When Aaliyah released her first album, she was constantly shadowed by its producer, Robert Kelly, better known as R. Kelly, appearing in interviews together in matching outfits. Rumors about the nature of their relationship began to fly, but when asked during an interview if Kelly, who was then in his late 20s, was either family or the teenage singer's boyfriend, Aaliyah replied, "We're just very close. He's my best friend in the whole wide world."
As of publication, Kelly is on trial for allegedly abusing underage girls and boys over a span of decades, but, at the time, his closeness with Aaliyah didn't set off alarm bells despite their age difference. Vox reported that Aaliyah met Kelly at age 12, when the uber-successful singer seemingly took an interest in her talent. At age 15, Aaliyah's record "Age Ain't Nothing But a Number" debuted, with Kelly appearing in the background of the album cover and on the lead single, "Back & Forth."
Though the pair publicly denied it, in 1994, Vibe magazine uncovered a marriage license that listed Kelly's age as 27 and Aaliyah's as 18 — though she was actually 15. The New York Times reported that Kelly allegedly bribed an official to obtain a fake ID for her. The marriage was swiftly annulled, and Aaliyah distanced herself from Kelly. While details of Kelly's alleged abuse of Aaliyah still emerge today, she never had a chance to share her side.
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