Surviving R. Kelly, the Lifetime documentary series, premiered in 2019 with the first set of episodes covering decades of alleged sexual assault, abuse and exploitation at the hands of one of R&B’s biggest stars. With the second set of episodes, which aired in 2020, the creators put a spotlight on the cultural impact of his fall. Now, three years after the last installation of the series, the network will share Surviving R. Kelly Part III: The Final Chapterwhich captures the lasting fallout as the disgraced singer faces criminal charges and is subject to multiple federal and state trials.
The season finale will premiere as a two-night event on January 2nd and 3rd at 8:00 PM ET. The trailer for the updated documentaries sets the stage for the program, featuring testimonies and insights from lawyers, journalists, victims and parents of those targeted.
The first night of the documentary will follow Azriel Clary, Kelly’s ex-girlfriend, as she gives court testimony detailing her experiences of abuse after being told to lie in an infamous interview with Gayle King in 2019. His kidnapping charges – which he was convicted of, along with charges of sexual abuse of a child, bribery, sex trafficking – will also be dissected in the episode.
On the second night, the series concludes with the voices and testimonies of dozens of victims, including new survivors who recently came forward. “This is something unprecedented in the history of popular music with, I believe, hundreds of victims,” says one participant in the trailer.
In one instance, Kelly’s supporters are shown rallying behind him, with his name tattooed across one woman’s breast while others chant for his freedom. The imagery informs a larger scene, as a woman in voiceover celebrates the “combined power of voices” as a way to bring him down. The final moments will bring victim impact statements to the fore as survivors learn of their abuser’s final judgment.
“The little part of me that wanted him to get help — that just went out the window,” another woman explains as more information emerges that points to cases of human trafficking, arson, organized crime, forced labor, coercion, among other allegations.
“Kelly will go down in music history as the worst criminal ever,” predicts one participant in the video.
