In a shocking revelation that has rocked the music industry, R. Kelly’s daughter, Buku Abi, is coming forward with allegations of sexual abuse she suffered at the hands of her father during her childhood.
In a new two-episode documentary titled “Karma: A Daughter’s Journey,” the 26-year-old artist, whose legal name is Joann Kelly, claims that the disgraced R&B singer sexually assaulted her when she was just ten years old.
“He was my everything. For a long time, I didn’t even want to believe that it happened,” Abi says in the documentary, her voice trembling with emotion. “I didn’t know that even if he were a bad person, he would do something to me. I was too scared to tell anybody. I was too scared to tell my mom.”
Abi’s harrowing account marks the first time she has spoken publicly about the alleged abuse, which she says “changed my whole life and changed who I was as a person and changed the sparkle I had and the light I used to carry.”
According to the documentary, Abi first reported the abuse to her mother, Andrea “Drea” Kelly, in 2009. However, Abi says that when they went to the police to file a complaint, the case could not be prosecuted because she had “waited too long” to come forward.
“At that point in my life, I felt like I said something for nothing,” Abi laments.
In a statement to People magazine, Kelly’s attorney, Jennifer Bonjean, vehemently denied the allegations, claiming that Abi’s mother had made the same accusation “years ago” and that it was “investigated by the Illinois Department of Children & Family Services and was unfounded.”
Bonjean also accused the filmmakers of failing to contact Kelly or his team to “allow him to deny these hurtful claims.”
The bombshell revelation comes as Kelly, 57, is already serving a 20-year federal sentence on charges of child pornography and enticement of minors for sex. In 2022, he was also sentenced to 30 years in prison for racketeering and sex trafficking charges stemming from a separate case in New York.
Abi’s decision to share her story in “Karma: A Daughter’s Journey” is a profound and courageous act, shedding light on the profound personal toll of her father’s crimes.
“I feel like that one millisecond completely just changed my whole life and changed who I was as a person and the sparkle I had and the light I used to carry,” she says in the documentary.
Abi’s siblings, Robert and Jaah, also share their own experiences of growing up in the shadow of their father’s infamy, revealing that they, too, stopped visiting him after Abi came forward with the allegations.
“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. And even until now, I struggle with it a lot,” Abi confesses.
The documentary also features emotional interviews with Abi’s mother, Andrea, as well as her grandparents, Clifford and Melissa, who recount the harrowing night they took the children out of the home they shared with Kelly, with Andrea making the difficult decision to leave her marriage behind.
Abi’s powerful testimony serves as a stark reminder of the personal trauma and lasting scars left by Kelly’s predatory behavior, which has haunted his victims and their families for decades.
As the music industry and the public continue to grapple with the fallout from Kelly’s crimes, Abi’s brave decision to share her story is a testament to the resilience of survivors and the importance of creating safe spaces for them to be heard.
“I feel like that one millisecond completely just changed my whole life and who I was as a person, the sparkle I had, and the light I used to carry,” Abi says. With the release of “Karma: A Daughter’s Journey,” Abi is reclaiming her narrative and shining a light on the deeply personal consequences of her father’s actions, hoping to provide solace and inspiration to others who have endured similar experiences.