R. Kelly got emotional as he claimed he was “fighting for his f—king life” in an interview about the various sexual abuse charges the singer is currently facing.
“I sit here and say this: I had two cases back then that I said in the beginning of the interview that I would not talk about because of my ongoing case now,” the 52-year-old singer explained during a segment that aired Tuesday from his upcoming interview on “CBS This Morning” that will air Wednesday, per TMZ. (RELATED: Superstar Rapper Says He Failed Alleged R. Kelly Survivors: ‘We Failed Our Communities As Black People’)
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“Fair enough, but I will tell you this: people are going back to my past, OK? That’s exactly what they’re doing,” he added. “They’re going back to the past, and they trying to add all of this stuff now to that. To make all of this stuff that’s going on now feels real to people.” (RELATED: Fans Don’t React To R. Kelly’s Boycott Over Sexual Abuse Allegations The Way You’d Expect)
The anchor, Gayle King, pressed the “Bump N’ Grind” hitmaker on past allegations that he allegedly engaged sexually with minors in the past, stating that his past is “relevant with you with underage girls.”
“Absolutely, no it’s not,” Kelly snapped back. “Because for one, I beat my case. When you beat something, you beat it.”
Kelly continued, “We can’t double-jeopardy me like that. You can’t. It’s not fair. It’s not fair to nobody. When you beat your case, you beat your case.”
The host insisted that she was not “talking about the one case” where Kelly was acquitted, but the other cases “were women have come forward” and accused the singer of allegedly having sex with them when they were underage.
“Not true,” Kelly responded, denying any wrongdoing. “Whether they’re old rumors, new rumors, future rumors, not true.”
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“Stop it. All you quit playing. Quit playing. I didn’t do this stuff! This is not me! I’m fighting for my f***ing life!” R&B singer R. Kelly angrily denies sexual abuse claims in an explosive interview with @GayleKing; watch @CBSThisMorning, Weds. at 7a ET https://t.co/awWHvHZMMN pic.twitter.com/fGeYev4Elm
— CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) March 6, 2019
At one point, the singer breaks down and looked right into the camera, pleading with viewers to believe he’s innocent, stating, “I didn’t do this stuff! This is not me!”
“How stupid would it be for R. Kelly, with all I’ve been through in my way, way past, to hold somebody, let alone 4, 5, 6, 50, you said — how stupid would I be to do that,” the singer explained.
“That’s stupid! Use your common sense. Forget the blogs, forget how you feel about me,” he added. “Hate me if you want to, love me if you want. But just use your common sense. How stupid would it be for me — with my crazy past and what I’ve been through — oh, right now I just think I need to be a monster, hold girls against their will, chain them up in my basement, and don’t let them eat, don’t let them out, unless they need some shoes down the street from their uncle!”
Kelly continued, “You don’t quit playing! Quit playing! I didn’t do this stuff! This is not me! I’m fighting for my f—king life.”
Singer Robert Kelly, known as R. Kelly, appears in a booking photo provided by the Chicago Police Department in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., on February 23, 2019. Courtesy Chicago Police Department/Handout via REUTERS
Kelly turned himself into authorities on Feb. 22 after a grand jury indicted him on 10 counts of aggravated sexual abuse, involving four females. Three of them were minors. He pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Days later, he posted $100,000 of the $1 million bond and was released. He is due back in court March 22.
As previously reported, over the last few months Kelly has been the focus of numerous reports following the release of the Lifetime docuseries called “Surviving R. Kelly.” It focused on numerous domestic and sexual assault allegations against the embattled singer from several of his accusers. For years, he has been accused of abusing and forcing underage women into a “sex cult.”