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After the release of a daunting documentary, a recent arrest, and being charged with 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse, R. Kelly finally broke his silence as he sat down for an exclusive interview with Gayle King on CBS This Morning.
Before airing the interview, Gayle sits with her co-hosts to explain the context of the interview and the emotion seen as Kelly pleads to the camera.
King began her conversation with Kelly, saying, “I’m surprised you agreed to do [this interview]. Why are you sitting down with us today?”
Without hesitation, the Grammy Award-winning singer responded, “I’m very tired of all the lies. I’ve been hearing things and seeing things on the blogs, and I’m just tired.”
Gayle followed up by asking Kelly what lies disturb him most, and Kels, said, “All of them: Little girls trapped in the basement; helicopters over my house; handcuffing people; starving people; I have a cult.”
The conversation got heated as King made some very direct statements like, “I think the point you’re making is, and correct me if I’m wrong, that you have never held anybody against their will—“
Kelly quickly interjected to say, “I don’t need to. Why would I? How stupid would it be for R. Kelly – with all I’ve been through in my way, way past – to hold somebody … 4, 5, 6, 50, whatever you said.”
He continued, “Forget the blogs; forget how you feel about me. Hate me if you want to; love me if you want to. But use your common sense…How stupid would it be for me – with my crazy past – to be a monster and lock girls in the basement.”
Things only escalated from there as Kelly pled his case, and ultimately broke into tears as he angrily repeated “Ya’ll are killing me, man.”
“I didn’t do this stuff. This isn’t me. I’m fighting for my f—ing life. Ya’ll killing me with this s—t.”
Kelly ultimately sat with Gayle for nearly 80 minutes while shooting his interview yesterday.