R. Kelly

Apr
16
Behind the Video: R. Kelly – ‘Share My Love’

R. Kelly

“Let’s get together and populate,” said R. Kelly while shooting the video for “Share My Love,” the first single off his upcoming album Write Me Back, the sequel to 2010’s Love Letter. The R&B lothario had all the ladies to himself while throwing an intimate party on set, with drinks, dancing, and jubilation.

“We don’t like the new videos. We just like to have fun and turn the camera on while we do it,” said Kellz. “We not gonna call this a video, we calling this a real party. Everybody here is VIP.”

The full video will premiere on VEVO on April 19. Go behind the scenes below.

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Apr
9
New Music: Future f/ R. Kelly – ‘Parachute’

R. Kelly and Future

R. Kelly makes a crash landing on “Parachute,” a cut off Future’s debut album Pluto, due April 17. Kellz bigs up himself over the slow winding-beat, singing, “Young fella, they call me the king ’round here/ And now I got my voice back, better listen ’round here/ I’m the shit, ya’ll ni**as just smell ’round here.”

An Auto-Tuned Future falls hard, “feeling real mannish” and wishing he spoke Spanish after meeting one special lady.

Drop down on their hypnotic collaboration.

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Mar
21
R. Kelly Brings Back the Drama in ‘Trapped in the Closet’ Series

R. Kelly

The saga continues with R. Kelly’s “Trapped in the Closet” hip-hopera. After delivering 22 thrilling chapters, the R&B superstar is bringing his suspenseful series to the Independent Film Channel (IFC) this fall. The next installment promises new characters and plot twists, plus the old gang including Sylvester, Rufus, Cathy, Gwendolyn, Bridget, Big Man, Rosie the Nosy Neighbor, Twan, and Pimp Lucius. Watch the drama unfold in the teaser below.

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Feb
18
Alicia Keys, R. Kelly, & Stevie Wonder Perform at Whitney Houston’s Homegoing

Alicia Keys

Whitney Houston’s loved ones gathered to say farewell to the legendary singer they called “Nippy” at a private funeral in her hometown of Newark, New Jersey, on Saturday. Her fans across the world were able to view the homegoing service, which was broadcast globally from the New Hope Baptist Church, where Whitney grew up.

Following remembrances from her family and friends including Pastor Marvin Winans, Kevin Costner, Clive Davis, and cousin Dionne Warwick, some of music’s greatest voices performed emotional tributes to “The Voice” including Alicia Keys, R. Kelly, Stevie Wonder, Kim Burrell, and the Winans family.

Alicia Keys fought back tears as she shared memories of the woman she affectionately called Meema. “I feel like in so many ways, she reached back to so many people,” said Alicia, who sang “Send Me an Angel.” “She reached back to me, she reached back to Monica and Brandy and Jordin [Sparks] and all these beautiful young artists, and made us feel strong and capable and loved. She’s an angel to us and she’s been an angel to us. I think we’ve been sent an angel for a long time.”

Stevie Wonder personalized his classic “Ribbon in the Sky” for his dear friend. “This is such an emotional moment,” said Wonder. “I want to just stop and give all praise to God for just allowing me to be in life at the same time as Whitney.”

A visibly shaken R. Kelly performed “I Look to You,” the song he penned for Whitney’s 2009 album. “We love you, Whitney. Rest in peace,” he said.

Other celebrities paying their respects included Oprah Winfrey, Gayle King, Tyler Perry, Mariah Carey, L.A. Reid, Monica, Brandy, Ray J, and Diane Sawyer.

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Feb
1
New Music: R. Kelly – ‘Share My Love’

R. Kelly

R. Kelly is feeling generous on “Share My Love,” the feel-good first single from his 12th studio album Write Me Back, due in May on RCA Records.

“Now that we’re in this room, let’s do what we were born to do/ Populate, let’s get together, make the world better,” sings the R&B icon on the ’70s-inspired tune, which he wrote and produced.

Kellz is also readying a sequel to his 1993 debut 12 Play entitled Black Panties and is writing original music for the upcoming musical Sparkle starring Whitney Houston and Jordin Sparks.

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Jan
4
The-Dream Explains Why He Can’t Write for Ciara, Praises R. Kelly

Ciara and The-Dream

The-Dream’s conversation with Tim Westwood continues. In the second installment of his BBC Radio 1Xtra interview, Terius reveals why he won’t be working on Ciara’s new album, sings “My Cherie Amour” and “Umbrella” acapella, discusses R. Kelly’s influence on R&B, and explains why he clicks so well with Rihanna.

On why he can’t work with Ciara: “I have a contract under Def Jam so it’s only certain people I work with. [The executives] were real smart by putting that in there, I made them pay for it.”

On R. Kelly’s influence: “He held it down. I don’t think this generation of R&B would be at this particular stage without that. R. Kelly was doing it in a hip-hop-dominated culture,” he says, adding, “But we all gotta go down.”

On his success as a recording artist: “I don’t really care about the million album sales. I don’t really care about the number ones because I do those things writing for everybody else, so I can just stay in this spot and I’m comfortable selling 500k and under. Everybody wants to go pop, I don’t.”

On why Rated R is one of Rihanna’s best albums: “That was right after Good Girl Gone Bad. She could of went up and went more pop, but she regressed and went down back into it.”

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Dec
31
New Music: R. Kelly – ‘Nothing On’ + ‘I Quit You’

R. Kelly

R. Kelly is set to return in 2012 with his album Black Panties, which he describes as “the new 12 Play.” While we wait for the next chapter in Kellz’ career, two previously unreleased tracks, “Nothing On” and “I Quit You,” have hit the net. On the sexy slow jam “Nothing On,” the Pied Piper sings about seeing his girl naked (no G-strings, please), while “I Quit You” is reminiscent of his Happy People / U Saved Me era. We’ll take what we can get.

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Dec
22
R. Kelly Takes Flight on ‘The X Factor’ [Video]

Melanie Amaro and R. Kelly

R. Kelly spread his wings and soared on the two-part finale of “The X Factor.” The music maestro joined finalist Melanie Amaro for the first duet of his classic “I Believe I Can Fly,” praising the 19-year-old singer following their performance. “It was unbelievable. There’s no doubt in my mind that this girl is on her way to the moon,” said Kellz.

In related news, the R&B legend has recorded a whopping 32 new chapters to his “Trapped in the Closet” series and is looking for financial backing to release them. “It costs a lot of money to do, so we’re actually looking for investors,” he told TMZ. Paging Jimmy Kimmel.

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