Robert Sylvester Kelly (born January 8, 1967), best known by the stage name
R. Kelly, is an American
R&B and
soul singer-songwriter, occasional
rapper, and
record producer. Debuting in 1992 with the group
Public Announcement, Kelly went solo in 1993 for a successful solo career starting with the album,
12 Play. Kelly is known for a collection of hit singles including "
Bump n' Grind", "
I Believe I Can Fly", "
Gotham City", "
Ignition", "If I Could Turn Back The Hands Of Time", "
The World's Greatest", and the
hip-hopera "
Trapped in the Closet.
Kelly has also produced and performed in many tracks by other R&B and hip-hop artists. In 1994, Kelly produced and wrote the debut album of R&B singer Aaliyah and in 1995, Kelly produced and co-wrote the song You Are Not Alone for Michael Jackson, which was later included in Jackson's album, HIStory. Kelly has sung the hooks for many notable hip-hop songs, such as "Lovin' You Tonight" by The Notorious B.I.G., "We Thuggin'" by Fat Joe, "Gigolo" by Nick Cannon, and "Go Getta" by Young Jeezy, and has collaborated for two albums with Jay-Z.
In his personal life, Kelly has had several sex scandals. Reports surfaced that he married the then-teenaged Aaliyah, for whom he was a songwriter. Kelly and Aaliyah allegedly annulled their marriage. After a video of a man purported to be him having sex with an underage girl was released, Kelly was indicted on several counts of child pornography in 2002. After several delays, his case went to trial in 2008, with the jury ruling Kelly not guilty on all 14 counts.
Born in the South Side of Chicago, Illinois, Kelly was the third of four children.[1] Kelly's single mother, Joanne, was a singer and a Baptist. Kelly's father was absent throughout most of Kelly's life.[2] Kelly began singing in church at age eight.[1] In Chicago, Kelly's family lived in the projects at 63rd Street before relocating to a small house at 107th and Parnell Streets. Kelly entered the Kenwood Academy in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood in the fall of 1980 but did not graduate.[2] As a teenager, Kelly began street performing (or busking) under the Chicago 'L' trains before he eventually formed a group with his friend Marc McWilliams. In 1990, Kelly and McWilliams formed the group MGM (Musically Gifted Men).[3] Along with Vincent Corey Walker and Shawnth Brooks, Kelly performed on the TV talent show Big Break, hosted by Natalie Cole, and went on to win the $100,000 grand prize.[1] Soon after, R. Kelly & MGM released their first single, "Why You Wanna Play Me," on Tavdash Records.[4] Kelly signed to Jive Records in 1991, and Kelly formed another R&B group with friends called Public Announcement.
