
What The R. Kelly Guilty Verdict Really Means
On September 27, 2021, R&B singer R. Kelly was found guilty of sex trafficking and racketeering after decades of denying such allegations. According to the BBC, the long-awaited trial took place over the preceding six weeks, during which the jury heard the testimonies of 11 witnesses — nine women and two men — who described harrowing scenes of sexual abuse and humiliation. Robert Sylvester Kelly, as he’s known in the legal system, reportedly enticed his victims — many of whom were underage at the time of the abuse — with tall tales of fame and fortune, promising to use his clout to help them find success in the music business.
“Of all the predators that I have pursued … Mr. Kelly is the worst. For many reasons,” claimed veteran attorney Gloria Allred, who has previously represented accusers of Harvey Weinstein, speaking after the singer’s guilty verdict had been announced (per Mail+).
One of a number of hated musicians everyone used to love, Kelly now faces a seven-month wait for his sentencing trial, which will take place on May 4, 2022. But what does the guilty verdict mean for the “I Believe I Can Fly” singer? How will his decades of violence and exploitation translate into punishment? Let’s take a look into the charges and see what they will mean for the singer, as well as for the music industry and its listeners.
What will happen to R. Kelly now he's been found guilty?
“I’ve always said if any of his victims were blonde and blue-eyed it wouldn’t have taken this long,” said R. Kelly’s ex-wife, Drea Kelly, per The Guardian. The allegations against Kelly go back to 1994, when his secret marriage to the R&B singer Aaliyah — who was just 15 years old at the time — first leaked, and 1996 when he was first sued for “personal injuries and emotional distress” by his ex-partner Tiffany Hawkins, per the BBC. Hawkins settled the case in 1998, in which she was claiming $10 million in damages, for just $250,000. Kelly went on to have a successful recording career that would last another two decades, during which time we now know he operated a sex trafficking and racketeering ring that made victims of scores of women and children (per The Guardian).
Now exposed as a calculating and violent predator, Kelly’s reckoning has been a long time coming. According to The New York Times, the “Ignition” singer operated under the protection of a network of “enablers” who manipulated and threatened accusers to ensure that Kelly’s crimes never came to light. He even forced victims to pen statements exonerating him of any historic wrongdoing, per the same source — though now that he has had his day in court, such details serve to add to the disgraced entertainer’s potential sentence: the scope of his punishment is believed to range from 10 years to life in prison.
The R. Kelly guilty verdict could have profound effects on the music industry
Another report by The New York Times says that although Kelly is by far not the only musician to face sexual abuse charges over the years, his high-profile case could be the #MeToo moment for the music industry. Long plagued with sexual abuse (Per Louder, just ask Cherie Currie and Jackie Fox why they left the Runaways back in 1977), the music industry has enjoyed insulation from the social movement, protected by a strong tradition of idolized male musicians and their young, often underage female fans.
Journalists at The New York Times are also talking about what might become of the music R. Kelly has made, some of which has strong roots in American pop culture, such as everyone’s favorite song from the “Space Jam” soundtrack. Music industry reporter Ben Sisario wrote that “the big question for the music industry is whether his music will now be removed from major digital platforms like Spotify and Apple Music.” He noted that some platforms have received criticism for not policing Kelly’s music. Of course, if they start down that slippery slope, they’ll also have to take off songs of singers like Ted Nugent, who blatantly admits to taking advantage of underage girls in his lyrics, and every other badly behaved musician out there. A judge will decide the singer’s fate, but only time will tell what becomes of R. Kelly’s music, though The New York Times has noted that even before Kelly received his guilty verdict, years of rolling accusations had seen his radio play dwindle to almost nothing.
53 thoughts on “What The R. Kelly Guilty Verdict Really Means”
Leave a Reply

What Was Willard Scott's Net Worth When He Died?

The Truth About Ric Flair's Luxury Car Collection

The Exotic Pet Leonardo DiCaprio Has Owned Might Surprise You

You'll Never Be Able To Guess The Wizard Of Oz's Full Name

Don McLean's Daughter Details Years Of Alleged Abuse

The Untold Truth Of Al Green

The Tragic Death Of Grace Kelly

Tragic Details About Clint Eastwood

The First Bad Album These Legendary Bands Released

A Look At Gene Simmons' Relationship With Shannon Tweed
order fenofibrate sale tricor drug purchase tricor online cheap
buy cialis 5mg online cheap viagra cost viagra sildenafil
buy generic ketotifen buy ketotifen generic imipramine 75mg without prescription
purchase mintop for sale minoxidil uk best ed pills
precose 50mg drug micronase 5mg price buy griseofulvin 250mg without prescription
generic aspirin 75 mg buy generic levoflox online buy imiquad generic
dipyridamole 100mg price dipyridamole 25mg tablet pravastatin 10mg us
purchase meloset for sale purchase desogestrel for sale danocrine 100mg drug
buy generic duphaston 10mg order empagliflozin sale order empagliflozin online
fludrocortisone cost how to buy rabeprazole order loperamide online cheap
order prasugrel 10 mg sale brand detrol 1mg detrol order online
buy mestinon paypal buy piroxicam pills for sale purchase rizatriptan online
generic enalapril 5mg buy lactulose cheap order generic lactulose
xalatan ca zovirax cheap rivastigmine order
order tadalafil 5mg generic brand cialis sildenafil 100mg us
how to buy cenforce buy generic naproxen aralen 250mg for sale
modafinil usa order generic modafinil deltasone sale
cheap cefdinir buy cheap glycomet generic prevacid 30mg
esomeprazole cheap buy mirtazapine cheap order topamax sale
where can i buy allopurinol clobetasol buy online buy rosuvastatin 10mg online cheap
buy imitrex 25mg generic imitrex pills dutasteride for sale online
ranitidine 300mg usa buy mobic 7.5mg generic buy generic celebrex for sale
buspin order amiodarone order cheap cordarone 100mg
purchase domperidone without prescription brand domperidone 10mg sumycin order
tamsulosin 0.4mg us buy flomax generic order simvastatin 20mg pills
buy spironolactone 100mg for sale order valacyclovir online finasteride 1mg pills
paperwriter buy a research paper online my best friend essay writing
buy diflucan no prescription cipro us cipro 500mg cost
purchase aurogra for sale sildenafil 50mg purchase yasmin
flagyl usa cost bactrim 960mg buy generic cephalexin for sale
lamotrigine cost mebendazole pills order mebendazole 100mg pill
cleocin 300mg tablet buy sildenafil 50mg sale order fildena for sale
order tretinoin cream generic stendra cheap avanafil cheap
tamoxifen uk order generic symbicort symbicort where to buy
buy tadacip 20mg sale voltaren medication indocin 50mg capsule
order cefuroxime 250mg order ceftin sale order methocarbamol 500mg pill
trazodone 100mg cheap trazodone 100mg price where to buy clindamycin without a prescription
how to get terbinafine without a prescription purchase lamisil pills real casino
purchase aspirin buy aspirin 75mg pill slots games free
custom written papers 7 page research paper order generic cefixime 200mg
cheap term papers gambling website can you play poker online money
trimox 500mg cheap order macrobid for sale buy biaxin online cheap
calcitriol 0.25mg cost order labetalol pill buy generic tricor for sale
buy clonidine pills for sale generic clonidine buy tiotropium bromide 9 mcg without prescription
benzoyl peroxide prescription strength lists dermatologist specializes in acne buy trileptal sale
minocin online buy order terazosin 5mg online requip 1mg cheap
order sleep meds online medications associated with hair loss best gnc weight loss supplements
buy letrozole 2.5mg without prescription buy cheap generic letrozole order aripiprazole 20mg pills
48 hours no nicotine approved drugs for rheumatoid arthritis how to buy painkillers online
provera 10mg uk buy medroxyprogesterone 5mg online cheap hydrochlorothiazide 25mg pills
order periactin 4mg without prescription buy luvox 100mg for sale buy nizoral 200mg online
itraconazole online order best antifungal supplements names of blood pressure medications
buy generic duloxetine over the counter modafinil oral generic provigil 200mg