Chance the Rapper: ‘Making a Song With R. Kelly Was a Mistake’

Chance the Rapper admits he made a “mistake” when he recorded a song with R. Kelly in the final episode of the Lifetime docuseries Surviving R. Kelly.

As both the rapper and the R&B singer are musical icons in their native Chicago, their paths have crossed on numerous occasions: During Chance the Rapper’s Lollapalooza set in 2014, held in the Windy City, he brought out Kelly as a surprise guest. “Make some noise for the Pied Piper of R&B,” he told the crowd.

The following year, Chance the Rapper made a cameo in Kelly’s “Backyard Party” video and collaborated with the singer on “Somewhere in Paradise.” However, in an interview that features in Surviving R. Kelly, Chance said that in hindsight he regretted working with Kelly.

“Making a song with R. Kelly was a mistake. I didn’t value the accusers’ stories because they were black women,” Chance the Rapper told Cassius‘ Jamilah Lemieux. “I made a mistake.”

It’s unclear whether Chance’s comments were recorded in accordance with Surviving R. Kelly or if it was unreleased footage from an unrelated interview.

While artists in the hip-hop and R&B community were reluctant to appear on camera for Surviving R. Kelly, the six-part docuseries credited Vince Staples for calling out Kelly as a “child molester” in a post-Coachella interview that went viral and helped reopen the national conversation about Kelly.

One notable artist who sat down for Surviving R. Kelly was John Legend, who said of his appearance on the docuseries, which concludes Saturday night with two final episodes, “I believe these women and don’t give a fuck about protecting a serial child rapist. Easy decision.”

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