Male Accuser Testifies at R. Kelly Sex Trafficking Trial

'Louis' said he was 17 when he encountered the singer
By Liz MacGahan,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 30, 2021 4:38 PM CDT
Male Accuser Testifies at R. Kelly Sex Trafficking Trial
In this courtroom artist's sketch R. Kelly, left, listens during his trial in New York, Thursday, Aug. 26, 2021. The 54-year-old Kelly has repeatedly denied accusations that he preyed on several alleged victims during a 30-year career highlighted by his mega hit "I Believe I Can Fly."   (AP Photo/Elizabeth Williams)

The first of two men who have accused R. Kelly of abuse has testified at his sex-trafficking trial. Several women have testified about their experiences with the R&B singer already. The man, using the pseudonym Louis, says he met the singer while working at a drive-thru in a McDonald’s near Chicago. It was 2006 and Louis, only 17 at the time, was an aspiring rapper when Kelly gave him his number, the New York Times reports. He said Kelly asked him " what I was willing to do for music"—and if he had ever fantasized about having sex with men. Louis said he attended a party at Kelly’s house with his mother, then met him alone on other occasions. He said Kelly recorded their sexual encounters and made Louis call him “Daddy.”

Louis said that during one visit to Kelly's home, the singer snapped his fingers to summon a naked "young lady" who had been hiding under a boxing ring, the AP reports. He said she performed oral sex on both him and Kelly. Louis said he stayed in touch with Kelly because he really wanted to succeed as a musician. Louis said he brought a friend with him to parties. That friend, 16 at the time, will testify later in the trial. Louis said after Kelly, whose real name is Robert Sylvester Kelly, told him, "we’re brothers now," and demanded he not tell anyone what happened, Insider reports. Several women who have testified in Kelly’s trial say that he made them call him "Daddy" too. (More R. Kelly stories.)

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