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The documentary has had some early effect. Some radio stations have stopped playing his music, and a concert appearance in Illinois was canceled.
But there are significant challenges to bringing a criminal case against Kelly, and various reasons his record label might decide to keep him on, even as calls for a reckoning grow louder.
He’s been tried before
Among the longstanding allegations against Robert Kelly is that he has had sexual relationships with minors. Kelly, 52, has settled lawsuits dating back to the 1990s alleging he had sex with underage girls. More than 20 years ago, Vibe magazine questioned the validity of a marriage certificate showing that Kelly had married the singer Aaliyah when she was 18. She was actually 15, and the marriage was annulled. (Aaliyah died in a plane crash in 2001.)
On ABC’s “Good Morning America” on Friday, Kelly’s lawyer, Steven Greenberg, threatened to sue Lifetime for defamation and said Kelly denied ever having a sexual relationship with someone under the age of consent. He said Kelly did not know that Aaliyah was 15 when they married.
On Tuesday, Kimberly M. Foxx, the state’s attorney for Cook County, Ill., publicly asked any potential victims and witnesses to come forward, and prosecutors in Fulton County, Ga., where Kelly also has lived, have begun gathering information.
Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/13/arts/music/mute-r-kelly.html?partner=rss&emc=rss
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