R. Kelly’s ex-wife Andrea Kellyis speaking out for the first time in nearly a decade about the alleged abuse she experienced during their 13-year marriage.
“I was not strong enough,” Kelly said of why she’s remained silent for so long. “How can I be a voice for the voiceless when I don’t even have my own? So, I had to wait until God said, ‘Okay, daughter. It’s time.'”
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Andrea, 44, and R. Kelly (né Robert Sylvester Kelly), 51, were married from 1996 to 2009 and have three children together. They met two years before they wed, when Andrea auditioned as a backup dancer for the star. She would go on to handle most of the choreography for his tours, videos and live performances.
They weathered marital ups and downs during their time together. In 2005, Andrea filed an emergency protective order to keep the singer away from her amid claims of physical abuse — which she rescinded weeks later. The couple then filed for divorce in 2006, but were still trying to make things work.
Talking to Johnson, a teary Andrea explained the moment she finally had the strength to walk away. It hit her at one of her darkest moments, as she contemplated suicide.
“That day, I just remember playing sick all day,” said Andrea, fighting back tears. “I went and got in the bed, and I was just like, ‘Okay, what are you going to do?’ And something just said, ‘End it.’ That was my first answer.”
“I remember going out on the balcony. We were at the Wyndham Grand Bay Hotel. I’ll never forget it…Coconut Grove. I actually climbed up on the balcony, and I had one foot propped up against the wall and [with] my other foot I climbed up on the ledge,” she continued.
Sobbing, Andrea explained that she turned to God in that moment, telling Him, “God, you have to give me an answer today — not tomorrow, not in an hour. I need it now. What do you want me to do, if this is not for me?”
It was then that Andrea said God led her to her laptop. There, she searched the words “domestic violence” and was led to a website for support.
“I’m thinking to myself, ‘I’m not that girl. I’m not the teeth missing, broken bone girl,'” Andrea recalled. “But God said, ‘Keep scrolling,’ so I kept scrolling… kept scrolling. And at the end of the domestic violence awareness website, there was a questionnaire.”
That questionnaire led Andrea to answer a series of questions asking, “Has your abuser ever done…?”
Of the 17 questions, Andrea alleged, “Robert had done 15 to me.”
Reps for R. Kelly have denied any accusations, including those from Andrea, telling PEOPLE in a statement that he “has close friendships with a number of women who are strong, independent, happy, well cared for and free to come and go as they please.”
If you or someone you know think they are being abused, call theNational Domestic Violence Hotlineat 1-800-799-7233 (SAFE) or 1-800-787-3224 (TTY) now for anonymous, confidential help, available 24/7.
source: people.com
