Kimora Lee Simmons is officially stepping back into the television spotlight, marking a return that reflects how much her life has transformed since she last let cameras into her world. Years before the current wave of celebrity docuseries, Simmons helped define the genre with her stylish blend of fashion, motherhood, and business on E!. After that period, she made a deliberate choice to walk away from reality TV and focus on her growing family and expanding career.
During her time away, everything about her day-to-day life shifted. “I was a mom of two,” Simmons told E! in an exclusive interview. “I’m now a mom of five, and I have a lot of other kids all around. I’ve changed careers a few times, husbands, investments. People are older — I’m a boy mom, I was a girl mom. People have driver’s licenses.” Those changes — and the nonstop pace that came with them — are exactly what pushed people close to her to encourage a return to television.
According to Simmons, she didn’t seek out another show. The idea came from others who felt her real life had evolved into something viewers would want to see. “I feel like people around me are like, ‘Oh god, you’re so crazy. This is so much going on. You should have cameras,’” she said. Even with that encouragement, she wasn’t immediately convinced. She thought she had already closed that chapter. But those around her persisted until the conversations became more serious. “That ‘I’m really serious’ talk becomes a ‘here we go, we just need you to have a little meeting,’” she remembered. “And I’m like, ‘Really?’”
Now, more than a decade since her last reality series, she’s returning with Kimora: Back in the Fab Lane, premiering December 2 on E!. The new show follows her as she navigates life with older teens, younger kids, business ventures, and a brand-new family dynamic. Her daughters, Ming and Aoki Lee, are also experiencing this comeback differently. “They’re young adults, so I’m not there to protect them and do everything,” Simmons said. “It’s been a journey.”
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