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Why Is R. Kelly’s Brother Bruce In Jail?

Youtube Bruce Kelly

Bruce Kelly, the older brother of R. Kelly, is currently serving time in jail. An Illinois inmate search reveals that he is at the Shawnee Correctional Facility in Illinois, and his projected discharge date is September 11, 2021. Sentencing information reveals a string of offenses, including possession of a controlled substance, burglary, violation of electronic monitoring, and theft.

Bruce Kelly was first brought into custody on October 25, 2006, and his most recent offense took place in March 2018.


He Was Involved in Part 1 of ‘Surviving R. Kelly’

Bruce and his younger brother, Carey, were both involved in Part 1 of Lifetime’s Surviving R Kelly documentary. Bruce was serving time at Chicago’s Cook County jail at the time of filming.

At one point during his interview for Surviving R. Kelly, Bruce shared of his younger brother,  “Rob was shy and very timid. If you stared at him in his face he would cry.”

At another point in the interview, he said, “Robert likes younger women. You have people who have fetishes about different things. I like older women. Go figure, you know. But that’s just a preference. … Everyone has preferences… So what is the big deal? What’s the big issue with my brother?”

On Thursday, the Hollywood Reporter interviewed executive producers Brie Miranda Bryana and Jesse Daniels to discuss the follow-up to the series.

Asked if they believe Bruce and Carey’s outlook has changed between now and when the docuseries was first filmed, Daniels said, “I don’t know if their outlook has changed about him, but I think that for the family, they’re sad they couldn’t find a way to be together now. I think they maybe would have changed things in the past if they could have. You really see a family torn apart by this.”

Bryant added, “You really saw in Part 1 that they were conflicted. This is their brother; they love their brother. And I don’t think that really changed in interviews from Part 1 to Part 2. In Part 2, they became a little more comfortable with sharing a little bit more than they did in Part 1. I think because a lot of things started coming out and because the more you talk about it, and in the second round of interviews, the harder it is to hold things back.”


He Has Not Spoken to His Brother Since 2015


Bruce tells CBS Chicago that he has not spoken to his brother since 2015, when he took legal action against him for unpaid wages. According to a July 2015 TMZ article, Bruce worked 144 hours each week and “says he never got a dime”, even though he and R Kelly had a verbal agreement for $700 a week.

He tells the outlet that he worked as his brother’s personal assistant, on his videos, and was even a road manager during the peak of R Kelly’s success. TMZ writes, “According to docs filed with the state labor board, Bruce says he sometimes had to wait up to 12 hours in the car for R. Kelly … and never got any sleep.”

In April, Bruce told CBS Chicago that he does not believe the charges against his brother are true. “I don’t believe these charges are true… I don’t believe these women are being truthful. I don’t.” Still, Bruce acknowledges that his brother was very demanding with other women and would often tell them what to do.

“I believe that Robert has an addiction. A sexual addiction. And he really needs to get counseling, help.”

Bruce tells CBS Chicago if he was to see his brother, he would hug him and tell him that he loves him.

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Why is R Kelly's older brother, Bruce, in jail? Here's what we know.