Russell Simmons Global Grind's New Editor-in-Chief

Global Grind, the social media platform aimed at the Hip Hop community, announced Russell Simmons will serve as its Editor in Chief.

Simmons is an early Global Grind investor, and has been a guest blogger on the site, alongside Reverend Run and Dr. Benjamin Chavis.

The strong response to their blogs led to the creation of the site's new "Celebrity Blogger" section. A mix of celebrities and influencers within the Hip-Hop Community blog on a variety of topics including music, lifestyle, culture, politics and sports.

Global Grind enables it's users to discover content of interest to them from sources on the web. It incorporates search, discussion, rating, and sharing that enables bloggers to connect to hip hop fans.

Global Grind said it will expand its blogging initiative to include a diverse array of bloggers including leading and emerging artists, thought leaders, celebrities, actors, models, DJ's, politicians and activists.

The exclusive content will appear on custom created profile pages which will be featured alongside the growing celebrity "Global Coverage" content aggregation pages that include the most up-to-date web content about the celebrity on one page.

Navarrow Wright, CEO of Global Grind, states, "Global Grind is proud to announce Russell Simmons as its Editor in Chief, as it's been a natural progression over the past year with his extensive involvement from the site as an early investor and popular blogger on the site. Global Grind has always been about connecting people: first connecting our audience to the content they want, then connecting leading and emerging sites to users and advertisers through our Grind Network, and now connecting bloggers big and small directly to the new American mainstream, while syndicating their content to key networks like Facebook. I look forward to working alongside Russell to develop this unique global platform in 2009."

Russell Simmons, new Editor in Chief of Global Grind, states, "Ever since my early days in music, through my work in fashion, comedy, film, TV and philanthropy, I have worked as a facilitator of communication, and a promoter of creativity, entrepreneurship, giving, and political engagement. Global Grind is the ultimate connector for the HipHop community and like-minded creative entrepreneurs and activists."

Simmons added, "Whether you're a celebrity, a politician, an artist, a comedian or an emerging blogger, Global Grind gives the community a powerful platform to speak to each other, the media and the world."

Lead venture investor Jim Breyer of Accel Partners noted, "We are very excited to be part of such a fundamental long-term internet opportunity and being partners with an outstanding group of team members and contributors." Breyer has invested in over 30 companies that have completed IPO's or successful mergers, and is also a board member of leading companies such as Wal-Mart, Marvel Entertainment, Facebook, and Etsy.

Launched in Jan 2008, Global Grind has partnered with more than 35 publisher sites, and reaches more than 1 million monthly unique visitors. It has established itself as a unique promoter of "The World According To Hip Hop" by working collaboratively with other leading and emerging sites of interest to the trend-breaking hip hop community. The company is headquartered in New York City and is privately held, with backing from Russell Simmons, private investors, and Accel Partners of Palo Alto, California.