R. Kelly

January 8, 1967 — Chicago, Illinois, U.S.

Robert Sylvester Kelly (born January 8, 1967) is an American former singer, songwriter, record producer, and convicted sex offender. Known professionally as R. Kelly, he is credited with prolific commercial success in R&B, hip hop, and pop music recordings, earning nicknames such as 'the King of R&B', 'the King of Pop-Soul', and 'the Pied Piper of R&B'. In 2025, Billboard ranked him 9th on their list of the 'Best R&B Artists of All Time'. In 2023, Kelly was convicted of multiple charges of child sexual abuse—three of thirteen charges of production of child pornography and three charges of enticing a child, effectively ending his career. As of 2025, he is serving a 31-year combined sentence at FCI Butner Medium I in North Carolina.