Source: Jive Records
Most of the time when I write, I need quiet. Not silence but at least something similar. But last week, when I was working on the edits to my book (More on that later.), I was playing some of my favorite jams from my iTunes collection, softly in the background. Scrolling through, it wasn’t long before I stumbled across something I’d seen but never processed before.
It was the cover for Aaliyah’s debut album Age Ain’t Nothing but a Number.
Released in 1994, the album was produced in large part Robert Kelly. Not only did Kelly produce and mix the album, he also provided background vocals and wrote every single song, with the exception of “At Your Best (You Are Love),” which was written by the Isley Brothers and Chris Jasper.
I know you see what I see on this album cover. R Kelly is literally lurking in the background like the predator we would eventually know him to be.
It was in the promotion of this album that the two, in matching outfits, appeared on BET’s “Video Soul Gold” where they had to address the nature of their relationship.
Aaliyah said the two were very close, that he was her best friend. R Kelly corrected her, by saying “in the whole wide world.”
Also that year the album was released the two got married in an illegal ceremony where Aaliyah, who was 15 at the time, lied about her age to meet the minimum requirement.
That same year there would also be rumors that she was pregnant with his baby. According to Demetrius Smith Sr., a former member of R Kelly’s entourage, in his 2011 book The Man Behind the Man: Looking From the Inside Out, R Kelly told him, “in a voice that sounded as if he wanted to burst into tears” that he thought Aaliyah was pregnant.
Some have claimed that it was the pregnancy that caused the two to get married.
But another source told Diary of a Hollywood Street King that the marriage was a cover up something else, an STD to be specific.
An insider from R Kelly’s camp said,
“Rob was sneaking and banging a underage Aaliyah, during and after recording sessions. Aaliyah’s family basically turned her over to Kels with no supervision. All hell broke loose, two months later when she missed her period. Kelly’s handlers saw visions of their cash cow and his protege’s career going down in flames. Statutory rape ain’t no joke. They lied about her age, snuck off and got married so she could not testify against her husband. It was all for nothing because she wasn’t really pregnant. Nasty ass Kels had just given her some type of VD that made her miss her monthly. They got the union annulled with the quickness and Kelly sent lil’ Aaliyah back home. Jacky, if you don’t believe me ask Barry Hankerson.”
In case you’re not familiar Barry Hankerson was Aaliyah’s uncle, Gladys Knight’s husband and the one who set her up with R Kelly in the first place. He too was a producer on Age Ain’t Nothing But A Number.
Some of y’all might be wondering why I’m bringing up “old stuff.” But the thing is it’s not really all that old since R Kelly has never had to take responsibility for any of his immoral and illegal actions. Y’all know it wasn’t just Aaliyah or the young lady from the video. There were more.
Furthermore, I mention this album cover because it was very clear that R Kelly was never about the right. And not only was he living foul, he was bold with it. It wasn’t enough for him to be raping a fifteen year old statutorily. He wanted to be on the remix of “Back and Forth.” It wasn’t enough for the two to wear matching outfits and refer to each other as “best friend,” he wanted to appear on the cover, lurking in the shadows. And this album cover, wasn’t the only example of R Kelly being open and out in his dysfunction. And like us, the people around him saw it. But either they didn’t really process what was happening; or worse they saw it and simply turned a blind eye to it, pretended like it wasn’t happening. Pretended like it wasn’t that bad. Or pretended like it was the young girl’s fault. She must have been too fast. She was trying to be grown.
Little did I know that Aaliyah’s career suffered a bit after she ended her personal and professional relationship with R Kelly. Producers didn’t want to work with her, feeling like she might present too much of a headache. And while Aaliyah would eventually find Missy and Timbaland, think of all the other girls who fell victim to R Kelly’s sickness. Many of them didn’t have the luxury of being famous. Didn’t have the contact and resources to move on and go about their lives like Aaliyah did.
Things have changed since the 90’s. People are more likely to recognize this type of predatory behavior. Hopefully, the people who see it firsthand, have the decency to say something to attempt to stop it.
