R. Kelly is without a doubt one of the most talented artists of this generation. His songwriting skills combined with his angelic vocal ability result in a mighty behemoth of the music industry and a man who has sold millions of records across the globe. His appeal to young females went unrivalled during the height of his career, and that's something the media lens focused on over two decades ago.
Yesterday (February 22), Kelly was charged with 10 counts of sexual abuse against women and underage girls. Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx revealed that the 10 counts involved a total of four victims; three of which are under the age of 17.
Following the charges, we're taking a look back at the historic allegations against Kelly, which made up the basis of the hit Lifetime series Surviving R. Kelly. Shortly after the docuseries aired, Kelly was dropped by his music label.
August 1994: 27-year-old R. Kelly marries 15-year-old Aaliyah Dana Haughton
A hotel in Chicago would act as the wedding venue for Kelly and his protégé Aaliyah following his work producing her debut album, Age Ain't Nothing But A Number. The record and its titular single was incredibly suspect due to their nature; a young girl who's trying to convince an older man to sleep with her despite her not being of age. The marriage was later annulled, before Aaliyah tragically died in a light aircraft crash in 2001.
December 1996: Tiffany Hawkins sues R. Kelly for injuries and emotional harm
Chicago native Tiffany Hawkins sues R. Kelly and his recording and management companies, claiming that they were complicit in the pair having sexual relations in 1991 when she was just 15. She says that their relationship ended once she turned 18, and that she had suffered personal injuries and emotional harm as a result. Though she originally sought out $10 million in damages, she settled out of court for $250,000. Kelly would go on to settle three separate cases out of court, always denying any wrongdoing.
June 2002: R. Kelly is indicted on 21 counts of child pornography
In a case that would go on for years, R. Kelly would be accused of having sex with an underage girl, urinating on the child and filming the entire act to keep as a home video. Said to be just 14 at the time of the recording, his former associate Stephanie "Sparkle" Edwards has since claimed that it was her niece in the video. As suggested in recent docuseries Surviving R. Kelly, the family of the girl may have been paid off, as the child claimed during court proceedings that she was not the youngster in the video. Kelly would also suggest that it was his brother Carey Kelly who was 'performing' in the tape. As the jury couldn't decisively conclude the identity of the girl in the tape, Kelly was found not guilty on all 14 charges in June 2008.
July 2017: Three sets of parents accuse R. Kelly of holding their daughters against their will
In a report for Buzzfeed News, Jim DeRogatis said that three sets of parents were convinced their daughters were being held in an "abusive cult" by the musician. R. Kelly denied the allegations, as well as the alleged victims. As has been shown in Surviving R. Kelly, one of the girls - Dominique Gardner - was taken home to Chicago by her mother after being tracked to a hotel in Los Angeles. Unfortunately for the family, Gardner decided to return to Kelly after finding it hard to immerse herself back into her regular life. She did then however go back home and has lived with her mother ever since.
January 2019: Surviving R. Kelly airs
Lifetime series Surviving R. Kelly brought together a series of accusers against R. Kelly, all of whom alleged he had acted illegally throughout their interactions. One former staff member - who was disguised during the interviews on the show - burst into tears whilst describing the situations they had seen. Kelly would hit back with the launch of a Facebook page where he tried to discredit those who appeared in the series. Facebook swiftly removed the page for violating their standards.
January 2019: Asanta McGee says R. Kelly controlled her life
A BBC News article earlier this year saw claims from Asante McGee who said that she met R. Kelly in 2014 and moved into his home some months later. McGee says that she lived with other women alongside Kelly, and that he "controlled every aspect of my life". She would later move out of his home on her own accord.
February 2019: R. Kelly is charged with 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse
We'll have to wait to see what happens with this one. Michael Avenatti has predicted however, that Kelly will spend the rest of his life behind bars. He says that there is an entirely new sex tape involved in this case, which shows another underage girl engaging in sexual acts, and that both the victim and Kelly reference the girls' age a massive 10 times throughout the video.
R. Kelly has denied all claims relating to sexual assault, domestic violence, domestic abuse and sexual misconduct with minors.
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