Russell Simmons x Brave New Voices. Russell continues to do business where the real money is as he has now secured a production deal for the upcoming HBO series “Brave New Voices.” The series kicks off on Sunday and according to the press release:

…chronicles the lives of¬†teen poets from seven cities around the nation as they prepare to compete in Youth Speaks’ annual Brave New Voices Festival. It’s narrated by Queen Latifah. Idris Elba hosts the finals.

Check the preview video compliments of Rap Radar. Say what you want about Russell, but with this HBO money and Wal-Mart money through his new clothing line, it’s pretty safe to say he is Recession proof. Guess he won’t be needing these Fat Joe kicks anytime soon.

Russell Simmons x American Classics. Russell Simmons is going out of his way to show the world that his new American Classics clothing line is NOT urban. The clothing line, which launched beginning of this month, is available only at Wal-Mart for lower budget prices but apparently Russell is not happy with the fact that his clothing line was called “urban.” He states in his official Global Grind blog:

“American Classics is meant to reflect classic style for everyone.¬† So when I notice that WWD and others have described my American Classics line as urban, for those writers you have to ask yourself, what defines my line as urban?¬† Their definition of urban seems almost to be a bad word and is certainly a confining one.¬† My intention is to dress America without limitation.”

For the record, I never said American Classics was urban, in fact it’s about as non-urban as Russell’s current girlfriend. As if Russell telling us American Classics is not urban I think it’s pretty easy to tell he’s trying to communicate this in his ads and “infomerical” video. Looks straight out of a Tommy Hilfiger catalog.

Russell Simmons has teamed up with Wal-Mart, the largest retailer in the country, to market and distribute Simmons’ new clothing line called American Classics. According to the official press release, American Classics will be featured in Continue Reading…

Russell Simmons’ jewelry line, Simmons Jewelry Co. (as we mentioned, available at your local Kay Jewlers) is celebrating the 10 year anniversary of Sponge Bob Square Pants with a limited edition 12 ct white diamond pendant valued at $75,000. The pendant also includes 18 ct of yellow and white gold and will be sold off at auction to raise money for a non-profit org led by Simmons.

Too bad Sean Kingston does not have another hit single. He is the ONLY person I could think of that would realistically bid on this. Via: ProHipHop

Just in time for the Holiday season, Russell Simmons and his Simmons Jewelry Co. have launched an online ad campaign with their distribution partner Kay Jewelers. Kay is the official distributor of the entire Simmons Jewelry Co. collection which includes the famous “Green Bracelet” and dog tags. Check out this video here that explains more about the joint venture and check out the website for Holiday offers.

In honor of its 60th anniversary, long-time hip-hop supporters Adidas will be launching their first ever U.S. TV advertising campaign and have employed Young Jeezy, Method Man, DMC, Missy Elliott and even Russell Simmons to star in them. The ads will begin airing this week and also feature celebs such as Kevin Garnett and David Beckham mixed with the hip-hop stars. It’s nice to see Adidas stay close to their hip-hop ties after so many years since they teamed with Run D.M.C. back in the early 80’s.

The campaign will run a series of 30 and 60 second spots all focused around meeting together for a big pool party. My favorite is this K.G. vs. Jeezy spot. Check all the ads out here and remember to keep coming back to WoooHa, Inc. for all the latest hip-hop marketing and business info you can handle.

The Invitation – Jeezy, Missy Elliott, Russell Simmons, DMC

The Game – Young Jeezy vs. Kevin Garnett

The House Party