Unsurprisingly, the drama continues to unfold for disgraced R&B artist R. Kelly. On Wednesday, the police were called to his condo in Chicago’s Trump Tower to break up a fight between his former girlfriends, 22-year-old Azriel Clary and 23-year-old Joycelyn Savage. The fight between the women, who once sat side by side defending R. Kelly, was caught on-camera because Clary was streaming live on Instagram during the altercation. According to the footage, which can be found on TMZ, the incident began when Savage confronted Clary as she was removing her belongings from Kelly’s condo.
“You know that’s wrong. This is his house,†Savage screams at Clary. “You’re disrespectful. You’re so evil.†The camera then falls to the ground as the women begin exchanging blows out of frame. During the brawl, Clary repeatedly yells the phrase, “You were sleeping with me when I was a minor†at Savage, insinuating that they had sexual relations — most likely with Kelly — when Clary was underage. The police were eventually called to the scene.
Clary, who left R. Kelly in December of 2019, stayed on Instagram Live once the police arrived, documenting the direct aftermath of the fight and her eventual trip to the police station. In the footage, Clary tells the police that she would like to press charges against Savage while also demanding that Savage take R. Kelly’s “last two Grammys.†Clary goes on to tell those watching on Instagram that R. Kelly has been “lying to all y’all asses†and “that people like me have been lying for him. That’s why we never watched the documentary,†Clary says, referring to her and Savage never watching the searing Lifetime documentary Surviving R. Kelly that provides painstaking detail, as well as firsthand accounts, of Kelly’s long history of sexually abusing and manipulating underage women. Clary claims that she and Savage “went on Gayle King as stupid as can fucking be,†referring to the interview in which she and Savage passionately defended the singer. The five-minute video ends with Clary at the police station pressing charges against Savage, who was later arrested.
All of this happened on R. Kelly’s 53rd birthday. The singer is spending his birthday with an infected toe, broke, and behind bars. Clary has been taken to the hospital for further evaluation. Kelly’s attorney, Steve Greenberg, released the following statement to TMZ: “I have a statement written by Azriel that she provided to me, voluntarily, after Robert was already in jail, that said she never had sex with him when she was underaged.†In the Surviving R. Kelly follow-up, Surviving R. Kelly Part II: The Reckoning, which premiered on January 6, it is revealed that Kelly would often blackmail his victims with incriminating letters that he himself forced them to write.
Update, January 9: The Chicago Tribune reports that Savage was released from jail on Thursday morning after pleading not guilty to misdemeanor domestic battery charges in court, where her family was present. Police tell TMZ that Clary was allegedly punched in the face and treated for “redness and swelling of her left eye.†Savage has been ordered to appear in court on January 23 or face a penalty of $2,000.
Update, January 10: TMZ reports that Savage and her family reunited for the first time since she left her parents to live with R. Kelly three years ago. She’s said to have met with her immediate family at the Chicago courthouse on Thursday after pleading guilty, and they reportedly spoke for 20 minutes before exchanging contact information. Meanwhile, TMZ also reports that Clary is considering cooperating with the federal investigations into Kelly’s alleged sexual abuse. According to a source, “She’s come to a realization that Kelly played mind games and manipulated her since she moved out of his Trump Tower condo and reconnected with her family.†However, Clary’s reportedly hesitant to work with the Feds because she previously lied to police and fears retaliation from Kelly’s lawyers for breaking her NDA. Per TMZ, federal investigators are “reviewing†the brawl between Clary and Savage, but “for now there are no plans to get involved.â€