By Mark Savage, BBC Music Correspondent
R. Kelly, the chart-topping R&B singer, has been plagued by accusations of s**ual abuse for over two decades.
The allegations date back to the beginning of his career in the 1990s, with many focusing on his predatory pursuit of teenage girls.
In 2022, Kelly was sentenced to 30 years in prison after being found guilty of eight counts of s** trafficking and one count of racketeering in a New York court.
He was later convicted of child s**ual abuse in a separate federal trial in Chicago.
Currently, he is also facing s**ual misconduct charges in Minnesota.
Let’s take a look at the history of the accusations against him.
1994: Marries Aaliyah
At the age of 27, Kelly secretly married 15-year-old singer Aaliyah in Chicago.
It was later discovered that Aaliyah had lied about her age on the wedding certificate, listing herself as 18.
The marriage was annulled in February 1995.
Kelly was accused of bribing a government worker to obtain a fake ID for Aaliyah so they could get married.
1996: Sued for emotional distress
Tiffany Hawkins sued Kelly for “personal injuries and emotional distress” she suffered during a three-year relationship with the star.
She claimed that their s**ual relationship began when she was 15 and he was 24.
The case was settled in 1998 for an undisclosed amount.
2001: Sued by intern
Tracy Sampson, a former intern at Epic Records, sued Kelly, accusing him of inducing her into an “indecent s**ual relationship” when she was 17.
The case was settled out of court for an undisclosed sum.
April/May 2002: Two more court cases
Patrice Jones sued Kelly, claiming that he impregnated her when she was underage and forced her to have an abortion.
Montina Woods also sued Kelly, alleging that he videotaped their s**ual encounters without her knowledge.
Both cases were settled out of court.
June 2002: Charged over child abuse videos
Kelly was charged with 21 counts of making child s**ual abuse videos involving various s**ual acts.
The charges stemmed from a video that was sent anonymously to the Chicago Sun Times.
Kelly denied the charges and was eventually found not guilty on all counts.
2002-2004: Arrest prompts further charges
Kelly was charged with 12 additional counts of producing child s**ual abuse images in Florida.
The charges were dropped due to lack of evidence.
2017: Allegations of a ‘cult’
A Buzzfeed article detailed allegations that Kelly trapped six women in a s** “cult.”
The report claimed that Kelly controlled every aspect of the women
