R. Kelly Addresses Talk of ‘Sex Cult’ in Gayle King Interview

R. Kelly addressed the allegations he keeps young women in a “sex cult” during his interview with CBS This Morning anchor Gayle King, insisting he does not have one.

Kelly’s interview came two months after Lifetime aired Surviving R. Kelly, a six-part documentary series about the allegations of sexual assault and misconduct Kelly has faced for more than two decades. The series included interviews with women who claimed Kelly tried to control every aspect of their lives, and described it as living in a sex cult. Kelly denied all the allegations.

“Everybody says something bad about me. Nobody said nothing good,” Kelly said of the series. “They was describing Lucifer. I’m not Lucifer.”

Later, Kelly told King, “Just a lot of rumors that suggest that I’m handcuffing people, starving people. I have a harem – whatcha call it, a cult. I don’t even know what a cult is. But I know I don’t have one.”

Last month, Kelly was charged with 10 counts of sexual abuse by Chicago prosecutors, specifically for alleged abuse against four victims, three of whom were underage at the time.

“Believe me, man! This is not me! They lying on me! They’re lying on me!” Kelly told King as he got up and began screaming.

His crisis manager came in to calm him down, as he continued to say, “I’m telling the truth. I’m not afraid because I’m telling the truth.”

The interview aired in two parts during CBS This Morning this week and aired Friday night as part of an hour-long special. King also interviews Jocelyn Savage and Azriel Clary, two young women who say they are Kelly’s girlfriends. They also said Kelly never did anything wrong and accused the media of creating fiction.

“I’m crying because you guys don’t know the truth,” Clary, 21, said. “You guys are believing some f—ing facade that our parents are saying. This is all f—ing lies for money, and if you can’t see that, you’re ignorant and you’re stupid.”

Clary continued, “I’m crying because you guys don’t know the truth. You guys are believe some f—ing facade that our parents are saying. This is all f—ing lies for money and if you can’t see that you’re ignorant and you’re stupid as f— because you want to be. All because that’s the world we live in. Negativity sells. Gossip is what sells. Rumors are what sell.”

The parents of Clary and Savage, 23, claim their daughters have been brainwashed by Kelly. However, Clary claimed their parents told them to lie to Kelly to pretend to be older. She also accused her father of being a “manipulator” and trying to get thousands of dollars from Kelly.

“We love our daughter Azriel very much and we miss her,” the Clarys said in a statement released by their attorney, Michael Avenatti. “Azriel has suffered severe mental abuse at the hands of R. Kelly for years. She is also likely suffering from symptoms similar to those found with Stockholm Syndrome. R. Kelly is a liar, a manipulator and sociopath who must be brought to justice for his decades of sexual assault on underage girls. All of these victims and their parents cannot be lying.”

Photo credit: CBS