According to People, Russell and Kimora met at New York Fashion Week in 1992 when the record executive was 35 and the model was 17. Despite their age difference, the couple fell in love and got married in 1998. The stars then welcomed their oldest daughter, Ming Lee, on Jan. 21, 2000, before their youngest daughter, Aoki Lee, arrived two years later. In the beginning, the family of four appeared very close. They were always together in public. In fact, photos reveal that during Ming and Aoki's early modeling days, Russell and Kimora constantly supported their daughters by cheering them on from the crowd. Even after the pair broke up in 2006, per People, Russell and Kimora would often still be seen together with their kids.
In an August 2007 interview with People, Kimora said she and Russell were "great partners" who raised a "beautiful family" together. Although she admitted things haven't "always been great" between them, they remained friends as they focused on co-parenting their kids. "I'm a very hands-on mother. But he's a very nurturing dad," she told the publication at the time. While she said Russell wasn't around their daughters as much as she was, she praised her ex for always being there for her. "[We talk about them] every day. All day. I would call for anything. We're very connected to our children," she said.
As a kid, Ming modeled for her mother's Baby Phat and Baby Phat Girlz clothing lines, which were under the umbrella of Russell's Phat Fashions. Since then, Ming has walked the runway at various shows around the world and has even been featured on the cover of magazines like Galore and Disrupshion. In 2019, Ming also helped her mother relaunch Baby Phat.
Most recently, Ming graduated from New York University in May. "It feels crazy to finally be done with school," she told Hypebae in June. "I keep telling my friends that I don't even know what I'm supposed to do with myself. But jokes aside, I'm looking forward to traveling a bit in my immediate future. Being able to get inspired by culture and learn more about the world and specifically my heritage is something I'm really looking forward to."
Ming also said she was "excited" to work more on her personal brand and maybe return to school in the future.
