R. Kelly’s daughter Buku Abi opened up about her relationship with her father in a new interview.
» RELATED: R. Kelly's daughter, Buku Abi, distances herself, family from singer
The 21-year-old, born Joann Kelly, recently talked to the Associated Press about growing up with the embattled singer. She discussed the challenges of attending public school for the first time soon after her father was acquitted on 14 charges of child pornography in 2008.
“At home it's normal, you're living a life with your parents; your dad and mom aren't going to go into all the bad things that might be going on outside of home,” she said. “But kids in school don't necessarily care. Fifth and sixth grade is when I started learning the sore part of it, the not so good part. I think that was the hardest part for me because for so long I went with this image of who my dad (was) and what my family (was).”
Abi said she is no longer in touch with her father, who is now in a Chicago jail facing multiple sexual assault and child pornography charges. She also doesn't read updates about him.
“I don't let that be a part of my every day (life),” she said. “(We) don't have a relationship, so it's not like me to check in on him. I don't personally go look it all up and read. I keep myself out of it.”
Although Abi’s relationship with Kelly is strained, she said she and her father connect when it comes to making music.
“He has made mistakes in his life and other things that he's dealing with, but when it comes to that, I can't take that away from him,” she said. “That's the one thing that will always keep us connected.”
In March, Abi released her debut EP "Don't Call Me," which was produced by her sister, Jaah Kelly, and she's currently appearing on WEtv's reality series "Growing Up Hip Hop: Atlanta."
But entering the music industry hasn’t come without it’s difficulties. She said being Kelly’s daughter is like “a double-edged sword.”
“I definitely run across challenges — people wanting to work with me to spite him or people not wanting to work with me just because of who he is,” she said. “I’ve been pushing through it. Me making the art, it saved my life so there’s nothing really that would be able to stop me.”
Read more of her interview here.
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