R. Kelly, the Kids' Book
An "inspirational" children's book detailing the life story of a Grammy winner singer/songwriter awaiting trial on, um, kiddie-porn charges?
Kim J. Dulaney, publisher and author of I Can Fly, an illustrated biography of R&B star R. Kelly, is prepared.
"I'm expecting some negative response," she says of her decision to reissue the title, even as the entertainer faces indictment, "but I can stand behind this decision."
The book was written in the (mostly) pre-scandal days of 1997--"When I believed in this story, when I believed in him," Dulaney says of Kelly, whom she describes as a friend, "as I still do."
Last June, Kelly was charged with 21 counts of child pornography stemming from an alleged videotaped sexual encounter with a 13-year-old girl. He faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted of all charges.
I Can Fly, subtitled, The R. Kelly Story, is due back in bookstores March 1 from Dulaney's Chicago-based publishing company, Unique Expressions.
The book, aimed at readers aged 6-9, originally was issued in 1998. It is one of Dulaney's so-called "Fuzzy-Feelings" series, titles offering children lessons on self-esteem, hard work, and, in the case of R. Kelly, making it against all odds.
To Dulaney, the story of Kelly, who turned 35 on Wednesday, remains "inspirational." The book covers Kelly's emergence from Chicago's South Side projects, where he was a kid so poor he couldn't afford to go to the movies, to the suites of Hollywood, where he was a recording star who wrote songs for the movies. ("I Believe I Can Fly," Kelly's signature hit, was penned for the 1996 Michael Jordan opus, Space Jam.)
Presumably, the book does not cover the scandals that touched Kelly's life even before the child-porn case--namely, his reputed 1994 marriage to the then underage Aaliyah. (The union supposedly was annulled.)
"For me, [the criminal charges]--that's independent," Dulaney says. "That's a whole separate issue, but the going from rags to riches, and the persistence--[that] is what it is."
Still, Dulaney was concerned enough about R. Kelly's problems, which include a spate of lawsuits filed by various women who claim he either seduced them when they were minors, or secretly videotaped their sex sessions, to withdraw the book from publication last year.
"[But] when I go to schools, when I do readings, people want to hear that book," she says of I Can Fly. "For the more part, people think it's a great story."
Dulaney, who says women and children's issues are chief concerns to her, won't comment on whether she thinks Kelly is innocent of officials' accusations. She says she'll discuss the scandal in a new book (for grown-up readers) to be titled, Star Struck: An American Epidemic.
Reached for reaction to the rerelease of I Can Fly, a spokesman for the singer said, "[R. Kelly is] gratified by the expression of support and humbled by the notion that his life might inspire others to reach for the stars."
Kelly has pleaded not guilty to all charges, repeatedly professing that that's not him in the would-be incriminating sex tape. (The FBI begs to differ.)
Currently free on bail, Kelly touched on the legal troubles that have stalled his once high-flying career in the 2002 single, "Heaven, I Need a Hug."
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