R. Kelly denies sexual abuse allegations in explosive interview

In his first interview since being charged with sexual abuse, singer R. Kelly told “CBS This Morning” co-host Gayle King the accusations are lies. The charges involve four women, three of whom were underage at the time of the alleged events.

“They are still talking about you with underage girls. Do you still sit here and say you have never been with underage girls. Can you really say that?” King asked.

“I sit here and say this: I had two cases back then that I said in the beginning of the interview that I would not talk about because of my ongoing case now,” Kelly said.

“Fair enough, but I will tell you this: people are going back to my past, OK? That’s exactly what they’re doing. They’re going back to the past, and they trying to add all of this stuff now to that. To make all of this stuff that’s going on now feels real to people,” he continued.

“But the past is relevant with you with underage girls?” King asked.

“Absolutely, no it’s not,” Kelly said. “Because for one, I beat my case. When you beat something, you beat it.”

“You were acquitted,” King said.

“You can’t double-jeopardy me like that. You can’t. It’s not fair. It’s not fair to nobody. When you beat your case, you beat your case,” Kelly said.

King said, “But I’m not talking about the one case in which you were acquitted. I’m talking about the other cases where women have come forward and said, ‘R. Kelly had sex with me when I was under the age of 18. R. Kelly was abusive to me emotionally and physically and verbally. R. Kelly took me in a black room where unspeakable things happened.’ This is what they’re saying about you.”

“Not true,” Kelly replied.

“These aren’t old rumors,” King said.

“Not true. Whether they’re old rumors, new rumors, future rumors, not true,” Kelly said.

Watch more of King’s interview on “CBS This Morning” at 7 a.m. ET on Wednesday, March 6 and Thursday, March 7, 2019.