Lifestyle and Music [2023 Update]

Posted by Martina Birk on Tuesday, June 18, 2024

An American singer, songwriter, record producer R Kelly’s net worth is -$2 million as of January 2022. 

Because of his contribution toward hip hop and R&B, he has been given the nicknames such as the King of R&B, the King of Pop-Soul.

The singer has won 110 awards including 3 Grammy awards.

In September 2021, he was found guilty of nine sexual assaults, including the sexual exploitation of a child. He has been always surrounded by sexual assault and other similar accusations throughout his career.

In 2019 a docuseries titled Surviving R. Kelly was released. The series contained lists of allegations from Kelly’s victims.
After facing continuous lawsuits, complaints, allegations, including Surviving R. Kelly series, his net worth went down.

It is believed at his peak, R Kelly’s net worth was up to $100 million.

R Kelly | Quick Facts

Here are some personal details about R Kelly.

Full NameRobert Sylvester Kelly
Nick NamesR. Kelly, King of R&B, THE PIED PIPER, KELLS
Net Worth -$2 Million
Birth Date8 January 1967
Birth PlaceChicago, Illinois, United States
ReligionChristianity
NationalityAmerican
EthnicityAfrican American
EducationKenwood Academy  
Zodiac SignCapricon 
Father’s NameN/A
Mother’s NameJoanne Kelly
Siblings 3
Age56 Years old
Height 1.85 m
Weight85 kg
Eye Color Dark Brown
Hair ColorBlack
Sexual Orientation Straight
Marital Status Divorced
SpouseAndrea Lee (m. 1996–2009), Aaliyah (m. 1994–1995)
GirlfriendN/A
ChildrenJay Kelly, Joann Kelly, Robert Kelly Jr.
ProfessionSongwriter, Singer, Record Producer, Former semi-professional basketball player
Active Since1990- Present
GenresR&B, Soul, Gospel, Hip Hop
Social MediaInstagram
LabelsRockland, Jive, RCA
Albums12 Play, R Kelly, Chocolate Factory, Doubled Up, Write Me Back, Black Panties, 12 Nights of Chrismas
AwardsAmerican Music Award, Billboard Award, BMI Award, Grammy Award, MTV Award
MerchAutographed Album
Last UpdateDecember 2023

R Kelly | Income and Finances

As of December 2023 R Kelly’s net worth is negative $2 million.

The former R&B King started gaining fame after winning the TV talent show ‘Big Break’ and the $100,000 prize in 1991. The show gave him an opportunity to sign a record deal with Jive Records.

The singer has sold over 75 million albums and had accumulated a large amount of money.

The former King of R&B is so famous, that in 2019, he made $22,000 for a one-hour appearance in a club. He paid his agent $2,000 and kept $20,000 for himself.

Even though Kelly’s reputation was at risk, his music was not much affected until the movement #MuteRKelly.

It was a movement against Kelly’s financial support and toward Kelly’s conviction. As a result, YouTube deleted his two channels, RKellyTV and RKellyVevo.

After the artist was declared guilty, a week after that, his album sales increased. His streams increased from 11.2 million to 13.4 million, and his album sales increased by 500 percent.

After he was proven guilty, things started to get complicated for Kelly as platforms began to band his songs and his record label was terminated. On top of that, he had piles of bills to pay.

In 2020 he revealed he was in $1.9 million debt to US IRS alone. He released a 19-minute song expressing his situation with the allegations and piling bills.

Net Worth of R Kelly in Different Currencies

This is how R Kelly’s net worth looks like in different currencies, including Cryptocurrency BitCoin.

Currency Net Worth
Euro € -1771087
Pound Sterling£ -1,483,990
Australian DollarA$ -2,778,680
Canadian DollarC$ -2,550,100
Indian Rupee₹ -148,860,900
BitCoin฿ -43

R Kelly | Lifestyle and Family

Robert Sylvester Kelly, known as R Kelly’s net worth is -$2 million. He was born on January 8, 1967, to Joanne Kelly and was raised with three half-siblings.

In his autobiography, he has mentioned about sexual abuses he faced as a child.

As a king of R&B, Kelly used to live a glamorous lifestyle.  He has had many romantic affairs and girlfriends.

In 2019 the disgraced artist was almost arrested for throwing a wild birthday party at Chicago nightclub V75.

Amidst the ongoing controversy, the singer was really chilled and instead mocked the situation by singing lines from his song Bump N’ Grind.

Once R Kelly was married to late singer Aaliyah. Their union was very brief as the singer used her false date of birth in the marriage certificate. She was only 15, and Kelly was 12 years senior to her.

Then he married Andrea Lee in 1996. They had three children together, daughter Joann Kelly who is a singer, and sons Robert Kelly Jr and Jay Kelly. Unfortunately, the couple got divorced in 2009.

In a 2018 interview, she opened up about domestic abuse during her marriage with Kelly.

Similarly, Tiffany Hawkins, whom the artist dated, filed a $25,000 lawsuit. The lawsuit was for having a sexual relationship with her despite age-inappropriate. She was only 15 at the time.

His list of other girlfriends includes Kim Dulaney, Deleon Richards, Jara Everett, and K Michell.

R Kelly | Houses and Cars

Houses

Once multi-millionaire, R Kelly’s net worth is -$2 million. During his prime time, he owned multiple properties.

One of his famous properties was his Atlanta home which caught headlines after being accused of captivating women.

It was an 11,455 sq. ft. property with two kitchens, a home theater, a pool, spa, and tennis court. The seven-bedroom house was sold for $1.8 million. 

His other beauty on the list, the Chicago mansion, was purchased by a fellow musician Rudolph Isley. He was a former member of the Isley Brothers. He purchased the property for $587,500.

The 5-bedroom, 7-bathroom mansion built on a 14.525 sq ft area, was worth $5.2 million in 1999.

Cars

The former King of R&B is a fan of automobiles. He used to have a collection of luxurious automobiles.

The R&B singer used to ride Mercedes Benz E Class. It’s a luxurious car with a powerful engine.  Its current estimated price is about $54,950.

His other ride Maybach 62S is known as a private jet on wheels and is considered the greatest luxury car ever made. 

Similarly, he had other luxury cars like Mercedes Benz CL 500 and  Lexus LF -LC. The price of the Mercedes Benz CL 500 is $95,500, and Lexus LF -LC price is $183,000.

R Kelly | Music and Endorsement

Music

Kelly was called King of R&B for nothing. He has a record of selling over 75 million songs worldwide. He is one of the most successful male artists of the ’90s.

His most popular song, I Believe I Can Fly, peaked on number 2 on Billboard Hot 100.

The song won 3 straight Grammys.

His other song, Bump N Grind, peaked on number 1 on Billboard HOT R&B Singles for 12 weeks.

It was a record-breaker. Likewise, his other hits, Your Body’s Callin was no 13 on US Hot 100, Sex Me was no 20 on US Hot 100.

Endorsement

Kelly always had an artistic side which he reflected through his music. He was one of the faces of the Alexander Wang collection. The artist was part of the Spring/Summer 2017 digital campaign.

With such fame and popularity, Kelly was featured in different commercials.

He was the face of the 2002 Sounds & Rhythm of Sport Global ad campaign by Reebook. Likewise, he was also in the Beats Studio commercial with Lady Gaga.

R Kelly | Charity

The former King of R&B has done some good deeds despite his cruel and horrifying truths. He has released songs multiple times just to donate the revenue to the nonprofit.

To support the victims of the school shootings in 2007, he released the song Rise Up. He donated the collection to the victims of the Virginia Tech shooting.

Kelly composed the song Sign of a Victory for FIFA World Cup 2010. All the revenue from the song was donated to African charities.

His other heroic deed includes the private performance to benefit Clara’s House/West Englewood United Organization.

He also donated cases of water bottles to the Flint water crisis. It was a crisis that lasted from 2014 to 2019 in Michigan, United States.

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R Kelly | Career

Kelly started by singing on the streets. He got his first break after winning the talent show Big Break and getting signed by Jive records.

He released his first debut album, Born into the ’90s, with Public Announcement (RnB Group). The album was a hit. Unfortunately, Kelly left the group.

Then he released his first solo album, 12 Play, in 1993. The album has super hit songs like Bump N Grind.

He got his other name Prince of Pillowtalk, from his 1995 album R.Kelly. His songs were pop-soul sex. The album became no one on the Billboard 200 chart.

In 1997 Kelly tried a new career, professional basketball. He played for the Atlantic City Seagulls of the USBL. He wore no 12 to honor his album 12 Play.

His career as a basketball player was very brief. It was his dream to be a basketball player, and once fulfilled, he went back to his main domain.

Unknown Facts About R Kelly

  • The singer holds a Guinness World Record as a songwriter. His song You Are Not Alone was listed as First Song to Debut the US Single Chart at Number One. The song was written for Michael Jackson.
  • Kelly is a high school dropout. He was diagnosed with Dyslexia, an inability to read and write. After getting out of high school, he started performing on subways.
  • Before being part of the Public Announcement, Kelly was a part of the MGM group. MGM stands for Musically Gifted Men. The group released the song Why You Wanna Play Me in 1990.

FAQs

What is R Kelly known for?

Kelly is known for his gospel-tinged vocals and sexual lyrics. He was known as one the best artist between 1990-2000. Now he’s known as a convicted sex offender.

Who is R Kelly’s Daughter?

R Kelly’s daughter is Jonn Kelly, but she goes by the name Buku Abi. She mentioned R Kelly as her father and called him a monster for his hideous deeds on one Instagram post.

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