R. Kelly's Ex-Tour Manager Claims Singer Tried To Have Sex With Him

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R. Kelly performs live at the '6th Annual Soul Train Lady of Soul Awards', 9/2/00, at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in Santa Monica , Ca.
Demetrius Smith speaks on his relationship with R. Kelly.

Lifetime recently aired their new documentary, Surviving R. Kelly which explores the horrific allegations against the singer. Over the years, more and more women have come forward with terrifying stories of enduring sexual abuse from Kellz. Even some of the people close to him have been speaking about things they've seen during their time with the singer. Demetrius Smith, R. Kelly's former tour manager, went on the "Domenick Nati Show" to detail his time with the singer in the early 90's.

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Smith said that he met Kellz in 1985, before the success, and helped the singer launch his career. However, throughout the time he spent with Kellz, he clearly became savvy to some of the singer's manipulation tactics, especially towards younger girls. He alleged that Kelly left women in separate hotel rooms and didn't allow them to leave until he came back from being in the studio all night. "I don't know if he'd tell them to stay or make 'em stay, but the younger girls were the one he could control. The older women, [he] couldn't control. And those that he could control, he'd control," he said. 

Smith then began to detail how it wasn't only women who were subject to his manipulation, but men too. He revealed that Kelly would keep aspiring male artists sit around and wait for him. He didn't detail whether he'd use the young men for sex, but he did allege that Kellz tried to have sex with him before in the early 90's when he just signed to Jive.

"He got some freaky ways, I believe. He showed his ass to me, and I turned it down. I thought he was playing. As you look up and see shit now, he wasn't playing," he said. 

Adding, "I went out and met two girls. Brought them up, kicked it with them... After the girls left, Rob came in my room butt naked. I was like, 'What are you doing, man?' He walked over to the mirror, leaned over, and said, 'You want some of this? You know you want it.' I took it as a joke. I said, 'You little freak. I'm gonna get that.' I walked up behind him. He didn't move. I said, 'Get your ass out of here.' Left it at that. Nothing ever came of that."

Peep the interview below. 


About The Author
Aron A. is a features editor for HotNewHipHop. Beginning his tenure at HotNewHipHop in July 2017, he has comprehensively documented the biggest stories in the culture over the past few years. Throughout his time, Aron’s helped introduce a number of buzzing up-and-coming artists to our audience, identifying regional trends and highlighting hip-hop from across the globe. As a Canadian-based music journalist, he has also made a concerted effort to put spotlights on artists hailing from North of the border as part of Rise & Grind, the weekly interview series that he created and launched in 2021. Aron also broke a number of stories through his extensive interviews with beloved figures in the culture. These include industry vets (Quality Control co-founder Kevin "Coach K" Lee, Wayno Clark), definitive producers (DJ Paul, Hit-Boy, Zaytoven), cultural disruptors (Soulja Boy), lyrical heavyweights (Pusha T, Styles P, Danny Brown), cultural pioneers (Dapper Dan, Big Daddy Kane), and the next generation of stars (Lil Durk, Latto, Fivio Foreign, Denzel Curry). Aron also penned cover stories with the likes of Rick Ross, Central Cee, Moneybagg Yo, Vince Staples, and Bobby Shmurda.
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