Editing R. Kelly (section)

=== Trauma and abuse ===
Kelly described having a girlfriend, Lulu, at age eight, in his 2012 autobiography ''[[Soulacoaster|Soulacoaster: The Diary of Me]]''. He stated that their last play date turned tragic when, after fighting with older children over a play area by a creek, she was pushed into the water, swept downstream by a fast-moving current, and drowned. Kelly called Lulu his first musical inspiration.<ref name="revealed2012" />

Kelly said members of his household would act differently when his mother and grandparents were not home.<ref name="Kelly-2012" /><ref name="WBEZ Timeline" /> This included highly provocative dress and behavior. Kelly stated that when he was eight, an adult woman in the household coerced him into photographing her while having intercourse with an adult male partner.<ref>{{Cite web |title=10 Things Revealed in R. Kelly's Memoir |url=http://www.theroot.com/articles/culture/2012/06/r_kelly_childhood_abuse_new_book_soulacoaster_reveals_all.html |website=[[The Root (magazine)|The Root]] |access-date=December 5, 2017 |archive-date=February 24, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150224190159/http://www.theroot.com/articles/culture/2012/06/r_kelly_childhood_abuse_new_book_soulacoaster_reveals_all.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

From age 8 to 14, he was often sexually abused by an older female family member.<ref name="thecase">{{cite book|last=DeRogatis|first=Jim|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jBeHDwAAQBAJ|title=Soulless: The Case Against R. Kelly|date=June 4, 2019|publisher=[[Abrams Books]]|isbn=9781683357629|location=New York City|pages=}}</ref><ref name="Heath-2016a">{{Cite web|last=Heath|first=Chris|date=January 20, 2016|title=The Confessions Of R. Kelly|url=https://www.gq.com/story/r-kelly-confessions|access-date=October 24, 2021|website=[[GQ]]|language=en-US}}</ref> Kelly's younger brother, Carey, stated that he suffered from years of sexual abuse at the hands of their older sister, Theresa, who was entrusted with babysitting the siblings.<ref name="Ebony-2019">{{Cite web|date=January 9, 2019|title=R. Kelly's Brother Says He and Singer Were Molested by Older Sister|url=https://www.ebony.com/news/r-kellys-brother-he-singer-molested-older-sister/|access-date=October 24, 2021|website=[[Ebony (magazine)|Ebony]]|language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="Biswas-2020">{{Cite web|last=Biswas|first=Shuvrajit Das|date=January 3, 2020|title=Who Is Theresa Kelly? Where Is She Now?|url=https://thecinemaholic.com/where-is-theresa-kelly-now/|access-date=October 24, 2021|website=The Cinemaholic|language=en-US}}</ref> Carey stated that although their older brother, Bruce, was spared and allowed to play outside, both he and Kelly were punished at separate times indoors by Theresa, who refused to acknowledge the abuse when confronted years later.<ref name="Ebony-2019" /><ref name="Biswas-2020" />

Explaining why he never told anyone, Kelly wrote in his autobiography that he was "too afraid and too ashamed".<ref name="revealed2012"/> Around age 10, Kelly was also sexually abused by an older male who was a friend of the family.<ref name="thecase"/> In his autobiography, Kelly describes being shot in the shoulder at age 13 by boys who were attempting to steal his bike,<ref name="revealed2012">{{cite web|title=10 Things Revealed in R. Kelly's Memoir|first=Akoto|last=Ofori-Atta|date=June 28, 2012|url=http://www.theroot.com/articles/culture/2012/06/r_kelly_childhood_abuse_new_book_soulacoaster_reveals_all.html|website=theroot.com|access-date=March 5, 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150224190159/http://www.theroot.com/articles/culture/2012/06/r_kelly_childhood_abuse_new_book_soulacoaster_reveals_all.html|archive-date=February 24, 2015}}</ref> although a family friend claims his mother disputed this, stating that the gunshot was self-inflicted during a suicide attempt.<ref name="thecase"/>