Source: Tim Mosenfelder / Getty
Earlier this week, R. Kelly’s name was trending on Twitter for one reason only: He released a new song addressing the sexual assault, pedophilia and sex cult allegations that have been circling around him for more than two decades.
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And while the title of the song, “I Admit” gives off the impression that the Pied Piper has finally come clean about his alleged predatory behavior, it’s quite the opposite. In the 19-minute track, Kelly denies all illegal allegations, going as far as to say that the people accusing him are lying and are only doing so to extort money and ruin his career.
The 51-year-old also paints a picture of being a victim of sorts, claiming that he was sexually assaulted as a young child, is basically illiterate and has perhaps battled with drug addiction.
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While many have lashed out against R. Kelly for releasing this track, this particular song is a slap in the face to Jocelyn Savage’s parents, Tim and Jonjolyn Savage, who claim that the “I Believe I Can Fly” singer has been holding their daughter captive in his “sex cult” for more than two years.
“He released that song on Jocelyn’s twenty-third birthday,” Gerald A. Griggs, an attorney representing the Savage family, told HelloBeautiful.
“So instead of celebrating this special day with their daughter, they are dealing with this nonsense.”
HelloBeautiful sat down with Griggs to discuss the Savages’ allegations against R. Kelly, their frustration with law enforcement and why we need to believe in and fight for Black women and girls.
HelloBeautiful: With the release of “I Admit,” how are the Savages doing?
Gerald A. Griggs: Like I said before, Mr. Kelly released this song on Jocelyn’s birthday, which was hard for them because they weren’t allowed to even celebrate the day with her or even talk to her on the phone. But in terms of his overall antics, nothing he does surprises the family because they have been dealing with this situation and him for over two years.
HB: What are the Savages accusing Kelly of doing to Jocelyn?
GG: Her parents are adamant that Mr. Kelly is controlling their daughter and has been holding her under her against will since late 2015, early 2016.
HB: How did R. Kelly first meet Jocelyn and the Savages?
GG: Despite Mr. Kelly [alluding] in the song that the Savages handed over their then 20-year-old daughter to him, let me be clear: That is not the truth, they did no such thing. One of the singer’s handlers randomly walked into a family-owned boutique in the City of South Fulton, Georgia, where he overheard Jocelyn and her then-16-year-old sister singing.
“Impressed with what he heard,” the handler told the Savages that he could provide them with an opportunity to better their careers by working with Mr. Kelly. Soon after, the handler provided them with tickets to one of Mr. Kelly’s concerts in California. The mother attended the concert with her daughter, which marked the first time Mr. Kelly had met Jocelyn and her family in person.
During that meeting, unbeknownst to the mother, Mr. Kelly slipped his number to Jocelyn and began a relationship with her behind her parents’ back. After they returned home, at some point her parents found out about the relationship and told her to cut off all contact with Mr. Kelly, which they believed she had done.
[At the end of the summer], they dropped Jocelyn off to Gwinnett College in Lawrence, Georgia, but by late December 2015, early January 2016, Jocelyn’s roommate called her parents to alert them that their daughter had gone missing. When the Savages drove to her apartment, they realized that their daughter and all of her belongings were gone.
HB: When is the last time the Savages saw Jocelyn?
GG: The last time they saw her was when the dropped her off at school back in 2015. After she disappeared, they called her cell plenty of times, which went to voicemail. The one time they believe she picked up, there was a rumbling on her end and the phone went dead. After that, her cell phone number was disconnected.
The only time they’ve seen her or heard her voice is online on TMZ where she denied their accusations against Mr. Kelly.
HB: According to your account, what has R. Kelly and his legal representation said to you about Jocelyn’s welfare?
GG: Mr. Kelly has not said anything to us at all. Even worse, the lawyers we reached out to told us that they don’t represent him anymore and led us to his manager, James Mason, who continues to tell us to “trust the process” when it comes to speaking to and seeing Jocelyn.
But how can we “trust the process” when the person behind it won’t even allow Jocelyn to speak to one of her youngest sisters? If what’s going on is so innocent, why can’t Jocelyn speak to a 12-year-old? If what’s happening is so innocent why did she miss her own grandfather’s funeral and basically cut off all contact with everyone who loves her?
We have repeatedly tried to set up a meeting between Jocelyn and her family. We’ve even suggested meeting at a neutral place in order for her parents to see for themselves that their daughter is OK. They want to hear it from her own mouth, but also hope that because they’ve known Jocelyn her whole life, they can be a voice of reason to make her see that she needs to come home.
Most likely, that’s one reason why Mr. Kelly doesn’t want to make her available to them.
HB: What has law enforcement done about the Savages’ allegations?
GG: Not enough, which is why her parents are so frustrated. These allegations should have [sparked] actions such as wellness checks that police actually follow through on. As of now, the police have never made contact with Jocelyn because his handlers in both Atlanta and Chicago have intercepted them.
Why can’t the police check in to ensure her safety?
HB: As the family’s lawyer, what are your feelings about Kelly’s song?
GG: I have no idea what he is doing and why anyone who is advising him legally would allow for him to release that song. That, and I believe that he is trying to paint himself as a victim in order to deflect his own guilt and distract people from the truth. As someone who has practiced law for the past 14 years, I’ve dealt with real victims and he is not one of them.
Mr. Kelly has a history of serious and interesting activity with at least 8 unrelated accusers, including his ex-wife, who have [pretty much] all been saying the same thing. Also, you have a criminal case that ended [in his favor] because the victim wouldn’t cooperate. Then there is that video, allegedly of him engaging in sexual acts with a minor. Not to mention, these reports of him holding women captive.
He is not a victim.
What Mr. Kelly needs to do is stop releasing songs, tweeting and posting on Instagram and let Jocelyn Savage have face-to-face contact with her family. Despite him saying this is about money, no one is suing him. The Savages just want to know that their daughter is doing OK.
HB: Despite more than two decades of damning accusations against Kelly, why would her parents trust their daughter with him in the first place?
GG: Sadly like many people in our community, the Savages believed these allegations were just that, allegations that weren’t true. Now here they are two-plus-years later and they haven’t seen their daughter.
HB: There are a lot of people even now, who still support R. Kelly. Any words for them?
GG: This is something that the African-American community needs to work on in order to reclaim our morality. We are so quick to redeem people who aren’t even asking for redemption.
Mr. Kelly is not admitting to any wrong doings or asking to be held accountable. He is not asking for forgiveness or turning himself into the police. He’s not even saying that he has a problem and needs help. And yet, here we are skipping all over the proper steps to seek redemption and redeeming him anyway.
HB: Speaking of what we need to do as a community, what else needs to happen in order for us to better protect and believe Black women and girls?
GG: We need for more Black male allies to stand with the Black women who come forward with their stories. More of us need to say that this is not right; this is not appropriate.
While Mr. Kelly is saying that he is just a man, this is not what a man does. A man respects, supports and assists his sisters.
HB: Final thoughts on how we move forward and hold Kelly accountable?
GG: I want to stress to any of your readers who still stand with R. Kelly or want to downplay these charges, that we need to be more empathetic toward these women and their families. We tend to have this attitude that because it’s not happening to our daughters or us, that we can easily separate the man from the music.
I mean, just last month, we were crying, watching children being separated from their parents on the Mexican-American border. Yes that’s serious and tragic, but I also need for us to have that same level of concern and sadness when someone in our own community separates a child from their family. I need for all of us to demand that Mr. Kelly return Jocelyn Savage to her parents, right now.
Most importantly, brothers, let’s step up and protect our sisters and queens, Ase.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
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