller Flexner LLP … on or before March 18, 2025,” the subpoena aimed at Winfrey read, per Page Six.

In 2017, Dixon accused Simmons of raping her in his flat in 1995, per The New York Times. Early last year, she sued Simmons for defamation for trying to undermine the numerous sexual-assault claims made against him by six women, per The Hollywood Reporter. During an appearance on the In Depth with Graham Bensinger podcast, he had said that he has “never been forceful in any of [his] relationships”, claiming they were all “consensual”.
Simmons has consistently denied any wrongdoing and has never been arrested or charged with a crime, adds Page Six.
So what do we know about his accuser, Drew Dixon and her music-industry legacy?
What is Drew Dixon’s background?

Drew Dixon, 46, grew up in Washington with parents who worked in politics, according to Ms. Magazine. “My parents were Black politicians in a predominantly Black city,” she told the media outlet. “So, I grew up with a lot of pride in my city and in myself as a Black woman.”