R. Kelly's Daughter Joann Kelly Alleges Singer Sexually Abused Her as a Child
Warning: This story contains details about alleged sexual abuse.
R. Kelly's estranged daughter is speaking out about a traumatic experience.
Joann Kelly, who also goes by the name Buku Abi, alleges in a new documentary that that the R&B singer, who is currently serving a 30-year prison sentence for crimes against underage girls between 12 and 17, sexually abused her when she was around 8 or 9 years old.
"I just remember waking up to him touching me," she tearfully said on the two-part TVEI Network documentary Karma: A Daughter’s Journey, per People. "And I didn’t know what to do, so I just kind of laid there, and I pretended to be asleep."
The singer denies abusing his daughter. "Mr. Kelly vehemently denies these allegations," his attorney Jennifer Bonjean said in a statement to People. "His ex-wife made the same allegation years ago, and it was investigated by the Illinois Department of Children & Family Services and was unfounded."
E! News has reached out to R. Kelly's rep for comment and has not heard back.
In the documentary, released Oct. 11, Joann recounted telling her mother Andrea Kelly, about the alleged abuse in 2009 when she was 10. While the two filed a complaint with the police, under the name "Jane Doe," no charges were filed.
In 2014, Andrea filed papers seeking sole custody of Joann and her and R. Kelly's two other children, Jaah and Robert. In that filing, she alleged that the singer had molested a preteen girl in 2009 and that the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services investigated the accusations and deemed them to be "unfounded," Chicago radio station WBEZ reported in 2020.
They reported that the motion—which was unsealed that year following the outlet's legal efforts— had noted that the DCFS caseworker "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."
Ahead of the doc’s release, TVEI had previewed Joann emotionally recounting part of her story.
"He was my everything for a long time," Joann says in the footage released Sept. 29. "I didn't even want to believe it happened."
The 26-year-old continued, "I didn't know that even if he was a bad person, that he would do something to me."
R. Kelly was convicted in 2021 of racketeering and sex trafficking charges and sentenced to 30 years in prison. In 2022, he was found guilty of child pornography and enticing minors for sex and sentenced to 20 years behind bars. On Oct. 7, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal that the singer had filed over the latter conviction, multiple outlets reported.
The 57-year-old is serving 19 years of both of his sentences concurrently and is eligible for release in 2045.
In light of the six-part Lifetime docuseries Surviving R. Kelly, which chronicled the history of allegations brought against R. Kelly by women who claim they were subjects of his abuse, several of his former collaborators and peers within the music industry have spoken out against him.
R. Kelly has consistently denied any allegations of abuse or misconduct and has not been convicted of any crimes connected with the allegations. He has not addressed the below remarks about him publicly.
The pop star, who collaborated with R. Kelly on 2013's "Do What You Want," vowed to have the single scrubbed from iTunes and other streaming services in a statement issued Jan. 9.
She explained in part, "What I am hearing about the allegations against R. Kelly is absolutely horrifying and indefensible. As a victim of sexual assault myself, I made both the song and video at a dark time in my life, my intention was to create something extremely defiant and provocative because I was angry and still hadn't processed the trauma that had occurred in my own life... I think it's clear how explicitly twisted my thinking was at the time."
After appearing on Lifetime's docuseries, the performer weighed in on the response to Surviving R. Kelly, tweeting on Jan. 3, "To everyone telling me how courageous I am for appearing in the doc, it didn't feel risky at all. I believe these women and don't give a f--k about protecting a serial child rapist. Easy decision."
The supermodel revealed on Jan. 11 that speaking out against R. Kelly cost her 50,000 Instagram followers, writing, "I have always been taught to avoid confrontation at all costs, which caused me to be silent most of my life, silence causes suppression and suppression causes sickness. Not anymore! "Goodbye silence and backwards followers, hello confrontation and forward thinkers... #MuteRKelly."
The hip-hop star called their 2015 duet "Somewhere in Paradise" a "mistake" in an audio recording that aired on Surviving R. Kelly. He further tweeted on Jan. 5, "I apologize to all of his survivors for working with him and for taking so long to speak out."
The Scream Queen star, who described herself as a former "student" of R. Kelly's, spoke out against the scorned artist in a lengthy statement on social media on Jan. 9. It read in part, "R. Kelly received that grace from God. God blessed him to vindicate his childhood shortcomings and yet still he has slapped God in the face by his actions towards these women. I am hurt and saddened because he could have been a blessing to these women but instead he repeatedly took advantage and that I cannot accept."
The R&B singer announced via Twitter on Jan. 6 his plans to retire his many R. Kelly collaborations, which include "Bump, Bump, Bump" and "What a Girl Wants." Omarion also tweeted, "His artistic genius inspired us all. His music is being muted by the darkness of his actions. The dark always comes to light."
In a series of tweets posted on Jan. 5, the singer-songwriter described herself as a "huge" fan of R. Kelly and said she "could have easily fallen victim to someone like R. Kelly" in the early days of her career. She shared in another tweet, "I feel DEEPLY for these COURAGEOUS QUEENS who come forward and in some cases risk their lives [to] share their story & let others know they're not alone!!!! Going up against powerful people/entities [is] f--king intimidating/ terrifying."
The R&B singer spoke out in support of the #MuteRKelly hashtag, writing on Instagram, "There is NO excuse. Music is important. It really is. But it's not more important than protecting our children, protecting our little girls. PERIOD."
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