Crime

R. Kelly dropped from his record label

ROLLINGOUT.COM — After weeks of public outcry, RCA/Sony executives finally relented and have decided to give up the record label’s prized musical commodity, R. Kelly.

Published

5 years ago

January 20, 2019

Oakland Post

By Terry Shropshire

After weeks of public outcry, RCA/Sony executives finally relented and have decided to give up the record label’s prized musical commodity, R. Kelly.

[/media-credit] Terry Shropshire

In a move that some pop culture prognosticators saw coming, Sony Music has dumped the embattled superstar singer, Variety magazine has reported. RCA/Sony is the only label that Kelly has known during his highly decorated 30-year music career.

RCA Records is said to have removed R. Kelly from its roster of artists on the website on Friday morning, Jan. 18, 2019. Neither RCA Records nor its parent company, Sony Music, have answered repeated calls for comment.

The label’s shocking move comes after decades of calls for R. Kelly’s censorship, investigation, prosecution and conviction for a multiplicity of sexual crimes he is alleged to have committed against numerous women.

But the inflammatory six-part Lifetime documentary “Surviving R. Kelly” apparently was able to do what rallies, protests and the #MeToo movement were not: get R. Kelly’s label bosses over at RCA/Sony to listen and, more importantly, move to send the singer into musical exile.

Variety reports that RCA/Sony made the move to address its vulnerability “responsibly” and avoid any “legal ramifications.” In other words, when the blizzard of lawsuits is being fired in R. Kelly’s direction, execs at RCA/Sony don’t want to get hit by any shrapnel.

Entertainment attorney Leslie Frank, a partner of King, Holmes, Paterno & Soriano, told Variety that some major-label contracts have provisions stating that if [an artist is] “convicted of a felony or a crime of moral turpitude, generally speaking, it is the label’s right to terminate the contract.

“Any record company — or, really, any party to any contract — can decide they no longer want to be in the contract,” Frank continued. “The question is what can happen as a result of them asserting their desire to terminate the term of the agreement. R. Kelly could sue for damages. If R. Kelly does not want to terminate the agreement and instigates a dispute saying that it’s a breach of contract by RCA, if RCA is concerned about the cost of litigation and how a court might decide, they could try to come to a settlement with R. Kelly.”

Kelly, of course, has not been convicted for any crime, sexual or otherwise. And he has vehemently maintained his innocence from the many charges of pedophilia, sexual violence and keeping women in a sex cult against their will.

Even though Kelly has been cut from the team, RCA/Sony will still hold onto the backlog of Kelly’s music. They had already announced that they would not be releasing any new music from the “Step in the Name of Love” singer.

And now, after incessant pressure brought about from the multipronged protests and all of the artists who are disassociating themselves from R. Kelly, Sony finally decided to pull the plug on a career that seemed to be on its deathbed and deteriorating rapidly.

In fact, some observers would say Kelly’s career has already begun decomposing.

This article originally appeared in Rolling.com.

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Alameda County

DA Pamela Price Stands by Mom Who Lost Son to Gun Violence in Oakland

Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018.

Published

2 days ago

April 22, 2024

Oakland Post

District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones

Publisher’s note: Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018. The photo was too small for readers to see where the women were and what they were doing. Here we show Price and Jones as they complete a walk in memory of Scott. For more information and to contribute, please contact Carol Jones at 510-978-5517 at morefoundation.help@gmail.com. Courtesy photo.

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California Black Media

Anti-Theft Bill with Jail-Time Requirement Gets Wide Ranging Support

Fed up with the alarming frequency of retail theft across California, including smash and grabs, a diverse group of business leaders, law enforcement officials, policymakers and public safety advocates joined their efforts in Sacramento on Jan. 24. Their purpose: to increase public support for Assembly Bill (AB) 1772, a bill that would make jail time mandatory for repeat theft offenders.

Published

4 days ago

April 20, 2024

Oakland Post

San Bernardino Police Chief Darren Goodman speaks as Asm. James Ramos (D-San Bernardino), left, stands beside him at a news conference in Sacramento concerning retail theft across the state.

By California Black Media

Fed up with the alarming frequency of retail theft across California, including smash and grabs, a diverse group of business leaders, law enforcement officials, policymakers and public safety advocates joined their efforts in Sacramento on Jan. 24.

Their purpose: to increase public support for Assembly Bill (AB) 1772, a bill that would make jail time mandatory for repeat theft offenders.

Co-authored by Assemblymembers James C. Ramos (D-San Bernardino), Avelino Valencia (D-Anaheim) and Devon Mathis (R-Tulare), AB 1772 would require jail time “of one to three years for theft crimes depending upon the circumstances.

“Offenses would include grand theft, theft from an elder or dependent adult, theft or unauthorized use of a vehicle, burglary, carjacking, robbery, receiving stolen property, shoplifting or mail theft,” the bill language reads.

Ramos said the need to act is urgent.

“It’s time for us to reverse the spikes in theft crimes since the pandemic. Our law enforcement members and district attorneys need additional tools such as AB 1772. We must reverse the trend before the problem grows worse. Last year I requested a state audit of the impact of Prop 47 on Riverside and San Bernardino counties,” said Ramos.

Prop 47 is the California initiative, approved by voters in 2014, that reclassified some felonies to misdemeanors and raised the minimum amount for most misdemeanor thefts from $400 to $950.

According to a Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) report, the rate of occurrence of petty crimes like shoplifting and commercial burglaries have increased by double digits over the last four years.

In Orange County alone, commercial burglaries have spiked by 54%.

“Our communities are experiencing an increase in retail crime and deserve appropriate action from their legislators,” Valencia said.

San Bernardino County Sheriff Shannon Dicus thanked Ramos.

“This bill, designed to impose stricter penalties on serial retail theft suspects, responds urgently to the escalating consequences of shoplifting and related crimes on our communities,” he said.

AB 1772 supporters who spoke at the gathering included Sacramento Sheriff Jim Cooper and San Bernardino Chief of Police Darren Goodman. Listed as supporters are the California State Sheriff’s Association, City of Riverside Police Chief Larry Gonzalez and Redlands Chamber of Commerce.