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John Legend on appearing in R. Kelly documentary: “I don’t give a fuck”

Legend was one of just two musicians to contribute to Lifetime’s Surviving R. Kelly.

January 04, 2019

Lifetime's Surviving R. Kelly began on Thursday night. The three-part documentary series investigates the multiple claims of sexual abuse made against Kelly, speaking to many of the women who have accused him of abusing them.

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Executive producer Dream Hampton stated that multiple musicians, including Kelly collaborators JAY-Z and Lady Gaga, declined invitations to contribute. In the first episode viewers saw just two musicians speaking to the documentary team: John Legend and R&B singer Stephanie “Sparkle” Edwards.

Legend responded to viewers' praise for his involvement via Twitter, calling Kelly out as a "serial child rapist" and saying it was an "easy decision" to speak to the cameras.

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Hampton also claimed that Erykah Badu, Dave Chappelle, Questlove, Mary J. Blige, and Lil’ Kim turned down the invitations to speak to her.

Legend previously shared his support of the #MuteRKelly movement and Women of Color of Time’s Up's open calling on the music industry to cut ties with Kelly. “I stand with the women of #timesup #muterkelly,” he tweeted in April 2018.

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Kelly denies all of the accusations made against him and has allegedly threatened Lifetime with a lawsuit over the documentary. The remaining two episodes of the series air on Decmber 4-5.