"Surviving R. Kelly" Causes Surge In Calls To Sex Abuse Hotline

BYAron A.Updated on September 26, 20223.4K Views

R. Kelly performs onstage during R. Kelly, New Edition and The Jacksons at the 2013 BET Experience at Staples Center on June 30, 2013 in Los Angeles, California.

An increase of sexual abuse survivors reached out for help during "Surviving R. Kelly."

Lifetime's Surviving R. Kelly explores extremely horrific sexual misconduct allegations against R. Kelly. Many were left mortified by the stories told about R. Kelly. However, he also seemed to inspire a lot of sexual abuse survivors to reach out for help.

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According to The Daily Beast, the National Sexual Assault Hotline saw a major spike in calls last night during the premiere of Surviving R. Kelly. A spokesperson for RAINN -- which provides survivors with emotional support, information, and resources on abuse -- revealed that the hotline received a 27% increase in calls on Thursday night in comparison to the same day the week before. RAINN tweeted out a link to their hotline while the Lifetime docuseries aired, writing, “Watching or reading about ‘Surviving R. Kelly’ and need to talk? The National Sexual Assault Hotline is here 24/7.”

https://twitter.com/_/status/1081008574032154624

The influx of calls is common when major sexual abuse stories are in the news, RAINN said. When Christine Blasey Ford's testified against Brett Kavanaugh in September, there was a 147% increase of calls to their hotline.

Unfortunately, the Lifetime docuseries didn't necessarily hurt R. Kelly. In actuality, it proved that even with these testimonies from women, R. Kelly's fans will ride with him through thick and thin. A spokesperson for Spotify revealed that the streaming platform saw a 16% increase in streams for R. Kelly's music following the premiere of Surviving R. Kelly.

About The Author

Aron A.

Aron A. is a features editor for HotNewHipHop. Beginning his tenure at HotNewHipHop in July 2017, he has comprehensively documented the biggest stories in the culture over the past few years. Throughout his time, Aron’s helped introduce a number of buzzing up-and-coming artists to our audience, identifying regional trends and highlighting hip-hop from across the globe. As a Canadian-based music journalist, he has also made a concerted effort to put spotlights on artists hailing from North of the border as part of Rise & Grind, the weekly interview series that he created and launched in 2021. Aron also broke a number of stories through his extensive interviews with beloved figures in the culture. These include industry vets (Quality Control co-founder Kevin "Coach K" Lee, Wayno Clark), definitive producers (DJ Paul, Hit-Boy, Zaytoven), cultural disruptors (Soulja Boy), lyrical heavyweights (Pusha T, Styles P, Danny Brown), cultural pioneers (Dapper Dan, Big Daddy Kane), and the next generation of stars (Lil Durk, Latto, Fivio Foreign, Denzel Curry). Aron also penned cover stories with the likes of Rick Ross, Central Cee, Moneybagg Yo, Vince Staples, and Bobby Shmurda.