R. Kelly

R. Kelly (born January 8, 1967, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.) is an American singer, songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist who was one of the best-selling rhythm-and-blues (R&B) artists of the 1990s and early 21st century, known for his gospel-tinged vocal delivery and highly sexualized lyrics. Throughout his career Kelly faced various allegations of sexual abuse, and in the 2020s he was convicted of sex trafficking, racketeering, and the production of child pornography.

Kelly was raised in public housing projects in Chicago, and he was taught to have a powerful sense of Christian faith by his mother. His singing style has been described as “church-trained,” and, though faith has been a recurring theme in his lyrics, such early singles as “Sex Me” (1993) established carnality at the centre of his music. The tension between the sacred and the profane, along with the contrast of tough-guy persona and tender vocals, have been constants in his career. On Kelly’s debut album, Born into the ’90s (1992), he joined with the vocal group Public Announcement to deliver a smooth and melodic signature sound laced with hip-hop rhythms. Subsequent efforts achieved ever greater success as Kelly’s dominance of the R&B market translated into pop stardom. His inspirational ballad “I Believe I Can Fly” (1996) was a massive hit and earned three Grammy Awards, including one for best R&B song.

With such hits as “Bump n’ Grind” (1994), “You Remind Me of Something” (1995), and “I’m Your Angel” (1998), Kelly had more songs reach the top 40 of the Billboard singles chart than any other male solo artist in the 1990s. The popularity of the latter song, a duet with Céline Dion, contributed to the success of the album R. (1998), which sold more than eight million copies in the United States alone. However, his personal life was dogged by controversy, beginning with the revelation that he had secretly wed the singer Aaliyah in 1994, when she was 15; the illegal marriage was annulled shortly thereafter. Kelly’s troubles came to a head in 2002 when the authorities came into possession of a videotape (first given to the Chicago Sun-Times by an anonymous source) that allegedly showed Kelly having sex with another underage girl. He was soon indicted on multiple charges related to child pornography, though, as a result of a variety of circumstances, his trial was delayed for several years.

Over the long pretrial period, Kelly continued to release albums that, if anything, grew even more sexually explicit, though they also included songs of uplift. Despite some initial public shock and backlash related to the criminal allegations, Chocolate Factory (2003), which featured the bouncy “Ignition (Remix),” and Happy People/U Saved Me (2004) helped Kelly maintain his status as one of the world’s foremost R&B stars. He stretched further with the “hip-hopera” Trapped in the Closet, a music video series in which he plaintively narrated a progressively byzantine melodrama; the first five installments were included as a song cycle on his album TP.3 Reloaded (2005), and more than a dozen followed on DVD releases. In 2008 a jury acquitted Kelly on all charges.

Kelly reined in his salaciousness on the albums Love Letter (2010) and Write Me Back (2012), which were rooted primarily in the lush sound of 1960s and ’70s soul music. However, he returned to more sexually explicit material with Black Panties (2013) and The Buffet (2015). The holiday album 12 Nights of Christmas appeared in 2016. In addition to his solo recordings, he collaborated with the rapper Jay-Z on two albums (2002 and 2004), and he wrote and produced songs for numerous artists, including Michael Jackson and the Isley Brothers. Soulacoaster: The Diary of Me, a memoir written with David Ritz, was published in 2012.

During this time, Kelly continued to face allegations of sexual abuse and misconduct, including claims that he ran a so-called sex cult. Amid a growing backlash and as an outgrowth of the Me Too movement, the #MuteRKelly movement was launched in 2017, seeking a boycott of his music. Two years later the Lifetime channel aired the six-part documentary series Surviving R. Kelly, which examined the accusations against the singer. In February 2019, a month after that program was broadcast, the state of Illinois charged Kelly with 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse. He pleaded not guilty, and additional state charges were subsequently filed. Kelly was also investigated by federal authorities, and in July 2019 they charged him with various crimes. Kelly was taken into custody at that time, and he was denied bail on several occasions. In August 2021 he went on trial in a federal court in Brooklyn, facing charges involving racketeering and sex trafficking. The following month he was convicted on all counts. In June 2022 Kelly was sentenced to 30 years in prison. Later that year he went on trial in a Chicago federal court over sex videos featuring the singer with a 14-year-old girl. In September he was convicted on various charges, including the production of child pornography and enticement of a minor. However, Kelly was acquitted on several other counts, notably obstruction of justice. His legal troubles in Illinois appeared to end in January 2023, when it was announced that Chicago prosecutors were dropping charges against Kelly. Noting his other convictions, they claimed that “justice has been served.”