Products You May Like
A Patreon account purporting to belong to Joycelyn Savage, a longtime girlfriend of R. Kelly, has been removed after it detailed how her relationship with the singer evolved into one of manipulation, surveillance, and threats. The purported account had appeared to mark the first time Savage has publicly accused Kelly of wrongdoing. She has previously defended him, most prominently in a joint interview with Azriel Clary—another of Kelly’s live-in girlfriends—on CBS This Morning in March.
In a statement shared with Pitchfork, a Patreon spokesperson said, “After multiple unsuccessful attempts to verify the identity of the account holder, we closed the Patreon page allegedly associated with Joycelyn Savage due to potential impersonation. All patrons who signed up for the membership page were refunded and the creator did not receive any funds.”
The Patreon posts alleged that Kelly led Savage to believe he would help launch her career as a model and singer, even recording songs with her. One post notes that, after several months living together, Kelly began to give her “commands,” requiring she address him as “Master“ or “Daddy.” Savage eventually became suspicious of the surveillance cameras installed on Kelly’s properties, according to the post. “I didn’t have any type of privacy at all now that I think about it. If I showered one of his assistants would have to be by the door while I shower.” The text also alludes to her limited relationship with her family. “I couldn‘t talk to my parents in private sometimes,” the post read. “I was told what to say on the phone to them.”
Another post claimed that Kelly twice made Savage pregnant, and that each time she had an abortion. “It’s scary having your first child and aborting them because of some monster that kept me as a prisoner,” the post stated.
R. Kelly’s attorney Steve Greenberg gave a statement to Variety in response to the posts: “It is unfortunate that Jocelyn now seeks to make money by exploiting her long time, loving relationship with Robert. Obviously if she were to tell the truth no one would pay so she has, unfortunately, chosen to regurgitate the stories and lies told by others for her own personal profit. We know the real facts, and it was not until the money ran out that she decided anything was wrong. Hopefully people will see it for the obvious profiteering it is.”
Gerald Griggs, an attorney for the Savage family, says in an interview with YouTube channel 11 Alive that they have reached out to the owner of the Patreon account and attempted to reach Joycelyn at her last known residence. (The New York Times also tried, without success, to reach Savage directly.) Savage’s parents, who have been working with law enforcement on the case, were featured in the Lifetime docuseries Surviving R. Kelly, claiming that the singer “brainwashed” their daughter.
In March, Kelly and Savage gave separate interviews to Gayle King on CBS This Morning. In her joint interview with Azriel Clary, Savage said she had “a very strong relationship” with Kelly, and that she “absolutely” was in love with him. “Our parents are basically out here just to get money,” she said. “Because they didn‘t agree on what happened with music or whatever it could be. They’re very upset.” King noted that while Kelly was not in view of the women, they knew he was there, as he audibly coughed during the interview.
The story on the Patreon mirrored two other women’s stories accusing Kelly of abuse, including claims the singer made them call him “Daddy.” In a 2018 BuzzFeed News investigation by Jim DeRogatis and Marisa Carroll, R. Kelly’s former girlfriend Lizzette Martinez described how Kelly dictated “what I wore, how I spoke, who my friends were, who I could bring around…. You know, I’m going to help you. I’m going to do everything for you, but you have to listen to me.’ It was always I wasn’t listening to him. You know, a typical domestic abusive relationship, and this was, like, my first relationship in my life.”
Read “How R. Kelly’s Gayle King Interview Shows Typical Abuser Behavior” on the Pitch.
This article was originally published on Monday, November 25 at 9:21 a.m. Eastern. It was last updated on Tuesday, November 26 at 3:34 p.m. Eastern.