The conversations surrounding R. Kelly and his years-long history of alleged sexual abuse doesn't look like it's going away anytime soon, with even more accusers offering up details on the often-abusive relationships, Billboard reports. This morning saw host Megyn Kelly speak to Asante McGee and Kitti Jones on TODAY, two women who claim they were once in relationships with the music star.
The parents of another woman, Joycelyn Savage, also appeared on the show insisting that their daughter was being held by the singer against her will, despite interviews in which she says she's "happy where she's at." As far as her parents are concerned, those interviews are all a part of a larger manipulation for Kelly to control the narrative and deny any wrong-doing.
"The only thing we wanted from day one was to see our daughter and make sure she was physically fine and mentally fine," said Joycelyn's father, Tim. "Because people need to know that this man is a predator."
Savage later offered up a statement to TODAY through Kelly's management, asserting that her parents were lying. "I call on my parents to stop telling lies about me and my relationship with R. Kelly. I am building my own life and my own career," she reportedly said. "I happen to care for R. Kelly and I enjoy my relationship with him."
Savage's parents were not moved, noting the misspelling of their daughter's name on the statement, speculating Kelly's manager James Mason is the one who actually wrote it. In the past, Mason has publicly feuded with Savage's parents about the allegations.
The show's other guests, McGee and Jones, both described Kelly as manipulative, controlling and prone to violence, with McGee adding she and the other women in his entourage were told to call Kelly "daddy" or they would "get in trouble." Recounting his manipulative tactics, she also said he would "fake cry" to get sympathy. "He tries to say your family's jealous that you're with him," she said.
Jones offered up details of her ordeal with the singer, saying he became physically violent just weeks after she moved into his Atlanta home, and that the women needed permission to use the bathroom. "When you give those things up for love you don't expect that that person will turn into something else. I felt like I gave up everything and once I was there I was in it," she said.
This all comes a week after the singer's management released a statement in light of the #MuteRKelly campaign gaining new traction after joining forces with the women of color from the Time's Up movement and two more women coming forward with their harrowing experiences with the singer. To make matters worse, Deadline reports a Lifetime movie and docuseries about Kelly's abusive past and present is being made, focusing on the women at the center of the accusations.
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