As an adolescent, Drew Dixon – the daughter of former mayor of Washington, D.C. Sharon Pratt – was drawn to hip- hop as the nexus of activism, black pride, and music. After leaving Stanford University and driving to NYC “with a dream to make hip-hop records,” at 24, Drew landed her dream job: Director of A&R at Def Jam Records, a label run by beloved music mogul Russell Simmons. Early on, Drew proved herself as major player with the success of The Show soundtrack and the Grammy-winning Mary J. Blige/Method Man record “I’ll Be There For You / You’re All I Need to Get By.” She thought her success would protect her from the culture of sexual misconduct that pervaded the music industry. She would soon realize how wrong she was.

When stories emerged about Russell Simmons, Drew stayed quiet about her own experience, afraid of the fallout and unsure if the movement was meant for black women. Simmons’ categorical denials finally led her to talk to The New York Times about her time at Def Jam, during which she says Simmons’ behavior escalated from forcible kissing to exposing himself in her office. After being lured into his bedroom to pick up a demo, Drew alleges that Simmons held her down and raped her. “I was reduced to nothing in that moment,” she remembers. Afraid to go to the police, she resigned. Though she went on to find success at Arista Records, Drew says that she saw the pattern of quid pro quo sexual harassment repeating itself when, in 2000, L.A. Reid took over, which prompted Drew to quit the industry for good. While attending Harvard Business School, she met her husband and went on to have two kids.

On the Record follows Dixon in her journey to confront what happened to her early in her career in 90s, the lasting effects that her experience had on her, and how, decades later, she decides to fully process it and reclaim her passion for music. The film tracks the early stages of Dixon’s difficult decision to open up to The New York Times through the publication of her story, paying special attention to the bonds Dixon forms with other survivors once the story breaks. In present day, we see that Dixon has been liberated and renewed by coming forward – and has even started to make music again as a result. To date, 20 women have accused Simmons of sexual assault or misconduct. Both Simmons and Reid have categorically denied the allegations and to date neither has been charged with any crimes.