Wow, this March has been a month full of men already and we are not even half way through the month yet! I’ve been keeping up with a man who has been some very hot water lately and It looks like the boiling waves have finally come up and over his head- it’s about time! R. Kelly who’s an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and a former professional basketball players’ downhill unraveling began back in January when a Lifetime documentary exposed allegations of abuse, predatory behavior, and pedophilia against R. Kelly. Kelly has faced scrutiny for over a decade now but it’s never been shown this much attention before. Award winner singer/songwriter Lady Gaga apologized to the media for working with him and releasing a song titled “Do What You Want (With My Body)”. Gaga then pulled it down from all streaming services. That song was released in 2013. With all the sexual assault movements in the past 3-4 years I suppose Gaga felt it was inappropriate in this day and age. But that’s not where it ended for R. Kelly. Earlier this week R. Kelly sat down with Gayle King and had an emotional interview about sexual assault allegations he is facing. As R. Kelly broke his silence he claimed that he was quote “very tired of all of the um, lies”. When Gayle King asked R.Kelly one simple question, that was unfortunately the breaking point. Gayle asked “have you ever had sex with anyone under the age of seventeen?”. Gayle could barely get the question out before Kelly raised his voice replying with “NO”. Gayle then told Kelly that she finds it very hard to believe him based on all of the allegations. This angered Kelly even furthered. As R. Kelly started ranting about how it was crazy people accused him of holding girls against their will and chaining them up and such, he screamed ” I didn’t do this stuff, this is not me y’all i’m fighting for my own (explicit word) life, y’all killing me with this (explicit word)”. You can watch the video I have linked and see for yourselves.

For me, this video was quite difficult and even more so disturbing to watch. As I have watched this clip about 12 or so times now to gather my observations of both R. Kelly and Gayle King I came to conclusions myself. I will put it simply- I believe R. Kelly is a pedophile, rapist, and a sexual abuser. Upon editing this blog post I drew a comparison to Kanye West when he had his consecutive string of mental breakdowns and was hospitalized last year. I think that R. Kelly has mentally convinced himself that he didn’t do it even though it looks like he did. I think all of these accusations against him has caused everything to go over his head therefore causing him to have an unstable state of mind, which resulted in his extreme blowup on the air. As for Gayle King, I was scared for her. Seeing Kelly’s profanity, rapid movements and explosive temper it looked to me at certain moments that King was in great danger. I don’t think I was the only girl or women who found it uncomfortable to watch. Seeing the legendary Gale King seated there quietly, calmly, poised and gently prompting Kelly showed the world that she is a strong and heroic individual and to top that- an iconic journalist. In my opinion she had a lot to handle as she was under pressure to give the world an unbiased look inside to R. Kelly, but at the same time she knew she had to sit still and calm with class that to me, she never fails to bring. As for Kelly, he is currently in custody for failing to pay child support money. I hope he doesn’t get to see the sunshine for a long time because his fight looks to be pretty much over.

#All hail Queen Gayle !

-Jordan Victoria