R. Kelly seeks clemency, asks Trump to prison sentence

Embattled American R&B singer R. Kelly has formally asked United States President Donald Trump to reduce his 31-year prison sentence.

Records released by the Office of the Pardon Attorney showed that the singer, whose real name is Robert Sylvester Kelly, submitted an application for executive clemency to the US Department of Justice.

The application, which remains pending, seeks a commutation of his sentence rather than a presidential pardon.

A commutation would reduce Kelly’s punishment without overturning his convictions.

The 59-year-old singer was convicted of racketeering in 2021 after prosecutors accused him of operating a criminal enterprise that recruited women and underage girls for illegal sexual activities.

He was subsequently sentenced to 30 years in prison.

Kelly was convicted in a separate case in 2022 on three counts relating to child sexual abuse material and three counts of child enticement.

He received another 20-year sentence, with most of it ordered to run concurrently with the earlier punishment. The ruling increased his total prison term to 31 years.

Kelly is currently being held at a federal prison in North Carolina and is not expected to be eligible for release until January 2046.

His lawyer, Beau Brindley, has reportedly lobbied Trump for more than a year to intervene in the case.

Brindley previously sought Kelly’s release to home detention, claiming that the singer’s life was in danger following an alleged plot involving prison officials and another inmate.

The court dismissed the application.

R. Kelly has continued to deny the allegations against him.