R. Kelly's daughter accuses him of sexual abuse during childhood
What's the story
Buku Abi, the eldest daughter of disgraced Hollywood singer R. Kelly (57), has accused him of sexually abusing her as a child in a new docuseries titled Karma: A Daughter's Journey.
The 26-year-old revealed that she was allegedly "touched" by her father during her childhood, an incident that left her "too scared to tell anybody."
"I just remember waking up to him touching me," she said in the documentary that premiered on TVEI Friday (local time).
Immediate confusion
Abi struggled for a long time, and couldn't tell anyone
Abi revealed, "He was my everything. For a long time, I didn't even want to believe that it happened. I didn't know that even if he was a bad person that he would do something to me."
"I was too scared to tell anybody. I was too scared to tell my mom."
Emotional turmoil
'I didn't care if I lived or died'
Abi added that the alleged abuse happened when she was around eight or nine years old.
"I didn't know what to do so I just kind of laid there and pretended to be asleep."
"I really feel like that one millisecond completely just changed my whole life and changed who I was as a person," Abi said.
"I didn't care if I lived or died," she said, referring to how the trauma birthed suicidal tendencies.
Family impact
Abi's disclosure and life after the revelation
Abi first revealed the abuse to her mother, Andrea, in 2009 when she was 10 years old.
"After I told my mom, I didn't go over there anymore; my brother [Robert] and sister [Jaah], we didn't go over there anymore."
The documentary also follows Abi as she prepares to welcome a child of her own after revealing that while living in her father's shadow she struggled with suicidal thoughts.
Legal response
Kelly's attorney denied allegations, questioned documentary's credibility
Responding to Abi's allegations, Kelly's attorney Jennifer Bonjean said, "Mr. Kelly vehemently denies these allegations."
"His ex-wife made the same allegations years ago and it was investigated by the Illinois Department of Children & Family Services and was unfounded."
Bonjean slammed the documentary makers for not contacting Kelly to refute his daughter's claims.
To recall, Kelly was convicted of sex trafficking and racketeering in 2022; in 2023, he was also convicted in a separate child pornography case.