John Legend has some harsh words for R. Kelly.
John Legend was the only major celebrity to appear on Surviving R. Kelly documentary aired on Lifetime despite threats of legal action from the R&B legend. John spoke out in support of the victims and has been hailed as a hero on Twitter. On Friday, John fired off some harsh words on Twitter calling Kelly a “serial child rapist” while also saying that himself is not a hero for speaking up.
Filmmaker Dream Hampton says it was incredibly difficult to musicians who have collaborated with R. Kelly to speak in the documentary. She said John Legend was the only one who stepped forward. “John Legend was the only one,” hampton said. “I asked Jay-Z, I asked Mary J. Blige, I asked Lil Kim, Erykah Badu, Dave Chappelle… But they all said no. I mean, most people just don’t want to touch it.”
While folks on Twitter are hailing him as a hero, Legend says there is nothing heroic about what he did. “To everyone telling me how courageous I am for appearing in the doc, it didn’t feel risky at all,” he tweeted. “I believe these women and don’t give a f**k about protecting a serial child rapist. Easy decision.”
R. Kelly has threatened to sue Hampton and Lifetime if they aired the documentary, but the network went ahead with the 6-part series anyway.
To everyone telling me how courageous I am for appearing in the doc, it didn't feel risky at all. I believe these women and don't give a fuck about protecting a serial child rapist. Easy decision.
— John Legend (@johnlegend) January 4, 2019
We should all thank my friend @dreamhampton for her very necessary work to create #SurvivingRKelly. These survivors deserved to be lifted up and heard. I hope it gets them closer to some kind of justice.
— John Legend (@johnlegend) January 4, 2019
Also I'm happy to support the work of people like my friends at @ALongWalkHome who have been speaking out on behalf of the survivors for a long time.
— John Legend (@johnlegend) January 4, 2019
