Joseph “Rev Run” Simmons
Joseph “Rev Run” Simmons Is one of the most iconic figures in music. The front man of the seminal hip-hop group RUN DMC, Rev Run has sold tens of millions of records around the world and Is widely credited for ushering rap music into mainstream culture.
RUN DMC was named the greatest hip-hop group of all time by both MTV and VH1. Describing his considerable Impact, Rolling Stone writes, “[Rev Run] took hardcore hip-hop from an underground street sensation to a pop-culture phenomenon … In the process, [Rev Run] helped change the course of popular music, paving the way for rap’s second generation.” In 2009, RUN DMC was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and in 2015 became the first rap act to earn a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
Rev Run remains a dynamic figure in entertainment and health today, now with a focus on one of his top priorities -family.
Watching his father live with type 2 diabetes and in his own role as a grandfather, father, and husband, Rev Run places a strong emphasis on promoting health for himself and his family. Knowing he’s at risk for the disease, Rev Run has been committed to working with Novo Nordisk since 2012 on the Ask.Screen.Know.® campaign, where he works to inspire Americans to learn their type 2 diabetes risk factors and talk to their doctor about getting screened.
Rev Run’s imprint on the entertainment Industry also continues to grow. His hit MTV show, Run’s House, aired for six seasons and became one of the most widely viewed shows on cable television. Starring alongside his wife Justine and their six children, Rev Run became America’s favorite father and a paradigm of family values, humor, and spirituality. Run’s House set the groundwork for Rev Run’s first two books, Take Back Your Family: A Challenge to America’s Parents and Words of Wisdom: Dally Affirmations of Faith from Run’s House to Yours, both published in 2008. His third book, Manology, coauthored with Tyrese, was released in February 2012.
Recently, Rev Run, Justine, and their family made a return to television with several hit shows, including Rev Run’s Renovation (on HGTV and the DIY Network), Rev Run’s Sunday Suppers (on the Cooking Channel), and Rev Runs Around the World (on the Travel Channel). Rev Run also stars on a relationship-focused show, It’s Not You, It’s Men, with Tyrese (on OWN).
Rev Run Is also a highly sought-after deejay and public speaker, relaying his positive message of family, faith, and health through live speaking engagements and his social media handles (@RevRunWlsdom with 4.4 million Twitter followers and his Rev Run Facebook page with more than 2.2 million likes).
