New R. Kelly album appears on streaming, but label say it’s a bootleg

A new R. Kelly album appeared on official streaming services this week, but his label Sony Music say it is not an official release.

The 13-track, 56-minute album is called ‘I Admit It’, the name of a 19-minute song he released in 2018 with the intention to “set the fuckin’ record straight” about allegations made against him at the time. Kelly has since been sentenced to 30 years in prison following his conviction on charges of sex trafficking and racketeering.

After appearing on Spotify, Apple Music and more, Sony Music denied knowledge of the album and told Variety that it is an unofficial release, despite the album being attributed to Legacy Recordings – a division of Sony – on streaming services.

According to Variety, a rep for Spotify said the album “has been removed from the platform at the request of the distributor”.

Jennifer Bonjean, a lawyer for the disgraced singer, told Variety that the release did not come from the singer’s camp either, and that he “is having intellectual property stolen from him.” Variety claim that sources indicate the release came via Los Angeles-based label Real Talk Entertainment, though nothing has been confirmed.

Last month, R. Kelly’s manager Donnell Russell was sentenced to 20 months in prison after pleading guilty to stalking and harassing one of the singer’s sexual abuse victims.

According to the Department of Justice, Russell was charged with interstate stalking and the use of phone calls, emails and text messages to harass the victim, identified only as Jane Doe. The prosecution alleged that Russell stalked and harassed Doe and her mother in an attempt to prevent her from coming forward with accusations against Kelly.

Back in October, Kelly was ordered to pay at least $309,000 (£287,000) in restitution to two of his victims.

In a separate case, R. Kelly was this month found guilty of child pornography and obstruction charges.

The date of his sentencing for that case has not yet been announced. Each child pornography charge carries a sentence of up to 20 years, while each enticement charge carries a sentence of up to 10 years.

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