The makers and subjects of On the Record talk about bringing alleged
Sexual Abuse by Russell Simmons to light and why
Oprah Winfrey disowned the film
In mid-December 2017, two months after reporting on
Harvey Weinstein triggered what is now known as the #MeToo movement, Drew Dixon bought a copy of the
New York Times at a coffee shop in Brooklyn, where she moved 25 years prior as a starry-eyed college grad determined to work in music. On the front page was a story titled Three Allege
music Mogul Raped Them, with her name in the first sentence. Dixon thumbed through the pages, finding her black-and-white photo – steely-eyed, braced – central on the page, then turned to her phone, a portal to reactions and blowback for speaking publicly about allegations of rape and
Sexual Harassment by her former boss, the music mogul Russell Simmons. Scrolling, anonymous under her beanie, she silently cried.
Related: On the Record: the music industry #MeToo doc that caused Oprah to turn away