‘Contrary to the song, Kelly doesn’t like to fly’
R. Kelly’s attorney projects “rock star” as innocent even as prosecutors paint dark portrait of manipulative singer
Prosecutors on Saturday painted a dark portrait of a manipulative and sometimes violent R. Kelly, describing how he repeatedly sought out underage girls for sex, including one he encountered at her 16th birthday party and another who met the R&B star while he was on trial for child pornography.
The accounts emerged as Kelly made his first court appearance since being accused of abusing four people in a case that could produce another #Metoo reckoning for a celebrity.
A judge gave Kelly a chance to go free while awaiting trial, setting bond at $1 million. That means the 52-year-old Grammy winner must post $100,000 to be released or remain behind bars until he is tried on the allegations that date back as far as 1998 and span more than a decade.
‘He’s a rock star’
A 16-year-old girl reported meeting Kelly in 1998 at a restaurant where she was having a birthday party. Kelly’s manager gave her the singer’s business card and suggested she call Kelly. The girl’s mother heard the exchange, took the card and told the manager her daughter was 16. But her daughter later retrieved the card from her purse. She contacted Kelly, who gave her instructions and money that she assumed was for the taxi fare to his studio, where they had sex periodically for a year, the documents said.
Another accuser, also 16, met Kelly at his 2008 trial, where he gave her an autograph. He later invited her to his home in the Chicago suburb of Olympia Fields, where they got intimate multiple times, according to the documents, which said he also choked and spit on her.
In early 2003, a Chicago hairdresser told prosecutors that she thought she was going to braid Kelly’s hair, but he tried to force himself on her. The woman, who was 24, was able to pull away, but Kelly spit in her face, the documents said.
Prosecutors also described a witness who had access to videotapes showing Kelly with a 14-year-old girl. The witness turned the tape over to authorities and identified the girl, who repeatedly states her age on the footage.
Kelly’s DNA was found on one of the accuser’s shirts, and a shirt worn by another was submitted for DNA testing, Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx said. It was not clear when the accusers turned the shirts over to authorities, whether it was shortly after the abuse or more recently. At the bond hearing, Kelly’s attorney, Steve Greenberg, said his client is not a flight risk. He told the judge, “Contrary to the song, Mr. Kelly doesn’t like to fly.” One of Kelly’s best-known hits is I Believe I Can Fly.
Greenberg said Kelly “really doesn’t have any more money,” suggesting that others had mismanaged his wealth. Still, he said he expected that Kelly would be able to come up with enough money for bail.
The judge called the allegations “disturbing.” The singersongwriter looked down at the floor as the judge spoke.
After the hearing, Greenberg told reporters that Kelly did not force anyone. “He’s a rock star. He doesn’t have to have nonconsensual sex,” Greenberg said.
Tour in jeopardy
The judge ordered Kelly to surrender his passport, ending his hopes of doing a tour of Europe in April. Kelly defiantly scheduled concerts in Germany and the Netherlands despite the cloud of legal issues looming over him. Greenberg denied that any tour was planned.
The recording artist has been trailed for decades by allegations that he violated underage girls and women and held some as virtual slaves. He was charged with 10 counts of aggravated sexual abuse.
Kelly, who was acquitted of child pornography charges in 2008, has consistently denied any sexual misconduct.
He rose from poverty on Chicago’s South Side and has retained a sizable following. Kelly has written numerous hits for himself and other artists, including Celine Dion, Michael Jackson and Lady Gaga. His collaborators have included Jay-z and Usher.
The walls began closing in on Kelly after the release of a BBC documentary about him last year and the multipart Lifetime documentary Surviving R. Kelly, which aired last month. Together they detailed allegations he was holding women against their will and running a “sex cult.”
#Metoo activists and a social media movement using the hashtag #Muterkelly called on streaming services to drop Kelly’s music and promoters not to book any more concerts. Protesters demonstrated outside Kelly’s Chicago studio.
The prosecution said in the indictment that abuse that happened more than two decades ago still falls within the charging window allowed under Illinois law. Victims typically have 20 years to report abuse, beginning when they turn 18.
He’s a rock star. He doesn’t have to have nonconsensual s**”
R. Kelly’s attorney