R. Kelly sends message from jail: ‘Leave my music alone!!!’
CHICAGO – Imprisoned R&B star R. Kelly appears to have released a rare public statement from jail Tuesday, imploring people to “just leave my music alone, because it is all I have left, it’s all my fans have left.”
“And they deserve to be able to listen to the music despite what people try and say about me, what they think about me or even do to me,” the message read. “So please, again, LEAVE MY MUSIC ALONE!!!”
The Chicago Sun-Times received the message through an email service for federal inmates. Jennifer Bonjean, Kelly’s defense attorney, said the note appeared to be an authentic message from her client, though she said it was likely typed by someone else.
Kelly purportedly can’t read or write.
“He has people inside who he dictates to,” Bonjean said. “That’s how he writes me all the time.”
A federal jury in Chicago this year found Kelly guilty of three counts of producing child pornography and three counts of enticing a minor into criminal sexual activity. The jury found that he sexually abused a 14-year-old girl on camera after she asked him to be her godfather in the 1990s and that he enticed two additional girls into criminal sexual activity.
Kelly is already serving a 30-year prison sentence for a racketeering conviction in New York, and he faces sentencing in the Chicago case this February. He is being held at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in downtown Chicago.
The new message seems to respond to last week’s news that a collection of Kelly songs had appeared on major music apps. Bonjean told the Sun-Times that “we’ve been investigating this unauthorized release of his music, that was stolen.”
In the note, Kelly not only appears to complain about the theft of his music. He also complains about the loss of his career, his money and his family, as well as his health troubles. The note mentions that, while behind bars, Kelly has suffered from COVID-19, diabetes and tuberculosis. It says he’s had two surgeries.
It also mentions the attack on Kelly by a fellow inmate in 2020.
Echoing her closing argument during Kelly’s trial this summer, Bonjean told the Sun-Times that “the criminal justice system is set up to respond to accusations, but you know, that doesn’t seem to be enough for some people.”
Here is the full message received by the Sun-Times:
LEAVE MY MUSIC ALONE!!! They already got me in here.
They took my voice.
They messed my whole career up.
They took all my money.
They took my kids away from me.
They took me from my family, my friends and all of my fans.
I have had all my emails and phone calls stolen and shared with government witnesses and God knows who else.
I have gotten tuberculosis while being in here.
I have gotten COVID twice while being in here.
I have been diagnosed with diabetes while being in here.
I have had two surgeries while being in here.
I have gotten attacked while I was sleeping, and had my rib cracked and my jaw fractured while being in here.
I have been diagnosed with PTSD while being in here.
I wish they would just leave my music alone, because it is all I have left, it’s all my fans have left.
And they deserve to be able to listen to the music despite what people try and say about me, what they think about me or even do to me.
So please, again,
LEAVE MY MUSIC ALONE!!!
Automotive manufacturers got the chance to reveal new models, concepts and vehicle series at CES 2024. Autovista24 journalist, Tom Hooker, looks at this year’s showstoppers.
While a major automotive theme of CES 2024 was artificial intelligence (AI), there were still plenty of exciting vehicle reveals. The likes of Honda, Kia, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen (VW) used the show to unveil brand-new concept cars or updates to existing models.
Honda unveiled the ‘0 Series’ by throwing the covers off two new concepts, the Saloon and the Space-Hub. Both are due for a global launch in 2026. The brand also premiered its new H mark logo which will feature on the next-generation of electric vehicles (EVs). Three principles detail Honda’s 0 Series approach to EV development: thin, light, and wise. This means designing lower models based on a dedicated ‘thin’ EV platform to create more aerodynamic performance.
The models will advance Honda’s ‘man maximum, machine minimum’ philosophy. This means maximising the space available to the driver and passengers while minimising the space taken up by mechanical components.
As well as this, advanced driver-assistant system (ADAS) technology will also be available at launch. Automated driving (AD) will be offered at a later date, featuring improved AI, sensing, decision-making, and driver monitoring technologies to make more human-like and accurate risk predictions. Efficiency will also be enhanced, with increased power conversion from a new e-Axle system. The Saloon and Space-Hub will benefit from connected technologies, capable of learning user preferences and driving behaviours.
