Russell Simmons launches new yoga center named Tantris

Following the opening of New York's newest meditation studio Inscape by Intermix founder Khajak Keledjian, music mogul and yoga devotee Russell Simmons is now bringing his own yoga studio to Los Angeles.

A fan of Transcendental meditation and a committed vegan, Simmons is set to open Tantris this Friday, November 18, a project which, according to Well and Good, has been five years in the making.

The two-storey studio will offer yogis not only a place to practice but also a juice bar, a lounge with city views, a boutique to shop Simmons' new activewear collection, also named Tantris, and even a hair salon to ensure you leave the studio looking as good as you feel.

However the studio isn't all about shopping and styling, with Simmons hoping that attending Tantris will help attendees learn more and gain more from their yoga practice.

"People are going to vinyasa classes and looking for a yoga butt instead of realizing yoga is a moving prayer," Simmons told Well and Good, "Yogic science is a lot more than asana, and I think more people could use that [knowledge]."

For this reason classes will incorporate all of the eight limbs of yoga upon which the practice is based, and students will have the opportunity to learn asana (movement), pranayama (breathwork), sensory withdrawal and meditation, as well as the ethical standards and personal practices from yoga must-read "The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali", with comments from Sri Swami Satchidananda.

Simmons is also planning to launch a teacher training program in spring next year, which will even include the study of Sanskrit and philosophy, to enable teacher to delve further into yoga and way past the usual 200 hours of teaching, which focuses mainly on just poses.

For the more every day yogi Tantris also has its own app, enabling clients to plan and schedule their classes, and is available to download now on the iTunes store or via Google Play.

Simmons will kick things off by leading the first flow class at the center Friday at 6 pm, with places to be reserved via the app.

Tantris can be found at 9200 Sunset Blvd. #170, West Hollywood, CA, 90069 with more information available at tantris.com