John Legend Has Defended His Photo With Harvey Weinstein After Speaking Out Against R Kelly

John Legend has had to defend a photo of himself and Harvey Weinstein after appearing in a documentary about the abuse allegations against R Kelly.

John was one of the few celebrities to appear in Surviving R Kelly, a series exploring the multiple sexual abuse claims R Kelly has faced over his career. These include his relationship with the late singer Aaliyah, whom he married illegally in 1994 when she was just 15 years of age, and the 2002 video that allegedly showed him having sex with an underage girl.

R Kelly has enjoyed a successful career throughout these scandals, collaborating with Jay Z, Usher and Lady Gaga and releasing a Christmas album in 2016. These celebrities were asked to appear in the documentary by producer Dream Hampton, who said:

It was incredibly difficult to get people who had collaborated with Kelly to come forward… That makes John Legend even more of a hero for me.

After the first episodes aired last week, John tweeted that he didn’t feel “courageous” for speaking out, and had no interest in protecting R Kelly.

To everyone telling me how courageous I am for appearing in the doc, it didn't feel risky at all. I believe these women and don't give a fuck about protecting a serial child rapist. Easy decision.

— John Legend (@johnlegend) January 4, 2019

One Twitter user dug up an old photo of John and wife Chrissy Teigen posing with disgraced film producer Harvey Weinstein, who is currently awaiting trial on a number of sexual assault charges.

“Please explain? I don’t remember you publicly denouncing this man,” they wrote. John replied:

I took a photo with and worked with Harvey on several occasions before his abuse was known to me and the rest of the world. Since his being exposed, his company and career have rightfully been destroyed and he’s been indicted. Sounds like something that should happen to R Kelly.

If y'all wanna cape for R and discount all these women's stories, just say it. Don't bring up some old pics of me and somebody else. https://t.co/2wus2P7vNm

— John Legend (@johnlegend) January 8, 2019

Surviving R Kelly features testimonials from several women who claim that Kelly abused them physically, emotionally, and sexually – the singer reportedly threatened to sue the TV network that produced the documentary, stating the women were making ‘false allegations’ for fame.

Since it aired, several celebrities have joined John Legend in denouncing the singer:

How is it that R Kelly's music sales have spiked (substantially) since the release of the docuseries Surviving R Kelly? I need some help in understanding. What am I missing??? pic.twitter.com/pysqVxLzyi

— Jada Pinkett Smith (@jadapsmith) January 6, 2019

I’m not feeling R after watching that …. it’s so much filthy shit going on in this industry nobody will ever really speak on the wild shit because most of them could have docs like this or even worst done about them! https://t.co/4tJxRHvLbQ

— MeekMill (@MeekMill) January 5, 2019

“We should all thank my friend Dream Hampton for her very necessary work to create Surviving R Kelly,” John tweeted. “These survivors deserved to be lifted up and heard. I hope it gets them closer to some kind of justice.”

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• John Legend