R. Kelly Coughs Up $62K In Back Child Support, Dodges Jail Time: Report

R. Kelly won't be heading to jail in his child support battle with Drea Kelly.

BYAron A.May 08, 20192.4K Views

R. Kelly's been dealing with some serious financial and legal issues over the past few months. He's been in and out of court due to his ongoing child support battle with his ex-wife Drea Kelly who claims the singer owes him $62K in child support. He ended up in jail once for not paying it and last month, it was revealed that he could be heading back to jail if he doesn't cough up the amount he owes her in full. After his court appearance, it looks like he has one issue that's now off his plate.

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According to TMZ, R. Kelly's appearance in court yesterday worked out for both him and Drea Kelly. The singer forked over $62K in back child support while avoiding jail. The singer's supposed to pay her $20K a month and Wednesday's payment covers March, April, and May.

Unfortunately, he found out in court that he still owed Drea another $32K in interest on the child support payments. Drea revealed in court that he wants him to pay for their 21-year-old daughter Joann's educational expense. Kelly's lawyer is seeking proof that she's enrolled.

Kelly previously told the judge that he could no longer afford to pay $20K a month in child support and wanted the amount reduced. However, until the judge approves his request, he still has to pay $20K a month.

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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.