Yahoo News Surviving R Kelly - a timeline of the accusations
Documentary series Surviving R Kelly debuted in the US last week, shedding light on the storm of rumours that have dogged Kelly – one of the world’s best known R&B stars – for over two decades.
While mutterings and speculation about Kelly and his alleged relationships with younger women have been rife for years, the documentary’s wide range of witness testimony and corroborative detail all paints the same picture. It should be noted that R Kelly denies all allegations of sexual misconduct and sex with underage girls.
Whilst the documentary isn’t available in the UK at present, it will air on the Crime & Investigation channel from February 5. In the meantime, check out BBC3’s documentary Sex, Girls & Videotapes and read our timeline below to bring yourself thoroughly up-to-speed with everything that has happened so far.
January 8 1967 – R Kelly born
Robert Kelly is born in Hyde Park, Chicago, the third of four children born to Joanne Kelly. His father was absent from his childhood.
In his autobiography Soulacoaster (published 2012), he revealed he was sexually abused throughout his childhood by an older woman.
1991 – Kelly meets Aaliyah
Kelly is introduced to Aaliyah Haughton, the 12-year-old niece of record producer Barry Hankerson. He writes her album Age Ain’t Nothing but a Number, which is released in 1994.
August 1994 – Kelly and Aaliyah marry
Kelly and Aaliyah marry in a secret ceremony in Chicago. In Surviving R Kelly, his tour manager Demetrius Smith claims he obtained false ID that said Aaliyah was 18 years old at the time – she was 15.
Kelly and Aaliyah refuse to discuss the topic for years, stating their relationship is purely platonic, though in 1997 Aaliyah filed to have the marriage records expunged, stating in court documents that she was underage at the time of the wedding.
Kelly's lawyer stated in 2018, "He was married to her when she was 15 […] My understanding is that she did not claim to be 15, and in order to get married, she had to lie about her age. [R Kelly had] no idea."
February 1995 – marriage annulled
The marriage is annulled by a Michigan judge when Haughton’s family learn of it.
1996 – Another marriage
Kelly marries backing dancer Andrea Lee. The couple go on to have three children together.
Later that year, Tiffany Hawkins files a lawsuit for a reported $10m against Kelly (and his record and management companies), claiming a relationship with him that began in 1993 when she was 15 years old.
Kelly denies the claim, and it is settled out of court.
December 2000 – Exposure
A report covering allegations that Kelly had been having sexual relations with underage girls is published in the Chicago Sun-Times by journalists Jim DeRogatis and Abdon M Pallasch, drawing focus to Hawkins’ case as well as the speculation surrounding Aaliyah.
The piece reveals Chicago police had twice previously investigated underage-sex claims in relation to Kelly but dropped them each time as the girls in question would not cooperate.
January 2001 – A videotape
DeRogatis is anonymously sent a video that appears to show Kelly engaging in sexual activity with a young woman, which he turns over to the Chicago police.
February 2002 – Another videotape
A tape is sent to the Chicago Sun-Times again showing Kelly engaging in sexual activity with an apparently underage girl, as well as urinating on her. The girl is identified by her aunt, the singer Sparkle, who had worked with Kelly and introduced her niece to him.
Kelly can be heard on the tape referring to the girl by her name. He denies he is the man in the video and suggests it could be the work of someone who he has had ‘fired’ in the past.
April 2002 – Patrice Jones and Tracy Sampson sue Kelly
Patrice Jones claims Kelly began a sexual relationship with her when she was 16 and also suggests he pressured her into terminating a pregnancy. This follows less than a year after Tracy Sampson filed a lawsuit, claiming he’d begun a relationship with her when she was 17.
Kelly denies the accusations from both Jones and Sampson, and both cases were settled out of court. The accusers sign non-disclosure agreements.
May 2002 - Tina Woods sues Kelly
33-year-old dancer Tina Woods sues Kelly for secretly filming them having sex, with the resulting tape being sold on. Kelly denies the claims; the case is settled out of court.
June 2002 - Kelly indicted on child-pornography charges
Following an investigation into the video received in February 2002, Kelly is indicted in Chicago on 21 charges relating to child pornography.
January 2003 - Another arrest
Kelly is arrested following the discovery of a dozen photographs, found by police on a digital camera at his home, that allegedly showed him ‘involved in sexual conduct with the female minor’. These charges are dropped in March the following year.
September 2005 - Restraining order
Andrea (Kelly's wife) files a restraining order against Kelly following a reported physical assault. The couple later reconcile although Lee files for divorce the following year. The divorce is finalised in 2009.
In Surviving R Kelly, Lee states that Kelly physically abused her throughout their marriage. He denies this in his song 'I Admit': "Say I'm abusing these women (what?) / What the f**k that's some absurd shit (what?)"
May 2008 - Trial
Following almost six years of delays, jury selection begins for the child-pornography trial. The charges are reduced from 21 to 14. The girl who is alleged to be in the video denies it is her, despite her aunt’s testimony otherwise.
Kelly’s lawyer Sam Adam is quoted by the New York Times as believing “this whole thing, from beginning to end, is about money”, perhaps in reference to the previous pay-outs Kelly made.
"This whole thing, from beginning to end, is about money" – R Kelly's attorney, Sam Adam
Kelly is found not guilty.
July 2017 – Kidnap claims
Buzzfeed publishes an article by Jim DeRogatis, claiming that Kelly is holding women in his home against their will in a ‘cult’-like set-up. Kelly and his alleged victims all deny the claims.
Oronike Odeleye launches a petition to get Kelly’s music removed from radio stations in Atlanta. Kenyette Barnes launches #MuteRKelly.
August 2017 – Jerhonda Johnson Pace's allegation
Jerhonda Johnson Pace, who met Kelly aged 15 in 2008, breaks a non-disclosure agreement to publicly claim she had a sexual relationship with him from the age of 16. Kelly denies the claims.
In Surviving R Kelly, she details how they first met outside the courtroom during his child pornography case, where then-fan Pace would wait outside with a crowd of others to show her support for him.
January 2019 – Surviving R Kelly
The documentary, which details the history of accusations against Kelly, airs on Lifetime, with an average of 2.1 million viewers per episode. Stars including John Legend denounce Kelly on social media. Lady Gaga, who had worked with Kelly on song Do What U Want (With My Body) in 2013 and turned down the opportunity to appear on the documentary, announces she would be having the song removed from Spotify, Apple Music and iTunes.
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