Joann Kelly, daughter of singer R. Kelly, accused her father of having sexually abused her as a minor. In a recent two-part documentary series, Karma: A Daughter’s Journey, airing on the TVEI Streaming Network, the 26-year-old made it known that she first told her mother, Drea Kelly, about the abuse in 2009.
While Joann did not detail specific accounts of the alleged abuse, she described how tough it was coming forward. “I didn’t want to believe it happened. I was too scared to tell anyone,” she said. After having confided in her mother, she and her siblings stopped seeing their father.
Though it has been denied by R. Kelly’s lawyer, Jennifer Bonjean. The singer is serving a 20-year prison sentence on child pornography and enticement charges, in addition to the 30-year sentence he got on sex trafficking charges.
Joann said her dad deserved every minute of the prison time, as she later demonstrated how his actions continued to plague her life.