R. Kelly accusers air sex abuse claims
WOMEN behind allegations of sexual abuse have come forward against US singer-songwriter R. Kelly in a new documentary.
Many of the accusations that have plagued his career came to light in the first two parts of a six-part documentary, which aired on Thursday night, titled Surviving R. Kelly.
Many of the women came forward in the shocking docu-series in which friends, family, and accusers opened up about their alleged relationships with Kelly, 51, who has been accused of pursuing relationships with underage women.
Kelly has long denied all of the accusations made against him.
Kelly’s musical talent was apparent to those around him, and he enjoyed success not long after leaving high school. Yet it was around this time that Kelly allegedly began meeting girls at high schools.
Music producer Craig Williams said: “I heard a lot about him hanging a lot around the high school.
“What the hell is he doing hanging around the high school?” he added.
Jovante Cunningham, a former back-up singer for Kelly, said she met the R&B artist at Kenwood High School. She said she didn’t know how old he was at the time, nor was his age ever an issue.
Dazzled by Kelly’s talent, Jovante started working with him in his studio. But she admits they were naive and claimed she first saw him perform a sexual act in the studio with one of her teenage friends.
“We were so stupid. Just so naive. “The first time I witnessed a sexual act in the studio, he had one of my teenage friends in the booth with him, bent over.
“And we were all right there. I will not say with whom, but none of us were of age, none of us,” she said.
Jovante says eventually they were introduced to Aaliyah when she was 12, and said she helped transform her sweet, angelic image into something edgier.
She claims she saw Kelly allegedly having sex with a then 15-year-old Aaliyah Dana Haughton in a tour bus. Aaliyah’s mother, Diane Houghton, has since disputed Jovante’s claims.
Kelly’s former tour manager and personal assistant, Demetrius Smith, said the singer initially denied having any sort of romantic relationship with Aaliyah.
That changed when Kelly admitted that he believed Aaliyah had become pregnant. “We got Aaliyah in trouble,” Demetrius recalled Kelly saying.
Demetrius confessed to forging documents in order for Aaliyah to marry 27-year-old Kelly, as she was still under-age at the time.
The documents stated the then 15-year-old Aaliyah was 18.
“I’m not proud of that (day),” he said. “I had papers forged for them. Aaliyah was under-age. We got the marriage licence, we were at a hotel in Maywood, Illinois.”
One of the women who allegedly had a relationship with Kelly, Lizzette Martinez, also spoke during the show.
Lizzette claims she met Kelly at the mall when she was 17, and they soon began a relationship she described as controlling.
“He told me to perform sexual acts while his friends were in the back seat. It was like he owned me,” she said.
Kelly was acquitted of child pornography charges in Chicago in 2008, The Guardian reported. | Daily Mail