r kelly
HipHopWired Featured Video
R. Kelly is currently serving 30 years behind bars due to his explosive sexual abuse and human trafficking case, where he was convicted on nine counts. Largely mum during his prison stay. R. Kelly was a surprise guest for an inmate-focused podcast, saying at one point that singing was a “beautiful disease.”
As seen on TMZ, R. Kelly was a surprise guest for the Inmate Tea with A&P podcast, hosted by April Smith and Patricia Dillard. The podcast is centered on prison reforms and gives inmates a platform to “advocate for criminal justice reform and the humane treatment of inmates, as guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution, by raising awareness of the injustices within the judicial and prison systems,” according to their website bio.
The hosts were slated to speak with another inmate at the FCI Butner Medium I in North Carolina but caught wind that the R&B singer and songwriter was housed there. While Kelly didn’t explicitly speak about his case, he did showcase his vocal ability and even shared that he’s written over two dozen albums.
At one point, Kelly referred to singing as “a beautiful disease that’s incurable” and pledged to always lean into that craft as long as he’s able. In a follow-up TMZ post, Smith and Dillard defended their choice to feature R. Kelly on their broadcast, seemingly elated by the big name-grab for their show. Despite Kelly’s infamous reputation, the pair told the outlet that they were able to separate Kelly from the heinous crimes attached to his name and have received backlash for running the interview.
—
Photo: Getty
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Cook County Department of Corrections / Cook County Department of Corrections
While Diddy continues to fight off all kinds of allegations and lawsuits centered around his disturbing predatory ways, the original pied piper of pedophilia, R. Kelly is back in the news as his victims have taken him back to court to get him to pay up for his crimes.
According to TMZ, six of R. Kelly’s victims have filed a lawsuit against the disgraced R&B singer claiming that the Chicago crooner has yet to pay them the millions of dollars they’re owed from a 2023 judgement against Kelly. In he lawsuit obtained by TMZ, the plaintiffs state that R. Kelly has only paid them a small portion of the $10.3 million that they’re owed and are demanding the “I Wish” singer cough up the rest as it’s already been two years since he was ordered to compensate them for his criminal abuse of them.
Per TMZ:
Lizette Martinez, Lisa Van Allen, Kelly Rogers, Faith Rogers, Roderick Gartrell and Gem Pratts claim they’ve received less than $500,000 … and they say Kelly is still on the hook for more than $9.9 million.
As you know, Kelly’s victims came forward in the Lifetime docuseries, “Surviving R. Kelly” … and they’re going after the disgraced singer and his former record label, Universal Music, for the money after claiming he shut down a screening of the doc in 2018.
TMZ broke the story … the judgment was leveled against Kelly in August 2023, but he pushed back and claimed he didn’t even know about the case and shouldn’t be held accountable.
R. Kelly is currently serving a 30-year prison sentence for his crimes against humanity and while most of the world is already familiar with the disturbing stories surrounding Kelly’s predatory ways, his lawyer feels that the man shouldn’t be on the hook for the $10.3 million that the victims are seeking.
R. Kelly’s current lawyer, Jennifer Bonjean, tells TMZ … “This outrageous default judgment was entered contrary to court rules, legal precedent, and basic principles of fairness. A New York court conducted a hearing in Mr. Kelly’s absence and without his knowledge while he was incarcerated in Chicago, awarding a staggering $10,000,000 to plaintiffs for conduct committed by someone else.”
She adds, “A pattern has emerged from courts across the country deciding that Mr. Kelly is not entitled to the same Due Process rights as everyone else. It’s getting old. No court would have been that cavalier with the money of a white man. Our appeal is pending on this issue.”
Looks like Kelly’s going to fight this one tooth and nail as his finances continue to disappear while he’s behind bars.What do y’all think about R. Kelly’s latest legal issue? Let us know in the comments section below.
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: James Devaney / Getty / Dame Dash
Dame Dash has become what he used to despise: a chatty patty. The former “cakeaholic” now explains why he was doing his iconic dice roll dance moves in R. Kelly’s “Fiesta (Remix)” video even though he dated the late singer, one of the disgraced musician’s victims, Aaliyah.
The former CEO of Roc-A-Fella Records opened up about his appearance in the R. Kelly music video alongside his former business partner, JAY-Z, in a recent episode of his American Nu Network podcast on YouTube.
During the episode, he answered a question from Baller Alert about his appearance in the R. Kelly/JAY-Z video despite famously dating Aaliyah and knowing her past with the jailed singer/songwriter.
He reveals that he spoke with Aaliyah, expressing that he didn’t want to be in the videos, but she said she didn’t want to start any trouble.
Per XXL:
“When Jay was proceeding to still do business with R. Kelly, I went back and told Aaliyah, like, ‘Yo, they’re still doing projects. They got singles together. They are shooting videos. I don’t want to go to the videos. I don’t want to have any parts of it,” Dame says at the 38:55 mark of the video below. “And what she told me was that, ‘I don’t want to start any trouble that would probably trigger more attention on it. I just want to heal. I just want to leave this alone and get as far away from it as possible. I don’t want to hear about it. I’m really happy with our relationship in this moment and where it’s going. Just don’t be in any scene with him and don’t take any pictures with him.’”
“So, you can ask anybody that was on the set,” he continues. “I stood in the trailer. When it came time to do the shoot, I did my shots with Jay or whoever. I was not in one scene with R. Kelly. And you never seen me in a picture with R. Kelly. At least after I met Aaliyah.”
We see.
In the episode, he also discussed Jaguar Wright’s outrageous claims about JAY-Z and more. If you have time to waste, you can’t watch the episode in its entirety below.
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Cook County Department of Corrections / Cook County Department of Corrections
R. Kelly will now have to answer to yet another shocking allegation. The R&B crooner’s daughter Buku Abi claims he abused her as well.
As spotted by Vulture, the disgraced singer is being accused of sexual misconduct by his own offspring. Last week, a new documentary premiered that spotlighted the journey of his first born. According to the TVEI Network, R. Kelly’s Karma: A Daughter’s Journey reveals “the traumatic impact of her father’s actions that exposes the heartbreaking secrets and betrayals within the family, reclaiming her voice and identity in the aftermath of his notorious scandals.” During the two-part project, Buku Abi, born Joanne Kelly, says the crooner molested her when she was 8 or 9 years old.
“For a long time, I didn’t even want to believe that it happened. I was too scared to tell anybody,” she explained. “I really feel like that one millisecond completely just changed my whole life and changed who I was as a person and changed the sparkle I had and the light I used to carry.” She went on reveal how the first incident occurred when R. Kelly was hosting a party and she decided to sleep in his office to be near her father. Late into the morning she says she woke up to him touching her inappropriately. “I just remember waking up to him touching me. And I didn’t know what to do, so I just kind of laid there and pretended to be [asleep],” she added.
According to paperwork obtained by WBEZ Chicago, her mother Andrea Kelly filed a report with local police back in 2009. The claim was found to be “unfounded” by Illinois Department of Children & Family Services department. “The DCFS caseworker/investigator … specifically and personally advised Jane Doe’s mother that despite the fact that [the caseworker] believed that the events occurred, she had no choice but to deem the matter unfounded based on the length of time between the events occurring and Jane Doe reporting the incident,” the documentation read.
Upon the documentary’s release, Buku Abi took to Instagram to detail why she decided to tell her story. “I did it for me, I did it for my son. I did it for my peace of mind,” she wrote. “I did it for the ones that love and know me but never understood me growing up. I did it to honor truth. I did it to look my biggest demon in the eyes and tell ‘em I’m done.”
You can see the trailer to R. Kelly’s Karma: A Daughter’s Journey below.
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Cook County Department of Corrections / Cook County Department of Corrections
R. Kelly is exploring yet another route in order to get his freedom back. He is asking the Supreme Court to review his federal sex crimes case.
As spotted on TMZ, the disgraced entertainer might have a legal ace up his sleeve. This week, his lawyer Jennifer Bonjean confirmed she formally submitted a petition asking for his case to be reevaluated. According to the US Courts, a writ of certiorari is a “a request that the Supreme Court order a lower court to send up the record of the case for review.” In essence, she is making a statute of limitations argument where the actions he was accused of occurred in the 1990s/early 2000s and he was charged with a law that did not exist yet.
Jennifer Bonjean appeared on TMZ and explained this is not the first time this technicality was brought to the court. “Yes, we raised this issue pre-trial and it was denied” she said. “The government’s position is that they admit they applied a statute of limitations that did not exist at the time the conduct was allegedly committed. But they are saying that ‘we were permitted to extend it’ nor did it ‘harm’ him or ‘violate’ him.
R. Kelly was convicted on three counts of child pornography and three counts of inducement back in 2020. He was sentenced to 20 years and is slated to be released in 2045.
HipHopWired Featured Video
CLOSE
Source: Paras Griffin / Getty
Benzino has defended R. Kelly, stating he shouldn’t have gotten so much jail time for sexual abuse charges, leaving social media to blast his stance online.As R. Kelly continues to serve time in prison for child sex abuse charges including sex trafficking, Benzino has turned heads with asking why the disgraced singer is receiving such harsh punishment. The rapper and former co-founder of The Source voiced his opinion during the April 24 episode of his We In Miami Podcast. At the 12-minute mark of the episode, Benzino cites the fact that the age of consent in most states in America is at 16. “Again, the legal age is 16 years old,” Benzino said. “Does that make it right if a n—a does it? Yes or no?” After everyone collectively agreed it was “wrong” and “disgusting”, Benzino continued.
“Alright but it’s legal in America,” Benzino said. “Why the f—k is R. Kelly doing all this time? You know why because they’re 14 and 13. Two years younger. But you don’t think that the people who cleared it for 16 years old didn’t know that they were f—king with 13, 14-year-olds, too. For the age that young to be the law, you already know they goin’ under that. I’m not condoning with little girls, it’s sick. Alright, it’s sick, but I don’t think R. Kelly should rot in jail for 30 years either.”
The video went viral, with some bizarrely agreeing with Benzino, but many more blasting the Boston native for his comments given the heinous nature of R. Kelly’s crimes. Since the clip hit social media on Wednesday (May 1), the fallout has been constant with Benzino’s daughter Coi Leray emphatically distancing herself from him in posts on X, formerly Twitter. “I want everybody to know I want nothing to do with anything my father has going on,” she wrote. “I haven’t spoken to him in over a year and I don’t condone or respect any of them interviews he got going on. I don’t respect his decisions and I really want nothing to do with him please don’t even think of me when you see him.”
Check out some of the more bristling comments directed at Benzino below.
1. Uncle Demi
2. Mum Afrah
3. Kwintarget
4. Destroy Nectar
5. Vernj76
6. Vonshell Morgan
7. Nasa McMahon
8. Gullah Geechee Goddess
9. Sassington, M.C.
10. Alonzo Lerone
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Cook County Department of Corrections / Cook County Department of Corrections
R. Kelly’s hopes of a lighter sentence are just hopes now. A Chicago court has dismissed his appeal to review his 20-year sentence.
AP News is reporting that the disgraced singer did not receive favorable news regarding his legal woes. Back in February his legal team appealed his original sentence citing that the federal child pornography and child enticement charges were filed after the statue of limitations had expired. Additionally, they claimed that the charges tied to one accuser should have been separated due to there being alleged video evidence. Last week a three judge committee ruled against the self proclaimed “King of R&B” stating the sentencing was indeed just.
“An even-handed jury found Kelly guilty, acquitting him on several charges even after viewing those abhorrent tapes. No statute of limitations saves him, and the resulting sentence was procedurally proper and – especially under these appalling circumstances- substantively fair” the court document read. In September 2022 the “I Believe I Can Fly” singer was found guilty on six counts of child pornography and child enticement. In an exclusive statement to Forbes Magazine his lawyer hinted at appealing at the federal court level saying “we are disappointed in the ruling but our fight is far from over.”
R. Kelly is currently serving his time at a medium security prison located in Butner, North Carolina. He is slated for release on Dec. 21, 2045.
HipHopWired Featured Video
R. Kelly would probably be the last person most would expect to have an opinion on the legal issues Diddy is currently enduring, but the imprisoned singer has chimed in. During a recent Clubhouse chat, R. Kelly questioned the sex trafficking allegations Diddy is facing.
As seen on All Hip Hop, R. Kelly, 57, joined Wack 100 on Clubhouse and shared his views on the legal issues that the mogul, real name Sean Combs, is facing. In essence, Kelly stated bluntly that what’s happening to the Bad Boy Records honcho is nothing but falsehoods.
“The sh*t is crazy. Muthaf*ckas out there laughing and making comedian jokes and doing all the other sH*t on the radio and everything else, but they ass could be next,” Kelly is heard saying. “That’s what’s so f*cked up about it. They so stupid they don’t even realize the moves that’s going on.”
He added, “That’s why I don’t believe none of this sh*t. You could tell me about Puffy, you could about anybody in there. You could tell me on the news, the weather, the sky is blue, I’m not gonna believe the sh*t. ‘Cause I’m in it now, and I know what they did.”
It appears that Kelly is insinuating that the charges he’s currently serving time for and what Diddy is being accused of are part of some larger conspiracy to ruin the legacies and careers of the men.
The conversation with Wack 100 and R. Kelly can be heard in the clip below.
[embedded content]
—
Photo: Cook County Department of Corrections / Cook County Department of Corrections
HipHopWired Featured Video
The lawyer for R. Kelly pleaded for the overturning of his sexual abuse conviction, claiming that prosecutors misused racketeering laws.
On Monday (March 18), the attorney for disgraced singer R. Kelly was in the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals which convened in Manhattan, NY, to appeal his convictions for running a decades-long scheme to recruit women and underage girls whom he sexually abused under the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act or RICO law.
Attorney Jennifer Bonjean argued before the three-judge panel that the application used by federal prosecutors to gain those convictions was “preposterous.”
“The government has extended the RICO statute to a set of circumstances that is so beyond what the framers intended, which was to get at organized crime,” Bonjean said to the judges. “Now, we’re talking about an organization with an alleged criminal, but not organized crime.” Bonjean also argued that it framed Kelly and those he worked with in an improper light related to the charges, which also included the production of child pornography. “This was not a collection of people who had a purpose to recruit girls for sexual abuse or child pornography,” she said. “Whether they turned a blind eye, whether some of them suspected that some of these girls were underage, that’s a whole different matter.”
Assistant United States Attorney Kayla Crews Bensing argued on behalf of the government and refuted Bonjean’s claims.
“The defendant had a system in place that lured young people into his orbit and then took over their lives,” she told the panel of judges, pointing to evidence that those who worked with Kelly knew of his intent and actions. “This is all evidence that the jury was entitled to infer that Kelly’s inner circle knew what was going on: that he was recruiting and maintaining underage women for sexual activity,” Bensing stated.
Bonjean also encountered pushback from the judges. “RICO is looking at organizations, that are then used to commit criminal acts,” Judge Denny Chin said regarding Bonjean’s argument on RICO. “It doesn’t have to be a criminal organization. It could be a completely legitimate organization. But if it engages in racketeering activity, it violates RICO.”
The panel is expected to rule on the appeal this week. While Bonjean has successfully gained an appeal in a similar case with Bill Cosby, the odds of the 57-year-old singer’s convictions being overturned are highly unlikely.
—
Photo: E. JASON WAMBSGANS / Getty
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Variety / Getty
Ye aka Kanye West compared himself to disgraced singer R. Kelly, Diddy, Bill Cosby and Jesus Christ in a new song at his Chicago show.
According to XXL, on Thursday (Feb. 8), Kanye West and Ty Dolla $ign took the stage at the United Center in Chicago for a preview listening experience for their album, Vultures Volume 1. One of the songs from the anticipated release, “Carnival,” featured what potentially could be one of the rapper’s most eyebrow-raising verses ever.
“This that Game of Thrones, Yeezy not the clones,” Ye raps. “Elon, where my rocket ship, it’s time to go home/They served us the corn since the day we was born/Anybody pissed off, gotta make them drink the urine/Now, I’m Ye Kelly, b—h/Now I’m Bill Cosby, b—h/Now I’m Puff Daddy rich.”
His verse on the song (which features Playboy Carti and Rich the Kid) continued:
“That’s ‘Me Too’ me rich/First she say she suck my d—k/Then, she say she ain’t suck my d—k/She ’gon take it up the a— like a ventriloquist/I mean, since Taylor Swift, since I had the Rollie on the wrist/I’m the new Jesus, b—h, I turn water into Cris’/This for what they did to Chris/They can’t do s—t with this,” Ye raps.
Ye performed this track and others dressed up in what’s now his customary all-black attire, wearing a white hockey mask similar to the one worn by Friday the 13th villain Jason Voorhees. It fit the scene as fans had entered the United Center while smoke machines began to emanate fog. The show also featured surprise appearances by his daughter, North West, and Bump J along with YG.
The listening event comes after Kanye West stated in an Instagram video that he was having trouble booking venues, alluding to his past controversial behavior and antisemitism. The album also has not dropped as expected. However, Ye is now set to hold another listening event, this time at the UBS Arena in Elmont, New York, Friday (Feb. 9). The venue announced a ticket pre-sale on the night of the United Center show with tickets beginning at $182 per seat. The album, which was expected to have been released at midnight on Friday, has not yet materialized.