Drew Dixon reportedly subpoenas Oprah Winfrey in Russell Simmons defamation lawsuit, demands testimony and documents

Drew Dixon has reportedly issued a subpoena to Oprah Winfrey in connection with her ongoing defamation lawsuit against Russell Simmons.

A report in Page Six stated that Dixon, a Def Jam Recordings executive, sued the hip-hop icon in February 2024, claiming that he defamed her in a December 2023 interview about her alleged r*pe accusations against him. Now, she has demanded Winfrey to provide testimony and documents relevant to the case.

Simmons claimed that Winfrey dropped out of producing a documentary, On The Record, in 2020 that acknowledged several claims of misconduct brought forward by women against Simmons, the report added. She decided to withdraw her support as she reportedly found “inconsistencies” in their allegations, claiming that she had recordings of conversations with accusers that revealed those alleged inconsistencies.

As per the Page Six report, the subpoena by Dixon’s lawyers reads:

“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, 55 Hudson Yards, New York, New York 10001, or electronically to undersigned counsel, on or before March 18, 2025.”

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Exploring the Drew Dixon case against Russell Simmons as she issues a subpoena to Oprah Winfrey

According to a report on Page Six, the subpoena issued by Drew Dixon demanded that Oprah Winfrey testify and provide evidence. In addition to asking for evidence from her, it added:

“You are further commanded to… to appear and attend before a notary public or other person authorized by law to administer oaths… and at any recessed or adjourned date, to testify and give evidence, as a witness on an examination before trial by deposition upon oral questions. This deposition may be videotaped and will continue from day to day until complete.”

However, it is unclear if the television icon adhered to their demands by March 18 or if her lawyers are fighting it.

As reported by Daily Mail, Dixon was r*ped by Russell Simmons in 1995. She reportedly claimed that he made s*xual advances against her inside his Manhattan apartment.

She sued him in 2024 by filing a defamation suit after Simmons spoke on her r*pe allegations in a 2023 interview with Graham Besinger:

“In their full context, Mr. Simmons’s statements have the effect of accusing Ms. Dixon and the ‘six people[’s]’ accounts of lying about being sexually assaulted by Mr. Simmons; that their recollection of the assault did not match his; and implying that Ms. Dixon lied about her account of the assault because she ‘le[ft] and fe[lt] hurt’ or ‘thirst[ed] for fame, even infamous,'” the complaint stated, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.

On In Depth With Graham Besinger, Simmons reportedly suggested that Dixon was “[thirsting] for fame and seeking 'notoriety'” by accusing him of r*pe. He said:

“Could someone want notoriety in the market where people thirst for fame.”

He also asserted that he always had “consensual” relationships and he had 'never been forceful in any of [his] relationships.

According to a report in The Hollywood Reporter, some of Dixon’s allegations were published in a 2017 report by The New York Times.