By Jasmyne A. Cannick
"I'm the Ali of today. I'm the Marvin Gaye of today. I'm the Bob Marley of today. I'm the Martin Luther King, or all the other greats that have come before us. And a lot of people are starting to realize that now." --- R. Kelly, Hip-Hop Soul Magazine, Spring 2007
Work with me here. Suppose you had a teenage daughter and one day you heard from someone that she had sex, willing or otherwise, with a grown man. A man that you have known in the past to have had relationships with women much younger than him. You confront your daughter but she denies it.
Would you then invite him into your home anyway, despite the fact that even though you don't have concrete proof he had sex with your daughter you are aware of his very public past relationships with younger women?
No.
Well then can someone please explain to me how in the world Michael Vick was tried and sentenced for dog fighting within the span of seven months and R. "I Don't See Nothing Wrong" Kelly's --- count em', not 1, not 2, not 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, or 13, but 14 counts of child pornography case still has not gone to trial and it's going on six years? Did I mention that it involves an acutal human being verses Vick and his dogs?
This is just the most baffling thing to me because I know, like you know, that if the self proclaimed "Flirt" had been videotaped having sex with a he or a Caucasian she, Black America would not be lining up to see him in concert or buying his albums.
Like A Freak The Real R. Kelly
Allegations of Kelly's sexual activity with underage girls go as far back as 1991.
Since then, he's settled lawsuits with two women who accused him of having sex with them while they were minors, further proof of Kelly's "Down Low Double Life."
Age Ain't Nothing But A Number
Let us not forget that R. Kelly and Aaliyah (R.I.P.) were secretly married on August 31, 1994. Aaliyah was 15 years old and Kelly was 27. That's a difference of 12 years. Vibe magazine published the marriage license which showed that Aaliyah has listed her age as 18 on the marriage license making it invalid by law and paving the way an annulment.
The Greatest Sex
Then in 2002, a video tape that allegedly showed Kelly and a 14-year-old daughter of an associate, and niece of Sparkle, a former Kelly protégé, engaging in sex popped up. And like with all victims suffering from Stockholm syndrome, the girl and her parents have denied that she is the person shown on the tape.
Bootleg copies of the tape were being sold from hood to hood. The tape showed numerous sex acts, including the girl being urinated on.
Sex Me, Pts. 1-2
In June 2002, Kelly was indicted in Chicago for 21 counts of having sex with a minor, which were later reduced to soliciting a minor for child pornography, seven counts of videotaping the acts, and seven counts of producing child pornography. These charges came after viewing the tapes showed that there was no actual sexual intercourse involved. Kelly still faces 14 of the charges.
12 Play and 12 Counts
In addition to the charges in Illinois, Kelly was being considered for further charges in Polk county Florida on January 23, 2003 on 12 counts of possession of child pornography when authorities alleged to have found a digital camera containing 12 pictures of an underage female with three of them showing Kelly and her engaged in intercourse. These claims were never proven, and the charges were dropped after the search that led to them was ruled illegal.
Snake
Then there was the lawsuit filed by a Chicago woman who accused Kelly of going "Half on A Baby" and impregnating her when she was a teen-ager and forcing her to have an abortion.
When A Woman's Fed Up
During the pornography controversy, then future wife Andrea sought a restraining order against him in 2005 claiming he physically and verbally attacked her on two occasions but it was "A Women's Threat" that was later rescinded.
Andrea had been a backup dancer and became pregnant by him. They later married and she is the mother of his son and two daughters. R. Kelly and his wife are legally separated, but are in the process of getting a divorce.
When A Woman's Fed Up the Remix
Most recently, Kelly's longtime publicist, Regina Daniels, issued a statement announcing she had resigned her position. "I have always prided myself on professionalism, respect and loyalty," Daniels said. "I ended my relationship with Kelly because there are some lines you just don't cross."
Showdown
Daniel's husband, music retailer George Daniels, said in a statement, "I have also disassociated myself from Kelly."
Money Makes the World Go Round
R. Kelly's Los Angeles concert is scheduled for Friday December 14th, a concert in a tour by the way that his camp emphatically denied earlier this year when R&B singer Keyshia Cole had a slip of the tongue on MTV while R. Kelly was supposed to be preparing to go to trial on his 14 counts of pornography. Count em', not 1, not 2, not 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, or 13, but 14 counts of child pornography?
A concert that is taking place in a house of worship, and not just any house of worship, but a Black-mega-church house of worship. I'm speaking of The Forum in Los Angeles and Faithful Central Bible Church.
Ghetto Religion
R. Kelly's Double Up debuted in May as the No. 1 selling album on both Billboard's Top 200 and Top R&B/Hip-Hop album charts. The No. 1 debut of Double Up marks the highest first-week sales of the year for any R&B solo artist.
Double Up is R. Kelly's eighth top 5 debut and his fifth No. 1 album as a solo artist. It includes the first single "I'm A Flirt" and "Same Girl," a duet with Usher, that reached Top 10 status on urban radio.
And despite his penchant for underage females, Kelly has sold in excess of 36 million albums worldwide. He's managed several multi-platinum albums, 12 Play - (6x), R. Kelly - (5x), R. - (8x), TP-2.COM - (4x), Chocolate Factory - (2x), Happy People/U Saved Me - (3x). R. Kelly has collected multiple Grammy, American Music, Billboard and Soul Train awards and has teamed up with some of the biggest artists in the world - Celine Dion, Snoop Dogg, The Game, Young Jeezy, Ciara, and Diddy.
And now this---two Grammy nominations.
The Chase: He Believes He Can Fly
It's already been five years since Kelly was first indicted and his case has yet to go to trial. Why is that?
Step in the Name of Love the Remix
The protest is going down:
R. Kelly Concert
Friday, December 14, 2007
5 p.m.
The Forum
3900 Manchester Boulevard
Inglewood, CA
About the Author:
At 30, Jasmyne Cannick is a critic and commentator based in Los Angeles who writes about the worlds of pop culture, race, class, and politics as played out in the African-American community. She can be reached at www.jasmynecannick.com or www.myspace.com/jasmynecannick.
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