R. Kelly’s daughter Buku Abi is speaking out about her father. Abi, real name Joann Lee Kelly, took to Instagram to respond to the backlash and legal allegations swirling in the wake of Lifetime’s docuseries Surviving R. Kelly. In her lengthy post, the 21-year-old condemned the singer. “Buku here. I just want to say a few things,” she began. “Before I start I just want it to be known that I am speaking from the heart, nothing I say is to hurt ANY party reading or affected by this. To the people that I feel I should be speaking up against everything that is going on right now, I just want you all to understand that devastated is an understatement for all that I feel currently. I do apologize for my silence to all this happening comes off as careless. That is my last intention.” She went on explain that she and Kelly have had nothing resembling a relationship in recent years. “Anyone who know me personally or has been following me through out the years knows that I do not have a relationship with my father. Nor do I speak on him or his behalf. I also am not fond of deal thing with my personal issues or personal life experience through social media but, I feel things are starting to get out of hand.” Courtesy of Instagram Courtesy of Instagram Courtesy of Instagram “Going through all I have gone through in my life, I would never want anyone to feel the pain I have felt,” she added. “Reminders of how terrible my father is, and how we should be speaking against him. Rude comments about my family, fabricating me, my siblings & my mother’s ‘part.’” She then alludes to only having a relationship with her father when they were living with her mother, Andrea Lee. “The same monster you all confronting me about is my father. I am well aware of who and what he is. I grew up in that house.” Abi concluded her post by sharing how challenging the past year has been for her, as rumors and accusations have only increased about the "I Believe I Can Fly" singer. “This past year has been really difficult, all the love and support you all continue to show is why we keep going.” Gloria Allred Says R. Kelly Could Be Opening Himself Up to More Lawsuits (Exclusive) This video is unavailable because we were unable to load a message from our sponsors. If you are using ad-blocking software, please disable it and reload the page. Gloria Allred Says R. Kelly Could Be Opening Himself Up to More Lawsuits (Exclusive) Abi's mother, Andrea, previous shared a statement in response to the series as well, hinting at previous attempts by Kelly to silence her. "Thank God for his grace, guidance, love AND deliverance," Andrea captioned an article about the side effects of domestic abuse. "I celebrate the women I am TODAY! Though some want [to] 'expose' the pain filled, scared, abused women I was.....STOP! I AM No longer afraid. No longer willing to silence my PAIN AND SUGARCOAT THE ABUSE I ENDURED because of how my abuser and his LEGAL TEAM were THREATENING to come against me if I 'didn’t choose wisely.'" In the docuseries, dozens of women comment on a variety of sexual abuse allegations against Kelly. The program has led to swift rebukes from the music world and beyond, with artists like Lady Gaga apologizing for working with him. Additionally, an arrest warrant was issued in Illinois for his ex-manager, James Mason, who allegedly threatened a family who claimed their daughter, Joycelyn Savage, was being held captive by the R&B singer, though, Savage has denied the allegations, according to CNN. R. Kelly continues to maintain his innocence and he isn't taking these new allegations lying down. On Thursday, his lawyer, Steve Greenberg, pushed back against the singer's accusers, and the #MeToo movement, in a new interview. "It's a bunch of disgruntled people looking for their 15 minutes of TMZ fame," Greenberg told CBS News. "I believe that all of these women did exactly what they wanted to do. Because now there's some hashtag, that's not going to change." Get more news on Kelly down below. RELATED CONTENT: Jada Pinkett Smith Dedicating Two-Part 'Red Table Talk' Special on R. Kelly Lady Gaga, Chance the Rapper and More: Those Who Have Spoken Out Against R. Kelly Beyonce's Father Says He Purposefully Kept Destiny's Child Away From R. Kelly Related Gallery<doc-sep>Drea Kelly attends TV One’s ‘Rickey Smiley For Real’ season 2 premiere at SCADshow Photo : Marcus Ingram ( Getty Images for TV One ) Imagine being silenced and shamed for years after trying to tell your truth about an abusive and prominent celebrity, then finally being able to broadcast that truth, only for it to be cut short via a cowardly threat. Advertisement That is what happened to R. Kelly accusers Kitti Jones, Jerhonda Pace, Lisa Van Allen, Asante McGee, and Lizzette Martinez on Tuesday night, when a special screening of Lifetime’s upcoming documentary Surviving R. Kelly screeched to an abrupt halt following an alarming gun threat. Activists and cultural notables such as Tarana Burke, Jamilah Lemieux, Kierna Mayo, and Feminista Jones were also at the event. With the documentary, due out in January and executive produced by Dream Hampton, Tamara Simmons, Joel Karlsberg, and Jesse Daniels for Kreativ Inc., the survivors of the R&B artist eerily known as the “Pied Piper” are finally given an empowered voice to tell their own stories and shine a light on his highly disturbing patterns, from 1970 to present day. R. Kelly’s ex-wife Drea Kelly spoke to Rolling Stone about Tuesday night’s threat and how she believes it will only serve to empower her and other black women who are fighting the good fight. “At the end of the day, though, it makes me smile because that lets me know we’re on the right track,” noted Drea, who attended the screening. “We’re causing people to listen. We’re getting people’s attention and we’re getting attention from the one who thought that he was invincible and untouchable. And that also applies to the people that work for him and the people that are around him.” “What people don’t understand is that we are a fire that is burning and it’s never going to go out,” said Drea. “They thought they were putting us out; they just put gasoline on a fire and now we’re just gonna burn longer and stronger. You actually helped us when it was meant to harm us [because] this did nothing but unite us even more.” As Drea noted, “this [threatening incident] is not a stop, this is a pause.” You’re the one that’s muted, R. Kelly, not the women. The fire behind the fight continues to burn. Advertisement The six-part series will begin its three-night broadcast event on Lifetime Thursday, January 3 at 9pm ET/PT.<doc-sep>Shortly after Lifetime premiered its new docuseries Surviving R. Kelly, R. Kelly's attorney spoke to ABC News to address the abuse allegations against the singer. "We know what happened, and we know those things didn't happen," the attorney, Steven Greenberg, said in a pre-taped interview that aired on Friday's episode of Good Morning America. "The man was not operating a harem, or a sex cult, or holding people hostage or anything like that." When asked about Kelly's rumored legal action plans, Greenberg said "hopefully he'll sue Lifetime" for defamation. "People shouldn't be able to do this to someone," he added. In the documentary series, accusers came forward with allegations of sexual, mental and physical abuse against Kelly. The series also addressed claims of predatory behavior and pedophilia. When asked if Kelly denies having a sexual relationship with someone under the age of consent, Greenberg replied, "Yes, he absolutely does." He also confirmed that Kelly was married to Aaliyah Haughton when she was 15. "My understanding is that she did not claim to be 15," he said. "And, in order to get married, she had to lie about her age." Greenberg alleged Kelly had "no idea" she was under the age of consent.<doc-sep>Following the airing of the shocking six-part docuseries Surviving R. Kelly, a number of celebrities have taken to social media to share their thoughts. On Thursday (Jan. 10), the "Ignition" crooner's estranged daughter Buku Abi (given name Joann Kelly) took to her Instagram story to speak out, according to E! News. “To the people who feel I should be speaking up/against everything that is going on right now. I just want you all to understand that devastated is an understatement for all that I feel currently,” she wrote. “I do apologize if my silence to all that is happening comes off as careless. That is my last intention. I pray for all the families & women who have been affected by my father’s actions. Trust, I have been deeply affected by all this.” “Unfortunately, for my own personal reasonings & for all my family has endured in regards to him, his life decisions and his last name, it has been years since my siblings and I have seen and or have spoken to him,” she continued. “In regards to my mother, she for the same reasonings and more, has not seen or have spoken to my father in years. My mother, siblings and I would never condone, support or be a part of ANYTHING negative he has done and or continues to do in his life.”<doc-sep>
R. Kelly’s daughter has broken her silence and spoken out against her father in the wake of a docuseries that puts a spotlight on several allegations of his sexual assault. Buku Abi, whose real name is Joann Lee Kelly, responded to the backlash and legal allegations surrounding Lifetime’s six-part documentary Surviving R. Kelly in a lengthy Instagram post. Part of the message reads: “I just want it to be known that I am speaking from the heart, nothing I say is to hurt ANY party reading or affected by this. To the people that I feel I should be speaking up against everything that is going on right now, I just want you all to understand that devastated is an understatement for all that I feel currently. I do apologize for my silence to all this happening comes off as careless. That is my last intention.” Abi went on explain that she and Kelly haven’t had a relationship in recent years, alluding to only knowing him when they were living together with her mother, Andrea Lee. “Anyone who know me personally or has been following me through out the years knows that I do not have a relationship with my father. Nor do I speak on him or his behalf. I also am not fond of deal thing with my personal issues or personal life experience through social media but, I feel things are starting to get out of hand. “The same monster you all confronting me about is my father. I am well aware of who and what he is. I grew up in that house.” She continued: “Going through all I have gone through in my life, I would never want anyone to feel the pain I have felt,” she added. “Reminders of how terrible my father is, and how we should be speaking against him. Rude comments about my family, fabricating me, my siblings & my mother’s ‘part'”. “This past year has been really difficult, all the love and support you all continue to show is why we keep going,” she concluded. Earlier this week Abi’s mother and Kelly’s ex-wife, Andrea, inferred previous attempts by Kelly to silence her. She released a statement on Instagram, writing: “No longer willing to silence my PAIN AND SUGARCOAT THE ABUSE I ENDURED because of how my abuser and his LEGAL TEAM were THREATENING to come against me if I ‘didn’t choose wisely. '” Surviving R Kelly hears accounts from numerous woman who claim to be victims of sexual assault by the 52-year-old singer. Kelly has denied the sexual abuse claims, saying he didn’t know many of the women featured in the Surviving R Kelly documentary. Police in Georgia and Chicago have launched a criminal investigation. A number of musicians have come forward to apologise for working with the embattled singer, including Lady Gaga, Chance the Rapper, and Phoenix. Phoenix, who performed with R. Kelly onstage at Coachella in 2013, said: “We are deeply horrified by the stories of abuse surrounding R. Kelly. We regret that we were not both more informed and more discerning when we worked with him previously. We fully support all victims of sexual abuse, and it’s our hope that there will be a path to justice.”