R. Kelly’s ex-wife talks about backlash from appearing on docu-series, ‘Surviving R. Kelly’

Andrea Lee said she had an epiphany the day she left R. Kelly and their 13-year marriage.

“The day I escaped from him, it was a realization that these gates on our property was not to keep people out… but to keep me in,” Lee told Extra’s Jenn Lahmers in an interview to raise awareness of domestic violence.

READ MORE: R. Kelly refuses to share jail cell: ‘I have too much going on’

Drea, as she’s known, alleges that Kelly physical, sexually and emotionally abused her. She discussed the abuse first in the docu-series Surviving R. Kelly which aired early this year. She now says that she received loads of criticism from people questioning why it took her so long to come forward.

“It was really hard… the victim shaming, the victim blaming, the backlash I was not prepared for,” Drea told Extra. “I thought, ‘Here I am coming forward, this is about women… women’s empowerment, we’re in this together, and I just want to give validity to these women’s stories and hopefully if they don’t believe them at least they’ll (believe) the ex-wife. It was the complete opposite.”

READ MORE: April trial date set in R. Kelly’s federal case in Chicago

Drea and Kelly divorced in 2009. She said many people believe she is lying to try and claim Kelly’s money, but she said that couldn’t be further from the truth.

“There’s no price tag on any woman’s soul… You can’t put a price on a life… At the end of the day, women are fighting for their lives… That’s why I often say you may love R. Kelly, but you might not like Robert,” she told Extra.

Kelly, who is currently in a Chicago jail, was recently indicted on 13 new federal sex abuse charges, which include conspiracy to receive child pornography, receiving child pornography, producing child pornography, enticement of a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity, and conspiracy to obstruct justice.

Kelly is also facing an indictment in New York on charges of racketeering for allegedly operating a criminal enterprise, and recruiting women and girls to engage in criminal sexual activity.

READ MORE: Prosecutors in R. Kelly case use marriage to Aaliyah to prove singer needs to remain behind bars

In a statement, Kelly’s attorney Steve Greenberg said the charges are duplicative of earlier charges for which he was acquitted. “The conduct alleged appears to be largely the same as the conduct previously alleged against Mr. Kelly in his current State indictment and his former State charges that he was acquitted of. Most, if not all of the conduct alleged, is decades old.”

Greenberg added that Kelly looks forward to “the truth coming out and to his vindication from what has been an unprecedented assault by others for their own personal gain. Most importantly he looks forward to being able to continue to making wonderful music and perform for his legions of fans that believe in him.”

Drea has repeatedly gone after Kelly for outstanding child support. A judge recently ordered back child support payments to be deducted from Kelly’s music royalties.

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John Witherspoon leaves one last laugh in hilarious YouTube video

John Witherspoon had us rolling just hours before he died.

Witherspoon, 77, posted a 15-minute video to his YouTube channel on Oct. 28 cooking what he called “Poor Man’ Gumbo.” He wore little more than an apron and a chef’s toque blanche, and discussed how important it was to create a good roux.

He explains that this time in the kitchen is going to be a special occasion, as he drops a little wisdom on us. Witherspoon aims to show fans the difference between a gumbo for people with money, and those that can’t quite afford “shrimp and lobster… Alaskan King crab.”

Early on in the video, Witherspoon explained the reason why he hadn’t posted to his YouTube page in a year was because he has been working.

“Now I know I haven’t been here for a while, but I’ve been busy doing other things,” Witherspoon said in the clip. “We about to do the Boondocks, and we gonna do another Friday, but I’ve been around working on the road, because I’ve been very, very busy and got a big schedule this year.”

He was in fact set to reprise his role as Mr. Jones in the cult classic Friday franchise. He was also due to return to The Boondocks, according to Deadline.

In the YouTube video, Witherspoon also discussed topics including homeless people, President Donald Trump and Amber Guyger, the former Dallas police officer sentenced to 10 years in prison for murdering Botham Jean.

But unfortunately Witherspoon died on Tuesday, Oct. 29 in his Sherman Oaks, California home.

Witherspoon’s family has long called the actor and comedian “one of the hardest working men in show business.” In announcing his death, his wife and sons tweeted: “It is with deep sadness we have to tweet this, but our husband & father John Witherspoon has passed away. He was a Legend in the entertainment industry, and a father figure to all who watched him over the years. We love you “POPS” always & forever.”

It is with deep sadness we have to tweet this, but our husband & father John Witherspoon has passed away. He was a Legend in the entertainment industry, and a father figure to all who watched him over the years. We love you “POPS” always & forever.

– The Witherspoon Family pic.twitter.com/ov9P34kaMn

— John Witherspoon (@John_POPS_Spoon) October 30, 2019

We’re so grateful he left us with one more laugh. Witherspoon’s final words in the video were, “Thank you. Love each other.”

Check out his last video to fans below:

Thank you, Pops.

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‘Unacceptable’: Trick-or-treater injured in Chicago shooting

CHICAGO (AP) — A 7-year-old girl out trick-or-treating in a bumblebee costume was critically injured after being struck by apparent stray gunfire on Chicago’s West Side, police said.

The girl, who was shot in the upper chest area Thursday night, was taken to Stroger Hospital in critical condition, according to Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford. A 30-year-old man was shot in the left hand and taken to a nearby hospital in good condition.

The shooting occurred early Halloween evening as the girl was walking with her family and other trick-or-treaters along a street in the Little Village neighborhood.

In a tweet, Chicago police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said the girl was believed to be an unintended victim. He said members of the community were assisting investigators “but we need more.”

“We heard the shots … four shots, and I went outside,” said Lali Lara, who works in a nearby cellphone store, told the Chicago Tribune. “The girl’s father was screaming, ‘My little girl’s been shot.'”

Police said a group of males were chasing another male along the street when someone in the group fired at the intended victim. It was not immediately known if the wounded man was with the girl or was the one targeted by the shooters. Police say they have no description of the gunman, and no one was in custody.

“This is unacceptable,” police Sgt. Rocco Alioto said. “A 7-year-old girl that was trick-or-treating with her family had to get shot because a group of guys want to shoot at another male.”

Police said there is a surveillance camera near the crime scene from which video can be obtained.

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Cuba Gooding faces new sex abuse charges, pleads not guilty

Cuba Gooding Jr. was in court yesterday facing new charges that he “forcibly touched” a New York nightclub waitress last year.

The woman became the third to accuse Gooding of inappropriate sexual touching in his sex abuse case. Gooding faces charges from three women in separate incidents, according to CNN.

READ MORE: Prosecutors will not move on sex assault claim against Cuba Gooding Jr.

Gooding was handcuffed and surrounded by his attorneys as he appeared in New York Supreme Court on Thursday. The Academy Award-winning actor was there to hear the latest sexual assault allegations, in which a waitress at LAVO nightclub accuses Gooding of forcibly touching her in September 2018. He is now charged with three counts of forcibly touching and three counts of third-degree sex abuse. Gooding also faces charges from previously alleged incidents in October 2018 at TAO Downtown and in June of this year at Magic Hour club in Midtown, CNN reported.

He has pleaded not guilty to all charges and maintains his innocence.

In court, Gooding’s lawyers poked holes in the new indictment, stating that it is unknown what the exact offense is that his client has allegedly perpetrated.  According to the attorney the allegation just notes that “something” happened. Prosecutors argued that they have several additional women who all claim they were groped by Gooding that they could put before the court to testify.

READ MORE: Cuba Gooding Jr. pleads not guilty to allegations of sexual misconduct

Both sides argued over who leaked a videotape to TMZ that allegedly shows Gooding in an incident with a waitress at TAO Downtown named Natasha Ashworth. Ashworth alleges that Gooding “pinched her buttocks” on his way out of the club.

After the court proceeding, Gooding’s lawyers spoke to reporters outside of the courthouse. Mark Jay Heller said prosecutors were “maliciously prosecuting” Gooding simply because he’s a celebrity. “Anyone who has seen this video would say that there wasn’t any touching that is inappropriate,” Heller said, according to CNN.

“What I see in the TAO video is at roughly 4:30 a.m., at the end of the day, Cuba is exiting the facility and with the back of his hand, his fingernail, he taps the lady in the back and turns around to give her a high five just as a salutation of goodbye — it’s not criminal conduct whatsoever.”

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Curtis Symonds Launches New HBCU Go App

According to TheGrio, Curtis Symonds, CEO of HBCU Network, has introduced a new mobile app called HBCU Go.

Symonds has launched the HBCU Go app which “offers original, authentic and bodacious video content such as sports, music, entertainment, movies, edutainment and live events for our viewers to engage and share with others.” Since its launch earlier this year, HBCU Go has gained approximately 2,000 users with a target of 25,000 by the end of this year.

The app is a companion to HBCU TV that was founded by cable industry veterans Symonds (CEO) and Clinton Evans (General Manager). HBCU TV is headquartered in Washington, D.C. and is a 24/7, 365 education, entertainment, sports, and live events network.

The goal for the sports section of HBCU TV is for recruiters, parents, students, and alumni to view and be kept abreast of how well some of the black student-athletes are performing from the four major HBCU football conferences: the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association, Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, and Southwestern Athletic Conference.

According to Symonds in an interview with TheGrio, the concept of the HBCU Network originated back in 2011, and Symonds negotiated a deal with Comcast but when the company acquired NBC in 2013, the deal fell apart. “I never wanted to let it die,” explains Symonds. “I called myself being ahead of the game and it kind of blew me when it happened because it broke everything up. It didn’t stop me though because I always had in my mind that I was going to do something in the HBCU circle.”

“HBCU TV is dedicated to being a true destination for the total HBCU Experience, but more importantly, to utilize our digital and mobile platforms as a tool for recruitment, enhance the institutions’ endowments, networking, and provide tech-savvy millennials who are pursuing careers within the media and technology industries,” states Clinton Evans.

The HBCU Go app, which can be downloaded from the Google Play store, bills itself as the first and only mobile destination for the total HBCU Hangtime experience. In addition to watching the excitement, you can also invite others to “Hang Out” in your private lounge to chill and have real conversations and a chance to win prizes by playing games with your friends in real-time.

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