R. Kelly asserts that he had no knowledge of a ruling in August 2023, wherein six women were awarded $10.5 million over alleged threats that resulted in the cancellation of a screening for the docuseries Surviving R. Kelly.
As per court documents obtained by TMZ, Kelly contends that he would have contested the lawsuit had he been aware of it. The singer claims that due to an overwhelming number of legal issues, he underwent changes in his legal representation, causing this specific lawsuit to go unnoticed. Kelly maintains that, even if he received the lawsuit, he "cannot read or understand words beyond that of a grade schooler" and relies on his lawyers to explain the implications he would be facing.
Accused alongside his manager at the time, Donnell Russell, Kelly faced allegations of making repeated threats to silence the six women featured in the Surviving R. Kelly docuseries. Threats were also directed towards legal action against the women and the producers of the documentary. The lawsuit details an incident in December 2018 where a screening in New York City was abruptly halted after a member of Kelly's team allegedly threatened to "shoot up" the venue.
In the recent court documents, Kelly argues that Russell never served as his manager and places responsibility on Russell's shoulders if he indeed made the threat leading to the screening's cancellation, attributing it to "his own reasons." Russell received a one-year sentence related to the lawsuit. Meanwhile, R. Kelly, convicted in 2022 of racketeering and sex trafficking, faces a 30-year prison sentence, followed by an additional 20 years for a child sex crimes charge.
