Current:Home > MarketsIndexbit-R. Kelly's Daughter Joann Kelly to Share a "Heartbreaking Secret" in Upcoming Documentary -StockSource
Indexbit-R. Kelly's Daughter Joann Kelly to Share a "Heartbreaking Secret" in Upcoming Documentary
Ethermac Exchange View
Date:2025-04-11 00:05:33
R. Kelly's estranged daughter has been carrying a heartbreaking childhood secret.
In a new documentary,Indexbit Joann Kelly, who also goes by the name Buku Abi, shares details about her experience growing up with the R&B singer, who is serving a more than 30-year prison sentence for sex crimes against underage girls.
"He was my everything for a long time," Joann, who was not named as one of the victims during Kelly's 2021 trial, says in the TVEI Network's R. Kelly's Karma: A Daughter's Journey, as seen in a trailer released Sept. 29. "I didn't even want to believe it happened."
The 26-year-old continued, "I didn't know that even if he was a bad person, that he would do something to me. I really feel like that one millisecond completely just changed my whole life."
According to TVEI, in the documentary, Kelly's daughter "bravely reveals a heartbreaking secret that shattered her childhood."
Joann, who appeared to be pregnant while filming the documentary, vowed to be open about her experiences with her son and keep him away from the "I Believe I Can Fly" singer.
"If my son asks questions I'm going to be as truthful as possible," she said, "but I would not be taking my son to a prison to meet his grandfather."
Kelly will be 78 when he eligible for release from prison in 2045. In April, a federal appeals court upheld his convictions on child pornography and enticement charges, more than 18 months after the conclusion of his trial in Chicago, WTTW reported.
Joann's mother, Kelly’s ex-wife Drea Kelly, also appears in the documentary. "Just because you’re not a good husband, doesn't mean you can’t be a good father. And the fact that he didn’t even try," the 50-year-old said in the trailer. "What he did to me, he did to me. But you didn’t have to do it to my damn kids."
In 2019, Joann spoke out about her father after the release of the docuseries Surviving R. Kelly, which chronicled allegations of abuse and pedophilia that others made about the singer.
The project preceded an investigation against Kelly that helped lead to his 2022 conviction of racketeering and sex trafficking, and a year later, convictions for felony sexual exploitation of a child, enticement of a female, and possession of material containing child pornography.
"The same monster you all confronting me about is my father," Joann wrote on her Instagram Story at the time. "I am well aware of who and what he is. I grew up in that house. My choice to not speak on him and what he does is for my peace of mind. My emotional state. And for MY healing. I have to do & move in a manner that is best for me."
For the latest breaking news updates, click here to download the E! News AppveryGood! (7172)
Related
- From family road trips to travel woes: Americans are navigating skyrocketing holiday costs
- Global Warming Set the Stage for Los Angeles Fires
- Dick Vitale announces he is cancer free: 'Santa Claus came early'
- Appeals court scraps Nasdaq boardroom diversity rules in latest DEI setback
- Travis Hunter, the 2
- Newly elected West Virginia lawmaker arrested and accused of making terroristic threats
- San Francisco names street for Associated Press photographer who captured the iconic Iwo Jima photo
- Louvre will undergo expansion and restoration project, Macron says
- Questlove charts 50 years of SNL musical hits (and misses)
- Warm inflation data keep S&P 500, Dow, Nasdaq under wraps before Fed meeting next week
Ranking
- Senate begins final push to expand Social Security benefits for millions of people
- Trump invites nearly all federal workers to quit now, get paid through September
- South Korea's acting president moves to reassure allies, calm markets after Yoon impeachment
- Average rate on 30
- FACT FOCUS: Inspector general’s Jan. 6 report misrepresented as proof of FBI setup
- Trump issues order to ban transgender troops from serving openly in the military
- Senate begins final push to expand Social Security benefits for millions of people
- Bill Belichick's salary at North Carolina: School releases football coach's contract details
Recommendation
Will the 'Yellowstone' finale be the last episode? What we know about Season 6, spinoffs
Questlove charts 50 years of SNL musical hits (and misses)
Could your smelly farts help science?
Charges tied to China weigh on GM in Q4, but profit and revenue top expectations
Behind on your annual reading goal? Books under 200 pages to read before 2024 ends
Could your smelly farts help science?
This was the average Social Security benefit in 2004, and here's what it is now
Nevada attorney general revives 2020 fake electors case