R. Kelly’s daughter speaks out against him

“The same monster you all confronting me about is my father”

R. Kelly’s daughter has broken her silence and spoken out against her father in the wake of a docuseries that puts a spotlight on several allegations of his sexual assault.

Buku Abi, whose real name is Joann Lee Kelly, responded to the backlash and legal allegations surrounding Lifetime’s six-part documentary Surviving R. Kelly in a lengthy Instagram post.

Part of the message reads: “I just want it to be known that I am speaking from the heart, nothing I say is to hurt ANY party reading or affected by this. To the people that I feel I should be speaking up against everything that is going on right now, I just want you all to understand that devastated is an understatement for all that I feel currently. I do apologize for my silence to all this happening comes off as careless. That is my last intention.”

Abi went on explain that she and Kelly haven’t had a relationship in recent years, alluding to only knowing him when they were living together with her mother, Andrea Lee.

“Anyone who know me personally or has been following me through out the years knows that I do not have a relationship with my father. Nor do I speak on him or his behalf. I also am not fond of deal thing with my personal issues or personal life experience through social media but, I feel things are starting to get out of hand.

“The same monster you all confronting me about is my father. I am well aware of who and what he is. I grew up in that house.”

She continued:  “Going through all I have gone through in my life, I would never want anyone to feel the pain I have felt,” she added. “Reminders of how terrible my father is, and how we should be speaking against him. Rude comments about my family, fabricating me, my siblings & my mother’s ‘part’”.

“This past year has been really difficult, all the love and support you all continue to show is why we keep going,” she concluded.

Earlier this week Abi’s mother and Kelly’s ex-wife, Andrea, inferred previous attempts by Kelly to silence her. She released a statement on Instagram, writing: “No longer willing to silence my PAIN AND SUGARCOAT THE ABUSE I ENDURED because of how my abuser and his LEGAL TEAM were THREATENING to come against me if I ‘didn’t choose wisely.’”

Surviving R Kelly hears accounts from numerous woman who claim to be victims of sexual assault by the 52-year-old singer.

Kelly has denied the sexual abuse claims, saying he didn’t know many of the women featured in the Surviving R Kelly documentary. Police in Georgia and Chicago have launched a criminal investigation.

A number of musicians have come forward to apologise for working with the embattled singer, including Lady Gaga, Chance the Rapper, and Phoenix.

Phoenix, who performed with R. Kelly onstage at Coachella in 2013, said: “We are deeply horrified by the stories of abuse surrounding R. Kelly. We regret that we were not both more informed and more discerning when we worked with him previously. We fully support all victims of sexual abuse, and it’s our hope that there will be a path to justice.”